Join BDAA CEO, Chris Knierim, for an essential industry session exploring one of the fastest-moving conversations in Australian residential design. Chris will be joined by keynote speaker Tone Wheeler - architect, Adjunct Professor at UNSW, and President of the Australian Architecture Association - alongside our industry partners at CSR Cemintel Lightweight Systems and Nero, as we look at how thoughtful design and the right product systems are reshaping smaller homes.

Compact Living: Designing Smaller Homes Without Compromise

As housing densities continue to rise across Australia, the demand for smarter, more efficient compact living solutions is growing rapidly. Apartments, secondary dwellings, and infill housing now sit at the centre of the national housing conversation, and the building designer's role in delivering homes that feel generous, perform well, and meet evolving compliance expectations has never been more important.

This session takes a practical, designer-focused look at how lightweight construction systems, integrated bathroom solutions, and considered detailing can maximise usable floor area without compromising functionality, aesthetics, or performance. Compact design relies heavily on efficient internal construction and integrated fixtures that streamline installation while expanding what is possible in a smaller footprint.

During this session, we will explore:

• Smarter Internal Construction: How lightweight internal wall systems and slimline detailing can recover precious millimetres, simplify installation sequencing, and improve acoustic and fire performance in apartments, secondary dwellings, and infill projects.
• Integrated Bathroom Design: How complete, coordinated bathroom ranges and space-saving fixtures can resolve the most pressure-tested room in a compact home, where every fitting, fall, and clearance has to earn its place.
• The Designer's Toolkit: How building designers can combine efficient construction methodologies and integrated product systems to deliver compact homes that meet modern compliance, buildability, and lifestyle expectations.

Featuring 

Keynote presentation, Tone Wheeler is an architect, author, educator and consultant with an abiding interest in environmentally sustainable design (ESD). In the mid-seventies at the University of Sydney he assisted in the construction of the "Autonomous House", a working example of a low-energy house constructed entirely from recycled materials. Upon graduation, Tone worked for the Australian Government in Canberra where he designed a range of low-cost social housing that won the RAIA Residential Design Award (C.S. Daley Medal) in 1980. For the past thirty years he has worked in his own practice.

Tone is a past Chair of the Australian Architecture Association, a past chair of the AIA National Environment Committee and a past member of the Sustainability Committee. After a ten-year association, he retired from the board of ABSA (Association of Building Sustainability Assessors), and he was also a member of the Building Professionals Board. He has taught extensively over the past 30 years, with appointments at the faculty of three universities, and is a sustainability advocate and frequent speaker at architectural conferences and seminars. He has been a judge on ABC TV's The New Inventors, a member of The Woodies, and a Homie on ABC radio.

In this keynote, Tone will share the design thinking, planning context, and detailing principles behind successful compact homes in Australia, including the trade-offs designers face when working with constrained floor plates, structural depth, and service zones.

CSR Cemintel Lightweight Systems: Partner segment A focused look at how CSR Cemintel's lightweight internal wall systems and slimline detailing support efficient construction in compact projects, including practical guidance on specification, performance, and installation. Speaker details to be announced.

Nero: Partner segment A practical walk-through of Nero's complete bathroom ranges and integrated solutions designed for compact living, with a focus on coordinated tapware, accessories, and space-saving fixtures for apartments, secondary dwellings, and infill housing. Speaker details to be announced.

Event Details 

Date: Tuesday, 2 June 2026

Time: 1:00PM - 2:00PM AEST (Sydney)

Where: Online via Zoom

CPD: 1 Informal CPD Point

Registration mandatory for CPD allocation. 

We look forward to seeing you online. Don't miss this opportunity to stay informed, learn about new tools, and hear directly from your industry leaders.