New fit-outs for Downer EDI Engineering and BDO are pushing the boundaries in office interior design. Dan Wilkie reports.
THE calibre, amenity and energy efficiency of new suburban office fit-outs is on par with what’s on offer in the CBD, according to local interior design firm MKDC Marshall Kusinski.
MKDC Marshall Kusinski director Kathleen Kusinski told WA Business News that suburban office clients were increasingly conscious of the productivity benefits of environmentally sustainable design principles.
Office fitouts for Downer EDI Engineering at Canning Vale and for BDO at Subiaco by MKDC Marshall Kusinski were recently recognised in the Design Institute of Australia’s annual Western Australian awards.
Ms Kusinski said the Canning Vale project, which won an award of merit from the DIA, had a focus on natural light and energy efficiency.
“When we were first looking at the project with the client we wanted to create an environment where at any point in the tenancy you had visual access to natural light,” she said.
“We visited Downer’s five previous offices that they were moving out of, and that was something that hadn’t been done previously, so it was really important to get that access to natural light.
“We ensured through liaising with the engineers and the client that there would be daylight harvesting, which, from an environmental perspective, is extremely important.
“Daylight harvesting is where you connect the lights to a system which changes the light levels depending on how much natural lighting enters the area. It gives a really good balance and you save a lot on energy costs.”
For the BDO project, Ms Kusinski said the firm had to throw out any preconceptions about how an accountant’s office should work.
“With BDO they wanted to create something that was what they said was distinctively different,” she said.
“They really didn’t want to have the look of a typical accounting or corporate advisory firm, they wanted to create an environment for their staff with multiple meeting points.
“The thing about BDO is they really are a company that values relationships with their staff and their clients, so that was something that we tried to work on there.”
Ms Kusinski said the DIA awards were confirmation that MKDC Marshall Kusinski was creating interior spaces that were both “relevant and important” for its clients.
“With both projects we put a lot of work into client brainstorming and workshopping and having a lot of client involvement in the briefing, therefore the results were very strong.”
