THE LIGHTWAVE BLOG
A place to review and voice opinion and
insight on the development of environments
13 December, 2017
The power of Architecture – Flying Monks
Songshan Mountain is a sacred & UNESCO World Heritage listed site in rural Henan, Central China. Designed by Latvian Studio Mailitis Architects, the Shaolin Flying Monks Theatre is nested along Songshan’s hillside, creating a new landmark amongst the existing traditional structures such as the Shaolin Monastery and the Songyang Confucian Academy. It houses a vertical [...]
7 December, 2017
Marquee on Meron – Vertical and rooftop gardens in Southport PDA, Gold Coast
Marquee on Meron, designed by Lightwave, commenced construction in November. This development sits in the Garden Residential Precinct on the southern end of the PDA area. Meron Street and Bauer Streets have long been recognised for their relaxed landscape character and the PDA envisages this character be maintained as the area morphs into a high [...]
7 December, 2017
Azur Samui Villas – Luxury private pool villas in Koh Samui, Thailand
Koh Samui Villas at Azur roll out after a number of years in the design, planning and construction stages. Azur Samui is a luxury resort located in the lush green hills of Koh Samui, with spectacular panoramic views over the Gulf to the neighbouring island of Koh Pha Ngan. The Lightwave designed villas spatial planning [...]
6 December, 2017
10 Principles to design for people with Dementia
Lightwave team members recently attended a Dementia Design workshop run by Dementia Training Australia. The workshop has been put together by the eminent Richard Fleming, a professor from the University of Wollongong who has spent a lifetime researching the role of the built environment in relation to people with dementia. As care philosophies move from [...]
11 March, 2016
Apartment Design Fundamentals
Higher density living is an alternative housing solution that is on the rise. In the last three years, there has been a significant increase in construction in Sydney and Melbourne. More recently, Brisbane has followed with a flurry of activity in the high-rise multi residential market. The Gold Coast, along with other regional areas, are [...]
11 March, 2016
The World Famous Architect
While undertaking some late night googling looking for papers on getting the best performance from our architects, I stumbled upon this website…”Notes on becoming a famous Architect”. Topics include “Pay Attention to your clothes”, “You Don’t have to be good Parts 1-5″, “Fake it till you make it” and “Take a lesson from Paris Hilton.” [...]
10 February, 2015
A beautiful and sustainable house adjoining Springbrook National Park
A disused banana farm overrun by noxoius weeds, on the fringes of a world heritage national park, provided the perfect clean slate for sustainable design. Acquired by a couple with strong environmental values, the Austinville project was part of a larger strategy for them to give back to the environment. With a long history in [...]
10 February, 2015
Designing enjoyable workspaces
Lightwave International & Glenzeil have recently completed the Design & Construction for Centrepoint Alliance’s Queensland Head Office situated in Bundall on the Gold Coast. It spans over approximately 1200m2 on Level 13&14 of Corporate Centre Tower No1, with stunning 360 degrees views over the Pacific Ocean, Broadwater & Gold Coast Hinterland. Together with a young [...]
20 May, 2013
Permanent Modular Construction – what is it really?
Economic downturns tend to generate innovation, and in the design and construction industry, this may manifest in new materials, services and construction systems to name a few. One such system that has been topical is modular construction, and indeed, we’ve seen a lot of development of modular construction systems and delivered projects. But what is [...]
20 May, 2013
More Apps for Architects, builders…and anybody else interested
Our last newsletter featured some of the latest apps available on for iPhones and Android devices that are simple applications making our working lives easier. The feature included Sunseeker, a program that allows us to determine the suns location at any time of the year, an extremely handy tool in our detailed process of maximizing [...]
20 May, 2013
Cost Effective Education Spaces
When looking for a school to send our kids there is always a multitude of factors that we consider. Location, cost, curriculum, facilities, clientele, overall school presentation and more all contribute to the decision. The quality of education facilities may not necessarily reflect the quality of the education provided, but they can go a long [...]
11 December, 2012
The Green Wall Phenomenon – a vine frame for a commercial building
The notion of greening buildings and the urban landscape can be difficult to achieve. Personally, I have found people’s attitudes toward greening a city very positive. When asked about greening the city the general response is “yes it’s a great idea, we should be doing more of it” however, when delivering projects, the attitude of [...]
