Kingspan Insulation, part of the Kingspan Group, has opened a new megafactory in Somerton, Melbourne. The new facility extensively uses Kingspan products, including the first Southern Hemisphere use of Dri-Design by Kingspan, a pressure-equalised rain screen system coming soon to New Zealand. Renowned architect Tone Wheeler was engaged along with local firm Watson Young Architects and Corplex builders to make this 31,000m² project a reality.

The plant comprises of an upstairs open plan office (570m² including two balconies), a warehouse (6,588m² with a logistics office) and a manufacturing area (6,653m² with maintenance workshop, engineering and production offices and a quality control suite).

Kingspan has a global target of net zero emissions for all its manufacturing facilities by 2020. Their new Somerton plant will contribute directly to this goal. The site is aiming for a 6-star Green Star GBCA rating which will make it the first manufacturing facility in Australia to achieve this milestone.

A number of sustainable initiatives have been incorporated into the building's design and construction, including:

• Rainwater harvesting for reuse in bathrooms and landscaping
• Water-efficient bathroom and kitchen fixtures
• The use of Kingspan's own high-performance insulation throughout
• The use of Kingspan's own energy-saving smart lighting system, comprising of skylights and LEDs, which save energy by maximising natural light and automatically dimming the internal LEDs to suit
• A Kingspan solar photovoltaic panel array capable of generating 800 kW of power
• Office ventilation system that will use Energy Recovery Ventilators to provide occupants with 100% more fresh air than required by the building code, while also increasing the efficiency of the cooling/heating system and thus saving energy
• The use of sustainable, responsibly-sourced and fabricated products: concrete with recycled water and aggregate, timber sourced from responsibly managed forests, PVC cables and pipes from manufacturers with high quality environmental management systems, and recycling schemes and steel from environmentally responsible manufacturers
• Target of recycling over 90% of all waste generated during construction

The roof of the manufacturing side of the complex utilises approximately 6,000m² of Kingspan Insulated Panels' KS1000 RW Trapezoidal panel along with Kingspan Day-lite Trapezoidal Rooflight for natural lighting.

The perimeter walls of the warehouse also use Kingspan Insulated Panels' KS1000 RW Trapezoidal panels, and the office wall panels are Benchmark Evolution Axis wall panels (by Kingspan).

'Dri-Design by Kingspan', used on the exterior of the plant, is an architectural rain screen system that provides nearly endless design possibilities, with an unlimited palate of colours, finishes, materials, textures and custom perforations, including imaging. Using the Shadow Series panels adds depth and definition, and the custom perforation allowed Kingspan to add company branding. Together, they offer a stunning combination of functionality and aesthetics. Coming soon to New Zealand, Contact Kingspan Insulated Panels for more information on 'Dri-Design by Kingspan'.