Digital Design in Architecture and Engineering
Wed
4
Wed 4 Feb 12:00 PM
Online via Zoom
General Admission
150 Mins
February
Today, architects and engineers combine creativity with digital tools to assess sustainability impacts, project options, upfront costs, and environmental performance. Digital design moves beyond 2D plans into 3D modelling, allowing designers to analyse energy use and materials to create complex structures previously impossible to achieve with traditional methods.
Join us on February 4, 2026, for our first webinar of the year where our expert panel will explore key aspects of digital design, including:
Speakers:
Tom Donald
Director, Eckersley O'Callaghan
Tom leads Eckersley O'Callaghan’s Sydney office with over 10 years industry experience as an Architect and Engineer delivering challenging facade designs on multinational projects. Tom originally worked for Eckersley O’Callaghan London before emigrating to Australia and joining Grimshaw Architects in Sydney where he worked on some renowned projects such as the The Woodside Building and Southeast Light Rail. Tom has technical expertise in complex geometry through a range of techniques including parametric design software and innovative geometry definition strategies. He is passionate about sustainable design and achieving environmental performance through modelling and analysis
John Lucchetti
Director, Collective Engineering
John is a founding Director of Collective Engineering with over a decade of engineering consulting experience. He is a passionate team and stakeholder manager focused on strong relationships, innovation, and continuous improvement. John is a modular expert and co-author of the Handbook for Modular Construction. He is also a Prefab AUS Director and was recognised in the 2021 Beaton Client Choice Awards as the Best Built & Natural Environment Consultant.
July Sivira
Founding Director, BIM Original
July is an interior and building designer, Graphisoft AEC–Certified BIM Manager, educator, and the Founding Director of BIM Original. With over 15 years’ experience across professional practice and tertiary education in Australia, she provides strategic BIM guidance to improve project workflows, collaboration, and communication between design and construction teams.
Alberto Pugnale
Associate Professor of Architectural Design, University of Melbourne
Alberto Pugnale is an architect and Associate Professor of Architectural Design at the University of Melbourne’s Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning, where he co-directs the Advanced Digital Design + Fabrication (ADD+F) Research Hub.
His work focuses on computational design, optimisation workflows, and AI-driven design methods, with particular attention to the integration of design, structure, and fabrication. He has also made significant contributions to construction history, investigating how innovation in construction and automated fabrication methods impact design and the environment. He is passionate about testing emerging pedagogies that integrate technical knowledge within architectural education. In 2023 and 2024, he won first prize in the IASS Design Competitions for innovative structures. He has been an invited lecturer in various countries, including Italy, France, Switzerland, China, Mexico, and the United States.
Image Credit: Eckersley O'Callaghan
Join us on February 4, 2026, for our first webinar of the year where our expert panel will explore key aspects of digital design, including:
- CAD and 3D Modelling: Moving from simple drawings to integrated building information.
- BIM (Building Information Modelling): Integrating data for scheduling and cost estimation.
- Parametric and Generative Design: Manipulating parameters for advanced spatial outcomes.
- Visualization and Simulation: Using VR and real-time rendering to analyze environmental factors and test designs.
- Digital Fabrication: Linking digital models to manufacturing processes.
- AI Integration: Utilizing machine learning for data analysis and innovative design options.
Speakers:
Tom Donald
Director, Eckersley O'Callaghan
Tom leads Eckersley O'Callaghan’s Sydney office with over 10 years industry experience as an Architect and Engineer delivering challenging facade designs on multinational projects. Tom originally worked for Eckersley O’Callaghan London before emigrating to Australia and joining Grimshaw Architects in Sydney where he worked on some renowned projects such as the The Woodside Building and Southeast Light Rail. Tom has technical expertise in complex geometry through a range of techniques including parametric design software and innovative geometry definition strategies. He is passionate about sustainable design and achieving environmental performance through modelling and analysis
John Lucchetti
Director, Collective Engineering
John is a founding Director of Collective Engineering with over a decade of engineering consulting experience. He is a passionate team and stakeholder manager focused on strong relationships, innovation, and continuous improvement. John is a modular expert and co-author of the Handbook for Modular Construction. He is also a Prefab AUS Director and was recognised in the 2021 Beaton Client Choice Awards as the Best Built & Natural Environment Consultant.
July Sivira
Founding Director, BIM Original
July is an interior and building designer, Graphisoft AEC–Certified BIM Manager, educator, and the Founding Director of BIM Original. With over 15 years’ experience across professional practice and tertiary education in Australia, she provides strategic BIM guidance to improve project workflows, collaboration, and communication between design and construction teams.
Alberto Pugnale
Associate Professor of Architectural Design, University of Melbourne
Alberto Pugnale is an architect and Associate Professor of Architectural Design at the University of Melbourne’s Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning, where he co-directs the Advanced Digital Design + Fabrication (ADD+F) Research Hub.
His work focuses on computational design, optimisation workflows, and AI-driven design methods, with particular attention to the integration of design, structure, and fabrication. He has also made significant contributions to construction history, investigating how innovation in construction and automated fabrication methods impact design and the environment. He is passionate about testing emerging pedagogies that integrate technical knowledge within architectural education. In 2023 and 2024, he won first prize in the IASS Design Competitions for innovative structures. He has been an invited lecturer in various countries, including Italy, France, Switzerland, China, Mexico, and the United States.
Image Credit: Eckersley O'Callaghan
February
Formal CPD Points
Speakers