People-centred sustainable design: enhancing wellbeing, encouraging collaboration and new ways of working

Project management

Responsibility for the logistical delivery of the relocation was handled through an internal project team. Our project managers developed and implemented a systematic approach to organisational change management. 

Staff were empowered to play an active role in this decision making through move representatives who acted as a two-way channel – cascading, listening and feeding back opinions from the office to the project team. We did a full staff survey and carried out a study of the origin locations of our staff, from which we concluded that the city centre was the optimal location. 

Staff trialled furniture and attended Q&A sessions to review and comment at interim design stages. Final decisions were agreed collectively and the move representatives played a vital role in advocating these.

People and organisations

With a focus on creating a healthy, diverse, inclusive and innovative work environment, our in-house WELL advisors played a pivotal role in our office relocation. They expertly guided our design team through the certification process, which involved rigorous assessments of design and operational documentation, policies and protocols, as well as onsite tests conducted by a performance verification testing agent. 

Our team of WELL advisors ensured that the seven categories of building performance that were part of WELL v1 – air, water, nourishment, light, movement, thermal comfort and mind – were at the centre of all design decisions.
When the time came to recertify our Cork office, our WELL advisors examined the evolving WELL standard and determined that WELL Certified Platinum – the highest level of WELL Certification – was attainable. With the addition of three new concepts in WELL v2 – sound, materials and community – our Cork office met the additional features to become WELL Certified at the Platinum level.

Our WELL advisors also chose to pursue the WELL Equity Rating, which expands the focus beyond physical health and wellbeing to show that the office prioritises diversity, inclusion and accessibility for all. Following an assessment of our office design and policies in line with six action areas – user experience, responsible hiring, inclusive design, health benefits and services, supportive spaces and community engagement – our Cork office became the first WELL Equity Rated project in Ireland.

Designing for wellbeing: variety of workstations

We designed the office with spaces that enable and encourage employees to adopt different working locations, postures and environments, such as sit-stand desks, huddle spaces, booth seating and standing-up meeting spaces. These working locations encourage all employees to move around throughout the day and utilise these areas, thus increasing individual comfort and focus. A 2023 survey shows that 97% of staff surveyed are satisfied with the work surface area.

The town hall area (affectionately named No. 15 after the former offices in Oliver Plunkett St.) is linked to the main reception. The look and feel immediately sets the tone for the rest of the office and serves as a welcoming area and meeting point. The variety of seating types, the availability of quality water and tea/coffee stations and access to an outdoor balcony area encourages people to meet and engage throughout the day.

The office also has a bookable medical room which can be used by staff members as required, which is equipped with a medical bed, fridge, sink and additional storage. This provides a safe space for people to manage temporary or long-term conditions and ensures the office is a welcoming place for all.

Unique fit out: mechanical and electrical engineering

The unique fit out used innovative mechanical and electrical solutions, coupled with refreshing interior design concepts to deliver a welcoming environment for staff and visitors. The office’s fit out was recognised in the 2018 CIBSE Republic of Ireland Awards.

Our engineers coordinated the heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC), lighting, power and data systems, with the primary goal of enhancing people’s comfort. 

The HVAC system was carefully selected and sized to meet winter heating and summer cooling demands. It was designed to optimise energy efficiency through the use of zoning and variable refrigerant flow (VRF) – where the refrigerant flow matches the building’s requirements and automatically shuts off when no occupants are detected in a room. A 2023 survey indicates that 98% of staff surveyed are satisfied with the office’s thermal environment.

Air quality

To increase the comfort levels of employees and eliminate any downward drafts, the air flow of each ceiling vent was simulated and particular air diffusers were carefully selected for all locations within the office. 

We also have a permanent sensor kit in the office that records air quality parameters such as carbon dioxide, volatile organic compounds and particulates in real-time. Ensuring that there is excellent air quality maintained throughout the working day means that the potential adverse effects of poor air quality (e.g. nausea, headaches and asthma) are eliminated.

In 2023, Arup’s Cork office was featured as a case study in the technical research paper presented with the Indoor Air Quality of the Year Award from UK-based Building Engineering Services Association (BESA).

Acoustic design

Specialised acoustic design throughout the open-plan areas reduces background distractions and helps to increase privacy levels without the need for physical walls. A 2023 survey shows that 84% of staff surveyed agreed that they can concentrate and work without regular distraction. Focus rooms, booths and break-out spaces allow for focus, contemplation and relaxation.

Digital technology design

The server room is a mini data centre and was a focus point for our digital technology specialists. Some of the systems developed for our Cork office became the standard across all our offices. The design of the server room was future-proofed, facilitating easy maintenance and upgrades in day-to-day operations.

Cabling and equipment

To optimise the design, the team engaged with Kedington, an IT install and cabling specialist at an early stage, and together decided on a CAT6A infrastructure cabling with CAT6 cables to the desks. The structured cabling management solution was a high-end Panduit system.

Our seven meeting rooms are designed to enable hybrid teams to work together seamlessly. They are fully enabled for remote collaboration and are managed using a room booking system over an email client with room booking panels outside each meeting room. Our AV systems in our meeting rooms have wireless connectivity with full bring-your-own-device functionality to aid team collaboration for internal and external clients.

We are using virtual and augmented realities to enable staff and clients to interact with our designs and gain insights into the look and feel of projects, enabling better decision making. Our immersive facility is equipped with high-powered rendering workstations, large screens and VR headsets with motion tracking. 

Digital technology disaster recovery planning

For digital technology disaster recovery planning, it is extremely important that, in the event of a disaster, every piece of equipment is labelled and all cabling is tidy and easy to trace. To this end, the team colour-coded them to assist with tracing cables.

An environmental monitoring system was installed to alert the team of any change in the conditions in the room. Cameras were installed to monitor the equipment in case of unforeseen incidents or disasters. Uninterruptible power supplies with extra battery packs are in place to provide additional time during power disruptions. A cloud backup system has been implemented, so in the event of an outage or hardware failure, off-site backups can be utilised.