Macquarie University has revealed its new Engineering Innovation Building, a facility designed to integrate engineering and astrophysics with a distinctly human-centred approach to learning alongside a strong focus on student experience and collaboration.

Positioned at the centre of campus life, the building, designed by Woods Bagot with strategic briefing inputs from ERA-co (part of the 7C Network), invites both students and the wider community to engage with engineering in action within a robust, generous, open and technically sophisticated environment.

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The design team’s approach prioritises experiential principles. "From the beginning, the question was simple,” says Woods Bagot Associate Principal Alissandra Johnston. “How do we create a building where students walk in and feel as though their engineering careers have already begun?"

Conceptualised through close collaboration with staff and students, the design replaces traditional classrooms with open, active, studio-like environments that support project-based learning and continuous use. ERA-co Strategic Director Caitlin Murray notes the University’s ambition to make learning more engaging, describing a vision where students look forward to attending classes on campus.

"I've worked in Education Consulting for 10 years, and Macquarie University had one of the best briefs I've ever seen," recalls Murray. "They were really ambitious about the user experience. They told us they want to stop education from being a chore – where everyone's favourite day of the week to be Monday, because students are so excited to come into this building and learn."

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A key element of the design is the inclusion of what Johnston calls “sticky spaces” – thoughtfully crafted zones that attract students to campus and foster the kind of spontaneous interactions that enhance learning. "When people have been working and studying from home or able to do things remotely, you need spaces that are going to pull students together," she explains.

One of the major highlights of the project involves the adaptive reuse of the existing 9 Wally’s Walk building, now housing dry labs, offices and lower-intensity learning spaces. A new purpose-built wing to the east accommodates advanced workshops, heavy machinery and the three-storey Integration Hall for Australian Astronomical Optics (AAO). A central light-filled room, Field, connects the two wings, functioning as an active community hub for study, testing, events and collaboration. Informal learning terraces and a suspended mezzanine observation deck create a dynamic, interactive atmosphere.

"We knew that we wanted to include viewing platforms in the communal space," says Johnston. "It's always going to serve its primary purpose as a university, but we were thinking about how the space would transform for exhibition nights or as a viewing platform for the robot wars that happen on campus."

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The ground level is designed as a series of flexible, public-facing zones. The double-height Makerspace, located at the corner of Wally's Walk, showcases student projects, while glass-fronted student club garages further along allow engineering teams to work on year-long projects within workshop bays.

"The garages are my favourite part of the building. Each year, students compete to build the fastest human-powered vehicle. Each club has its own space with glass tilt-up doors, so the garages themselves become part of the exhibition. Anyone walking through can see the work evolving throughout the semester," explains Murray.

The AAO Integration Hall, which sits at the centre of the building, enables full-scale assembly of astronomical instruments before they are shipped to observatories around the world. Viewing windows offer occasional glimpses into this work, connecting students with real-world engineering practice.

"That Integration Hall is where our industry partners are building instruments for space that have never been seen before," Murray continues. "Students can look up from their own projects and think, that's my career."

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Architecturally, the building balances robust durability with visual expression through materiality. The original brick structure is retained and strengthened through upgraded glazing and shading, while a distinctive metal facade on the new wing – featuring a triangulated pattern inspired by nearby tree canopies – responds to changing light conditions throughout the day.

A new amphitheatre, known as The Forum, anchors the corner of Wally's Walk and Eastern Road, hosting lectures and events while creating a visible connection and engagement between university life and the public realm.

Internally, exposed steel trusses and sawtooth skylights bring soft natural light into the Field, reinforcing its purpose as an architectural heart that unifies four interconnected volumes into a single, breathable experience.

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"The whole building is designed to break down hierarchy," says Johnston. "There isn't a single traditional lecture theatre. Instead, labs, studios and informal spaces overlap, so students and staff naturally cross paths. You can step out of a lab, grab a cup of tea, and have a spontaneous conversation that becomes part of the learning."

Woods Bagot Director and Global Sector Leader for Education Sarah Ball observes that the collaboration with ERA-co unlocks the 7C Network’s ‘Total Place Design’ approach.

“Starting from first principles, we brought strategic placemaking and architectural design together to shape a facility that deepens the student experience and reinforces campus identity. The outcome for Macquarie University’s Engineering and AAO building exemplifies how thoughtfully designed spaces can engage, inspire and actively support a community of learners.”

Final works are nearing completion, with the building set to open to students in Semester 1 next year.

Images: Supplied

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