2126 Powerhouse

Powerhouse Parramatta has commissioned award-winning Australian industrial designer David Caon to design a time capsule to mark its opening in 2026.

The high tech time capsule, crafted using cutting-edge manufacturing techniques, is being developed in partnership with the Office of the Chief Scientist and Engineer, the Science Teachers Association of NSW and the Advanced Manufacturing Readiness Facility (AMRF) in Bradfield City.

Powerhouse Parramatta's time capsule will safeguard a curated collection of innovations that have shaped the fields of science, engineering, manufacturing and computing, celebrating the innovations that continue to transform the way we live. The project draws inspiration from the work of Ann Druyan, creative director of the Voyager Golden Record, whose thematic framework will guide the selection of objects that tell the story of our time, destined for the hands and minds of those living in 2126.

Throughout its history, Powerhouse has marked its milestones with time capsules.

In 1879, a glass time capsule was buried in the cornerstone of the Garden Palace in Sydney that housed the foundation collections of the Technological, Industrial and Sanitary Museum. Miraculously, it survived the devastating fire of 1882 that destroyed the building. A century later, in 1981, another time capsule was buried to commemorate the opening of Powerhouse in Ultimo.

Now in 2026, for the third time in the museum’s history, Powerhouse will continue this legacy creating a new time capsule for Powerhouse Parramatta.

Participants will receive a time capsule token, a symbol of legacy and continuity to pass onto future generations, granting them access to the capsule’s opening in 2126, with the story of each object recorded in the official time capsule Book of Record.

Powerhouse invites students, educators, academics, industry researchers and scientists across NSW to nominate innovations that best represent this moment.

Applications close Wednesday 26 November 2025.