An installation in Martin Place, Sydney exposed the scale of hidden construction waste.
A research-driven installation in the heart of Sydney’s Central Business District exposed the scale of hidden construction waste. Shattered Topography: A Monument to Waste was installed in Martin Place as part of the City of Sydney Climate Action Week 2026.
The 30-metre-long installation was constructed from discarded plasterboard collected from active Sydney construction sites. Positioned between the ASX and Commonwealth Bank, it highlighted the relationship between economic systems, construction practices and material disposal.
Construction waste is one of our most urgent and least visible problems, says Professor M. Hank Haeusler, Director of the Australian Research Council (ARC) Centre for NextGen Architectural Manufacturing (Arch_Manu) at UNSW.
“The construction industry produces around 30–40% of global solid waste. Yet much of this material waste remains hidden behind hoardings, skips, demolition schedules and short commercial fit-out cycles,” says the expert in computational design and digital technologies from UNSW’s School of Built Environment.
Construction waste is produced through our approach to building design, leasing, valuing, demolition and rebuilding, he says.
“Commercial fit-out churn is a prime example. In high-turnover fit outs, viable interiors are stripped after short leasing cycles, not because the materials have failed, but because the market demands renewal."
Prof. Haeusler developed Shattered Topography with Dr Ivana Kuzmanovska, Dr Farnaz Fattahi and Dr Christopher Bamborough from Arch_Manu; Ben Berwick from Prevalent; and Annabel Koeck from ScaleRule.
Shattered Topography was informed by focus groups with architecture, engineering and construction professionals, examining barriers to circular construction, including policy, liability, cost, risk and waste-stream coordination.
“Our research calls for a shift in how buildings and materials are valued, moving from demolition and replacement towards retention, adaptation and reuse,” he says.
“By recovering and aggregating discarded plasterboard into a single public form, Shattered Topography transformed waste into evidence.
“It demonstrated the disconnect between the intended lifespan of materials and the short-term economic cycles that drive their disposal, exposing waste as a systemic condition.”
Shattered Topography was made from approximately one ton of plasterboard waste, just one millionth of Sydney’s annual construction waste stream. The research identified plasterboard as the largest fit-out waste stream.
“Plasterboard is one of the most common materials used in commercial interiors,” Prof. Haeusler says. “It is inexpensive, widely specified and routinely installed in high-turnover fit outs, yet it is not designed for easy disassembly or reuse.”
Offcuts are generated when designs are not aligned with standard sheet sizes, and damage during handling often results in entire sheets being discarded.
“On busy construction sites, limited space, labour constraints and a lack of economic incentive mean that reuse pathways are rarely available, even when materials remain fit for purpose.”
Many of the sheets used in the installation were stamped “Manufactured for Life”. “This made for a striking contradiction when the same material can be sent to landfill within months of installation.”
The installation served as a practical test case for using design as research translation. It surfaced real-world challenges around waste classification, compliance and logistics, prompting passersby to pause and reflect on the negative impact of our appetite for construction.
“Shattered Topography demonstrates the material reality of a system designed for disposal. It confronts the contradiction between materials manufactured to last and an industry structured to dispose.
“It highlights the limitations of current waste practices and the need for broader systemic change.”
Shattered Topography was made from around one ton of discarded plasterboard from active Sydney construction sites. Photos: Sepa Sama, Ivana Kuzmanovska.
Arch_Manu is an interdisciplinary research and training initiative hosted at UNSW and supported by nodes at Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne and the University of Adelaide.
It investigates how data and digital strategy can help the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) sector meet critical sustainability and productivity goals.
The Centre brings together academics, researchers and industry experts from architecture, engineering, management and governance, information systems, computer science, computational design, industrial design, and construction management.
Its program includes industry-embedded higher degree research (HDR), national and international placements, sector-focused short courses and postdoctoral projects. The Centre has 33 HDR candidates, including 18 international PhD candidates.
“Over the five-year life of the Centre, we will grow knowledge, skills and capacity within the AEC workforce, while delivering novel digital tools and frameworks to help drive the digital transformation of the sector.”
ARC Centre for NextGen Architectural Manufacturing (Arch_Manu), UNSW School of Built Environment
Professor M. Hank Haeusler | Dr Ivana Kuzmanovska | Dr Farnaz Fattahi | Dr Christopher Bamborough
Pillar 6: Create a sustainable future
