Our new workplace in Brisbane is the result of a long local search for a location that met our needs and represents our firm’s values. We settled upon 123 Albert street, taking levels 21, 26 and 27 at the top of the building, as we move into the city centre from Fortitude Valley. The immediate proximity to the new Cross River Rail station on a greened Albert St, as well as the proximity to the botanic gardens, excited us and has informed our early thinking in this unique location.

We intentionally selected an existing building, recognising the importance of limiting our carbon footprint, and wanting to demonstrate that unique, sustainable and dynamic workplaces could be delivered within typical commercial buildings, without reliance on customisation of a new base building.

This workplace follows our recent relocations in the region and is our final and largest workplace in the current cycle. We sought to build directly from our experiences in the pursuit of the Living Building Challenge in Adelaide, Auckland and Perth as well as the WELL Standard which Perth has achieved in operation. These standards represent a myriad of design and organisational challenges that we continue to embrace as we recognise the importance of their globally leading requirements, and the benefits of holding ourselves to these standards.

Arup engineers and specialists worked closely with Hassell and Buildcorp to design and deliver this unique workplace which we think is our best yet. We also collaborated with Five Mile Radius, a local specialist in salvaged material reuse, to unlock circular economy outcomes which are on show, as well as Blaklash, a First Nations design agency in Queensland to support us on our journey.

Photography by David Chatfield