Five stars for no air conditioning, no offices and no back wall

"Succulent visuals, spatial invention, and commercial cred"? Elizabeth Farrelly looks into Australia’s first five-star-rated eco-sustainable office building.

1 minute read

May 30, 2004, 11:00 AM PDT

By Charlotte Fitzgerald

Lend Leases new corporate headquarters in Sydney stands out for what it doesnt have no air conditioning, no offices and no back wall. Instead this is the first use of chilled-beam technology in Sydney, with an open plan workstation layout built up against an existing sandstone cliff-wall. The building was designed in response to desires for a more sustainable, greenhouse-friendly solution, that also showed "smart design, flat hierarchies and connectivity to light, air, transport and technology". The perimeter of the building is used for shared spaces - fresh-air winter gardens, conference rooms and lunch spaces. At fifty metres long and 4 storeys high, Elizabeth Farrelly describes the end product as "catwalk chic".

Thanks to Charlotte Fitzgerald

FULL STORY: Sexy, civilised and genuinely green

Tuesday, May 25, 2004 in The Sydney Morning Herald

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