AHRI: In the zone

Office design in 2011 is as varied as the design of buildings into which the offices are fitted. Priorities and motivations vary between developers, tenants, and architects.Large companies have recently been moving into squat ‘sidescrapers’ in newly opened up areas of cities. This shift towards campus-style accommodation is driven as much by lower land prices as the will to increase communication by putting more people on each floor, according to Nick Fowell of Graham Nicholas design. Recent instances include NAB and ANZ in Melbourne’s Docklands, and SA Water in Adelaide. All are characterised by central atriums, which bounce light down into the large floor plates, and increase ‘vertical connectivity’ between staff.