QIC, Melbourne

The new workspace was designed unite all divisions of the QIC brand. Bringing the teams together meant moving from two siloed and underutilised floorplates to a single floor, whilst challenging the convention around dedicated desk-based working. The design centres around a number of social spaces, providing for cross-pollination opportunities between groups, allowing for the space to be customised over time to suit the everchanging project and workspace needs. With the new design, staff can easily move between and select the location and working style they prefer day to day, promoting freedom of choice, inclusivity and adaptability for the future.

All zones of the workspace are designed to be equal, with no preference to work type or location. The many function types are spread over the floor plate to ensure the worker is never too far from a quiet room, meeting room or collaboration space. The open workspace is broken up by centralised pods to help create intimacy within the open planned areas. The pods consist of enclosed quiet rooms and open booths with timber lining and planting- the pods allow various types of functions to be performed closely to the work settings.

Sustainability and longevity were big drivers in material and supplier selections for the project, with supporting local Melbourne makers and artists a key focus. The overall palette has been selected to make the team feel at home, using light timbers, warm blues and greens, the space feels instantly warm and inviting on arrival. The palette is consistent across all spaces, allowing a harmonious journey for users throughout the workplace and reflecting QIC's quality and attention to detail they provide to their clients.

Brand is subtly implied through the use of materials and detailing rather than coloured logos and graphics. This made the space truly universal to all QICs business groups and will allow the business to adapt and change overtime while the feel of the space can remain constant. It was important for QIC & Unispace to use Australian talent and makers within their space, Unispace ensured all selections were made with this in mind and concentrated on showcasing this throughout the space. Timber is the hero of the front-end client space, with feature moulded FSC Tasmanian oak panels creating subtle movement and warmth in the space. The bespoke timber partitioning system and feature wall lining to the front house were developed specifically for our client by local crafts people, who tirelessly co-ordinated with other trades to ensure a seamless and integrated approach to the front of house area. The building also uses a chilled beams mechanical system throughout the floor plate, customised ceilings were designed to ensure design aesthetic was maintained at the same time allowing for adequate ceiling penetrations for the Mechanical system to function.