“ A new work space that is helping the transformation  of a new, united organisation with a commercial mind and a social heart.”

Designed by dwp|suters and built by SHAPE, this new head office consolidates four separate groups from multiple inner city branches into one new CBD location over five levels.

dwp|suters designed a strong concept based around community and wellness to create a unique workplace supporting cultural transformational change, and encouraging communication and serendipitous meetings.

CSM chats to dwp|suter’s Bradley Schott about their vision, objectives and inspirations for the project.

In terms of workplace design what were the main drivers for the project?

icare is about wellness: of people, business and the community; and their new workplace is designed as an exemplar of WHS best practice to reflect their core values.  Working closely with icare’s leadership our team developed a concept based on the idea of building a community, to create a socially sustainable workplace.

The concept is expressed through the metaphor of a town.  The town supports the activities of icare, with precincts for different uses and civic spaces that unite the people.   Because a town tells its story through the main street, the main street of icare is structured as shop windows.  These settings and the activity inside tell the story of icare and its daily life.

One of the key objectives for this project was cultural change, how did the design support this?

To encourage a revitalised and more egalitarian culture, bold steps were needed.  Equity is encouraged in two ways; there are no offices, and the main staff hub is located on the middle floor, centrally located to welcome all and ensuring unrestricted access to the main civic precinct.

A dramatic new staircase physically and symbolically connects all the elements together, helping to build the new culture, breaking down silos and encouraging communication and serendipitous meetings.

What were the main factors of consideration when allocating storage for this project?

There were two conflicting priorities – a universal desire for “more” storage, and a stated policy of paper reduction!  Between the two of those, the project team decided on flexible team storage located at the boundaries of circulation and work spaces.  Specialised archives were limited and centralised, and are structured to allow ongoing digitisation.

How did CSM’s products respond to these considerations?

The products chosen provide an attractive frontage to the circulation spaces, while the addition of planters provides greenery and additional privacy to the workstations beyond.

CSM delivered and installed a variety of storage products for the fitout, including Infinity Tambours, Evolution Sliding Door Cabinets, Planter Boxes and Rolling Storage units (Electronic & Fixed Track).  All products were manufactured in Sydney to Australian Standards

CSM storage and workstation solutions have been implemented into some of the largest Government agencies nationally. For more information on CSM products contact us on sales@csm-office.com.au