The University of Newcastle's Q Building has been officially opened today by The Hon. Rob Stokes MP Minister for Infrastructure, Cities, and Active Transport.
Part of the University's City Campus, Q Building is regional NSW's first 6 Star Green Star 'Design and As Built' certified building. It has been built to create an innovation hub in the city through the I2N network and also houses the University's School of Creative Industries, Social Sciences and School of Humanities.
Minister Stokes explained the importance of having facilities like Q Building in regional NSW.
"This is another step in the transformation of Newcastle as a globally facing city with education at its heart.
"By reshaping the city centre and making it an easier place to visit and spend time, we've enabled the University of Newcastle to deliver a new hub for a booming city centre economy."
Vice-Chancellor, Professor Alex Zelinsky said Q Building continued the University's commitment to students and the region.
"As an anchor institution and a partner in the growth of our regions, we are dedicated to creating opportunities to support our local economy and take special pride in joining the city in advancing the creative industries.
"I am proud that we have officially opened Q Building today. This new space offers our students many opportunities for hands-on learning and it is wonderful to see a number of new start-ups already calling the Q Building home.
"We are committed to providing an unparalleled learning experience for our students and by offering industry-leading facilities like a media production studio, and animation and audio-visual studios it means students are graduating with the industry skills they need to be work ready and highly employable."
University of Newcastle student, Samuel Edwards, who is studying a Bachelor of Communications at Q Building explained how the space has provided him with facilities to get practical experience.
"Q Building itself feels almost like a start-up environment, in that it feels cutting edge but grounded and accessible at the same time. The nature of my course is very practical and because of the learning I've been doing, it's helpful to have the dedicated space where we can get hands on experience.
"There's a whole bunch of student accessible sound production technology, suites for video production editing, and some amazing industry level equipment that we can use."
"The beauty of the communications course and the breadth of the facilities that are available means I can try out various areas of the field where I might be interested in pursuing a career."
Q Building is also the base for the Integrated Innovation Network (I2N), which supports start-ups and entrepreneurs in our region to get new ideas and businesses off the ground.
To date, I2N has helped 60 start-up and innovation teams, creating almost 100 new jobs in the region.
City of Newcastle's Deputy Lord Mayor Declan Clausen said the City of Newcastle has been working closely with the University of Newcastle on supporting the local innovation ecosystem out of the new Q Building.
"City projects like 'New Move', which enticed startups and skilled professionals to Newcastle, and others which have supported entrepreneurs to get their projects off the ground, have made early use of the fantastic facilities at I2N and helped create the spark we see here today."
Abid Khan, an alumnus of the University of Newcastle, is one local innovator who has utilised I2N to bring his temperature monitoring technology, Thermalog to life.
"You thrive better in likeminded communities and when you bring entrepreneurs together and they start networking, like we do at I2N, you can come up with solutions.
"My colleagues joke that I'm the power-user because I'm here nearly every day. I've met some people here who have helped me in different areas, pointing me in different directions and giving me advice on how to solve a certain problem."
Q Building Features, Facts and Figures
Sustainability
- The Q Building is the first certified regional NSW 6 Star Green Star Design and as Built rated building by the Green Building Council of Australia.
- The mass timber design is a first for the region and utilises sustainably sourced timber.
- Sage glass has been installed to the eastern, northern and western facades. This glass changes tint level in response to sunlight, improving thermal comfort in the building while maintaining transparency. This is the largest installation of this glass type in the Southern Hemisphere.
I2N
- 60 teams accelerated and incubated
- $25M+ total funding raised ($12.1M FY22)
- $8M+ revenue generated
- $7M+ employee salaries and wages ($3.8M FY22)
- 99+ new jobs created (57 FY21)
- 17+ work integrated learning placements (FY22)
- 11 patents filed
- 39+ solutions brought to market
