Installation of a 2,679sqm solar skin has been completed at 435 Bourke Street in Melbourne, marking a major construction milestone for the commercial office tower.
The building-integrated photovoltaic system comprises 1,391 solar panels across the tower’s façade, crown and rooftop, with an installed peak capacity of 375 kilowatts (kWp). Alongside generating renewable electricity, the system provides passive shading in selected areas of the façade, incorporating energy production into the building’s architectural design.
The installation involved a complex construction process, requiring coordination between the façade, structural and building services teams to integrate the photovoltaic technology into the building envelope while maintaining construction quality and the project program.
Contractor Multiplex worked alongside developer Cbus Property, architect Bates Smart, engineering consultancy BG&E Engineers and other specialist project partners.
Multiplex regional managing director for Victoria and South Australia Ross Snowball said installing the solar skin had been “one of the most challenging aspects of delivering the project”.
“It’s a great example of how early collaboration between project partners enables innovation to be embedded into the delivery of a project rather than bolted on at the end,” he said.
Bates Smart director Cian Davis said the solar skin demonstrated how photovoltaic technology could be incorporated into the architectural design of commercial buildings, with the panels serving both energy-generating and shading functions.
“The role of a tower façade has always been to protect the interior from the sun,” he said. “At 435 Bourke Street, it does that while also generating the building’s power, through one of Australia’s first solar skins, with solar ‘leaves’ that shade the workplace as they produce energy.”
Cbus Property chief executive officer Chris Kakoufas said the solar skin’s completion marked an important milestone for sustainable commercial development in Australia.
“Successfully installing 435 Bourke Street’s solar skin is a significant achievement for our project team and partners, not to mention a tangible demonstration of how innovation and sustainability can be embraced to enhance a building’s performance while contributing to its architectural identity,” he said.
Kakoufas said design modelling estimated the system could generate up to 20 per cent of the building’s forecast base building electricity requirements once commissioned, with the balance to be supplied through an off-site renewable energy arrangement.
The development is targeting a 6 Star Green Star rating from the Green Building Council of Australia.
“This reduces operational costs for our tenant partners and emissions from grid electricity consumption, while creating a distinctive visual identity for the tower,” said Kakoufas.
Construction of 435 Bourke Street is progressing towards practical completion in late 2026, with the tower set to provide about 62,000sqm of office accommodation, hospitality offerings and hotel-style amenities.
About 3,500 jobs are expected to have been created throughout construction, with an average of 300 workers on site daily and up to 490 during peak construction periods.
