One40 William St
Architecture Commercial Perth, Western Australia, Australia
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Description
As the new workplace for the Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage and two divisions of the Department of Transport (METRONET and Westport), the One40 William St project by Hames Sharley serves as the largest 100% Activity Based Working environment for WA government.
Tasked with efficiently and effectively uniting one agency plus two parts of another in the one location, Hames Sharley was asked to design a single workplace to house 900 people over 7,000sqm across two floors, in a way that responded directly to the needs of its diverse inhabitants. What’s more, the design was to reflect a fresh brand for a workforce that handles everything from state planning reform and the repatriation of Aboriginal artefacts to the creation of new ports, trainlines and urban centres.
The process
The team from Hames Sharley was presented with an existing workplace that suffered from a host of problems: poor acoustic performance, an unappealing and extensive use of plywood, a perceived lack of light, and a large floorplate that offered little by way of connection. What’s more, the team needed to address the idea of creating a new space for clients who had already endured several organisational shifts and who would likely be unexcited by further change.
True to the practice’s philosophy of listening closely to clients and working with them to find the perfect solution, the team engaged in a range of interviews and workshops. Responding to the collected feedback enabled the creation of a design that was favoured by the vast majority of staff who might otherwise have been suffering ‘change fatigue’.
The design
Working to a tight budget and with the added restriction that the new design had to be implemented while 75% of the workforce continued to use the space, the team created a fitout with the look and feel of an all-new environment. Where possible – to ensure the new workplace was more sustainable and to keep costs low – the existing built form was re-used, adding high-impact features such as large new boardrooms and kitchens. There was also a focus on making small changes that would make a big difference to the individual users – every task chair was changed to one of the highest ergonomically rated chairs available, for example.
The result
The finished design included six distinct workspace zones around a single kitchen hub created to cope with potentially high-volume usage. A key requirement was that the new space should portray government as anything but ‘bland and beige’, so bright and bold colours and finishes were used, while vibrant graphics and wayfinding, coupled with Reconciliation Action Plan artwork specifically commissioned by DPLH provides a narrative that encompasses the wide range of work and projects handled by all three agencies.
Questions and Answers
What were the key challenges?
The move and collocation of teams that had already been through a number of substantial organisational shifts, which had caused a degree of change fatigue.
The largest shift to a fully agile occupancy model in WA government to date carried significant risk.
The sub $1,000/sqm budget for a fitout that needed to look and feel like an all-new environment, to culturally support a completely different working model.
Limited ‘swing space’ was available, meaning this fitout needed to be completed whilst maintaining 75% client occupation.
What was the brief?
To physically unite the WA Government Department of Planning Lands and Heritage and two divisions of the Department of Transport (METRONET and Westport) into one efficient and effective workplace tenancy.
Consult broadly to develop an Activity Based Working environment to support the future work of these agencies, with an ambition to house 900 people in 7,000sqm and contribute to the developing change management strategy.
Respond to users’ functional complaints regarding the existing DPLH floors, specifically the poor acoustic performance of the built form, the abundance of plywood, the perceived lack of light, and the lack of connection through the very large floorplate.
Reflect the agencies, celebrate they work they do, and avoid any notion that government is ‘bland and beige’.
What are the key moves and design principles?
Process
A strategic briefing process included ten leadership interviews, two rounds of 60-person workshops, an all-user planning review, and an all-staff town hall attended by 540 staff. This resulted in an understanding of the future work the office needed to support, and a co-created menu of work settings to meet those needs. User feedback from initial test fits/zoning plans was overtly included, leading to a planning response supported by the vast majority of staff. This included six distinct zones offering focus, process or collaborative workspace around a single kitchen hub that is scaled and functionally equipped to serve a potentially very high-volume usage.
Design
The concept design weaves between four project-specific inputs: our client’s vision and their aesthetic responses, defined through the workshop process; the functional work these groups conduct at a whole-state scale; and a Reconciliation Action Plan artwork specifically commissioned by DPLH.
The sheer scale of our client’s work led the overarching design narrative and informed a vibrant graphics and wayfinding approach.
The result is a scheme of bright-and-bold colour and finishes that respects and responds to the context of our client and resonates with their staff. Importantly it hits the brief of being anything but ‘beige and bland’!
What were the solutions?
An overt and deep briefing process demonstrating Hames Sharley’s critical belief that we create unique outcomes through listening to our clients and working with them.
Strategic reuse of existing built form wherever possible, balanced with high-impact additions such as large new boardrooms and kitchens. This was coupled with commercial understanding around what really matters to individuals: we left the majority of the carpet for the landlord to change in due course under their maintenance regime, but changed every task chair to one of the highest ergonomically rated chairs available.
We worked with our client and our main contractor to provide a construction staging plan that kept the businesses functioning with minimal inconvenience. There were four main construction stages supported by a series of clinical minor-works packages over weekends and evenings. This allowed us to keep lobbies open and an operational kitchen on every floor throughout, and protected the fastest route to the staff car park.
How is the project unique?
This is the largest of only two genuinely ABW environments for WA government, designed entirely around the future work it should support as defined by a very large user group. As such, this a 7,000sqm workplace designed entirely around the needs of its inhabitants and in support of their organisation, their brand and the culture their leaders want to build.
Who are the clients and what's interesting about them?
Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage and Department of Transport (METRONET and Westport)
The scale and diversity of the work these groups conduct ranges from repatriation of Aboriginal artefacts, complex land issues, heritage protections and state planning reform to the creation of new ports, trainlines and urban centres.
Details
| Completion date | 2020 |
Project team
| Stephen Moorcroft | ||
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Hames Sharley | Strategic briefing and Workplace Design |