Industrial beauty inspired by a spirit of innovation

Quantium

As a global leader in data science and artificial intelligence, Quantium’s home within South Eveleigh’s former locomotive workshops has been inspired by a spirit of innovation that transcends centuries.

Kellie Payne

Director, Bates Smart

The workplace brings the space to life, revealing the beauty of the original 19th-century building via a series of complementary inserts that honour the engineering heritage through their detailing and composition.

The design language adopts restraint to complement the industrial beauty of the factory-like setting rather than overpower the space with a new identity. This allows the vast scale of the space to uplift staff and visitors, revealing the original fabric.

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A series of voids unite the workspace under the one roof, creating vistas that stretch across the 8,000sqm footprint. While two main atria for collaboration and social space serve as centrepieces, steel framed boxes set off the mezzanine house meeting rooms. Intimate booths and lounges along the edge of the atria create buffer zones with 12 ‘engine room’ work labs.

Steel-framed pavilions punctuate the space, set back from the edge of the atrium, giving enclosure and drama to the double-height space and privacy to work areas. Concrete joinery identifies reception and the barista bar, while warm timber welcomes staff to the collaboration settings including the town hall bleachers and private booths.

Tying the space together is a series of custom designed rugs coloured to match with the large, heritage machines that punctuate the space. This materiality aligns with the scale and use of the space, utilising steel, concrete and timber to marry tactility and rationality.

Details

Client

Quantium

Location

Sydney | Gadigal Country, Australia

Sectors

Year

2021

Status

Completed

Area

8,000 sqm

Photography

Felix Mooneeram