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Architectus | Architectus Adelaide: 10 lessons in 10 years

Architectus Adelaide: 10 lessons in 10 years

On 23 October our Adelaide Studio invited a selection of close collaborators to celebrate turning 10 with a night of great food and speeches. Reflecting on a decade spent designing with impact, Adelaide Studio Leader Andrew Schunke shares 10 lessons learned – great and small.

 

It’s all about the people
Karl (Architectus Aviation Sector Leader) started the studio 10 years ago and I joined a year later. We’re now a team of over 40 and they are quite simply what makes our studio great.

Adelaide’s secret is its size
It’s small enough that you get big opportunities, but large enough to cover every sector. It’s also a very collegiate city; we’ve had great opportunities to partner with others and to share staff between studios in Adelaide.

You don’t have to start local
We didn’t immediately hunt Adelaide projects, or come out declaring, “We’re great, give us work”. Our Aviation Centre of Excellence led by Karl began on projects everywhere but Adelaide.

Dogs aren’t always popular
I brought my dog Ivy to the studio once and she hasn’t been invited back.

The big clients are challenging but rewarding
Large organisations like Qantas challenge us to achieve great things, and when we do it’s a career highlight.

Architectus | Architectus Adelaide: 10 lessons in 10 years

Know each other’s families
It’s been great for our culture to get together regularly and lots of social events; we know more about each other’s lives.

Design benefits from longevity
We’ve worked with SA Water for nine years – we understand the nuances of their organisation and can help them improve their business. We’ve also been working with Melbourne Airport for over 20 years, Sydney Airport for 12 years and Brisbane Airport for eight years.

Innovation arises from the unexpected
We had to change the originally selected façade material for the Flinders University Health and Medical Research Building. Initially we were disappointed, but in the end we loved the new material even more because we could embed First Nations artwork into it – the art is now the façade.

Architectus | Architectus Adelaide: 10 lessons in 10 years

People come back
We’ve had people move to work for other Architectus studios around Australia, and we’ve had people move interstate for other jobs only to come back and work with us again. We love being flexible and adaptable.

Kids will always win the Easter egg hunt
My kids came in one Christmas time to hang out at the office. They found all the un-discovered Easter eggs from eight months prior.