Macquarie Group Global Headquarters
Macquarie Group Global Headquarters
Client:
Macquarie Group
Location:
Sydney, New South Wales
Scale
44,000sqm
Status
Completed 2024
Contact Person:
Patricia Bondin
Shaping the future of Sydney’s CBD, 1 Elizabeth is a state-of-the-art office tower, situated above the newly-opened Sydney Metro Martin Place Station.
The workplace is home to Macquarie Group’s new global headquarters and connects to Macquarie’s existing heritage-listed 50 Martin Place building.
As workplace Lead Designer on the project, Architectus collaborated with Macquarie to meet the diverse needs of its people and businesses, and to inspire innovation and connectivity.
Designed for all of Macquarie’s Sydney staff, the flexible floor plan will respond to Macquarie’s evolving needs, while integrating fixed meeting and social spaces.
The headquarters houses floors dedicated to client services, wellbeing facilities, a public art gallery called The Art Space, and ILUMINA – a highly adaptable event and meeting venue, incorporating a main hall that can accommodate up to 800 people. Other amenities include landscaped gardens and end-of-trip facilities.
Interiors to inspire connection and community
The interior design is purposeful and authentic, with a strong focus on opportunities for connection and collaboration, wellbeing, and sustainability.
The journey through the building features unique native landscaping and plantings both indoors and outdoors. In-ground planting is strategically placed at thresholds to strengthen the connection to Country and symbolise a transition from earth to sky.
Designed in collaboration with Hecker Guthrie, one floor is dedicated to hospitality, with a food marketplace, dining areas, and a café for staff to connect and to create a sense of community.
Artworks from Macquarie’s art collection, thoughtfully displayed throughout the spaces, add cultural richness to the environment, along with new commissions by artists Jamie Eastwood, Suzy Evans, and Frances Belle Parker.
Deep, rich reds at the heart of the building
As staff and visitors continue through the space, they’re invited into the heart of the building, with its earthy colour palette.
The building’s exposed structural elements minimise use of materials while supporting flexibility for future changes. Robust materials such as recycled timber and perforated metal also feature throughout.
To create a void in the central atrium, ten per cent of the floor plan was removed to provide visual connectivity between the floors and to promote collaboration.
The central atrium is traversed via a striking steel stair in ‘Sydney Blue’, evoking the city’s skyline and harbour. Spanning all work floors, the stairs encourage informal interaction and open sight lines across the building for better connectivity.
An efficient, sustainable environment
1 Elizabeth is designed to be 100 percent electric in normal operations and oriented to enhance direct access to natural light and views.
Automated systems control lighting, temperature and ventilation based on occupancy and environmental conditions to support more efficient use of resources.
Other sustainability features include the capture and re-use of rainwater and the implementation of smart technologies.
The 1 Elizabeth building has achieved a 6 Star Green Star Design rating from the Green Building Council of Australia and a Platinum WiredScore certification. The tower is also targeting net zero emissions in normal operations, with a 5.5 Star NABERS Energy rating target.
A collaborative project team
Macquarie’s global headquarters was designed to foster best-in-class thinking across a diverse range of specialist environments, opening the door for numerous creative designers and agencies to collaborate on this iconic project.
Architectus was Lead Designer – Workplace, working alongside:
Macquarie Group – Developer and occupier
Lendlease – D&C Contractor and integrated fitout
Johnson Pilton Walker – Base Building Architect
Hecker Guthrie – Interior Design, Hospitality (Level 10)
Balarinji – First Nations Strategy and DesignAspect Studios and Yerrabingin – Landscape
There – Graphics and Wayfinding
The Big Group – Hospitality Experience
Steensen Varming – Specialist Lighting
Electrolight – Specialist Lighting
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Client:
Macquarie Group
Location:
Sydney, New South Wales
Scale
44,000sqm
Status
Completed 2024
Contact Person:
Patricia Bondin
