Incubator - Future Schools Competition 2011

Victoria, AUST

Project: Education

The A10 began with a simple proposition: that a prefabricated building should be capable of more than meeting an immediate need. Conceived as a lasting piece of educational infrastructure, it challenges the notion of the transportable classroom as a temporary or disposable solution. Instead, the A10 brings together architecture, modular construction and environmental responsibility to create a building that can be deployed, reconfigured and extended over time, responding to the needs of the communities it serves.

Designed to provide a complete learning environment wherever one is needed, the A10 can stand alone, connect to an existing school or combine with other units to establish an entirely new place of learning. The standard 18.0m x 6.0m module accommodates up to 30 children and their teachers, incorporating wireless computer connectivity, integrated toilet and washroom facilities, water collection and solar energy.

The ambition is to future proof not simply the building, but the investment it represents. Through a durable structural framework, interchangeable components and a considered approach to climate and material selection, the A10 is designed to evolve rather than be replaced. It offers a different proposition for educational architecture: a building with the practicality of prefabrication, the integrity of a permanent structure and the capacity to remain useful long into the future.