Westpac Place is a commercial

skyscraper A skyscraper is a tall continuously habitable building having multiple floors. Modern sources currently define skyscrapers as being at least or in height, though there is no universally accepted definition. Skyscrapers are very tall high-ris ...

located in the north-western corridor of the

Sydney central business district The Sydney central business district (CBD) is the historical and main Central business district, commercial centre of Sydney. The CBD is Sydney's city centre, or Sydney City, and the two terms are used interchangeably. Colloquially, the CBD or c ...

, Australia. The building is the bank's Australian headquarters. The building was built for the Westpac Office Trust, being included in the sale of the trust to

Mirvac Mirvac is an Australian property group with operations across property investment, development, and retail services. This entity now broadens their clientele and shareholder return on investment by venturing across multiple development sectors, ...

in 2010. In July 2014, Mirvac sold a 50% share in the building to Blackstone Real Estate Asia.

Opening

Westpac Place was officially opened by

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

John Howard John Winston Howard (born 26 July 1939) is an Australian former politician who served as the 25th prime minister of Australia from 1996 to 2007, holding office as leader of the Liberal Party. His eleven-year tenure as prime minister is the s ...

on 4 August 2006, marking the completion of the project developed by Leighton Properties.Westpac Place
Leighton Properties

Architecture

The architectural roof feature on top of Westpac Place has become a major part of the Sydney city skyline. This feature incorporates a

weather beacon A weather beacon is a beacon that indicates the local weather forecast in a code of colored or flashing lights. Often, a short poem or jingle accompanies the code to make it easier to remember. The beacon is usually on the roof of a tall buil ...

barometer A barometer is a scientific instrument that is used to measure air pressure in a certain environment. Pressure tendency can forecast short term changes in the weather. Many measurements of air pressure are used within surface weather analysis ...

, and is a key component of the overall composition of the project. The barometer is a particular response to 'place', and alludes to the maritime history of the precinct. In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, the site was at the harbour's edge, being the heart of Sydney's maritime trade, and was the principal trade route into the city centre. The architectural roof feature comprises: * Two metal clad base elements with the larger of the two capped by an internally illuminated white glass tower. The glass tower is 25 metres high and nine metres across. * Eight red

LED A light-emitting diode (LED) is a semiconductor Electronics, device that Light#Light sources, emits light when Electric current, current flows through it. Electrons in the semiconductor recombine with electron holes, releasing energy i ...

illuminated bars (on the north and south faces of the white glass tower), the lowest representing 990

hPa HPA may refer to: Organizations * Harry Potter Alliance, a charity * Halifax Port Authority, Canada * Hamburg Port Authority, Germany * Hawaii Preparatory Academy, a school in Hawaii, US * Health Protection Agency, UK * Heerespersonalamt, the Ger ...

, rising in 5 hPa increments to the top bar representing 1025 hPa. This provides real time information on barometric pressure changes. Generally low pressure indicates inclement weather and high pressure with good or clear weather (although this is not always the case). As the pressure rises or falls, the LED bars will appear to ripple in an upward or downward direction respectively. The illumination level of the LED bars and tower is controlled by a roof mounted photosensor. The LEDs will be brightest in the middle of the day, and will start to smoothly dim before dusk, and after darkness will reach a low illumination level.

References

{{Skyscrapers in Sydney Bank buildings in New South Wales Office buildings completed in 2006 Office buildings in Sydney Skyscrapers in Sydney Westpac Skyscraper office buildings in Australia Bank headquarters in Australia Sydney central business district