Case Studies

Wesfarmers Landmark approached Witbrook when they were looking to consolidate from two office locations into a single facility at Rocklea.

Our brief was to design, manage and reconstruct the 30+ year old Rocklea premises; in part by reclaiming a previously sub-let area, achieving a "pleasant and functional work environment" that accommodated 18 offices and 23 workstations.

Witbrook was able to reduce disruption to the considerably large number of staff by dividing the job into two stages. This enabled roughly half of the job to be completed before half the staff moved into new office space. At this stage, the remainder was completed behind plastic sheeting that divided the construction area from the functional workspace.

Additionally, rather than starting from scratch by installing completely new bathrooms, we were able to heavily renovate the existing facilities to provide the client with a flawless modern look that fit within their budget. We also replaced the ageing kitchen area with a modern, purpose-built facility. The look of the existing conference room was lifted considerably with a repaint and the installation of a new ceiling and lighting.

The building was in a state of disrepair and at the time had very little natural lighting. As a result, many of the offices felt quite dingy. This was overcome by modifying the layout to make use of light wherever possible, and the installation of appropriate and attractive lighting where it wasn't. The application of a particularly relevant colour scheme added to the lightened feel of the new offices.

There were particular challenges involving the replacement of ageing electrical switchboards and cabling as well as to install data cabling for computer networks and phone lines. In addition, our role was to coordinate a broader site reconstruction, with roofers, an airconditioning installation company and the removal of asbestos simultaneously taking place on the site.

This considerably large job was achieved in 14 weeks with weekly onsite meetings with the client and their sub-contractors in order for all concerned to be kept in the loop in terms of developments, changes, critical issues and attending to defects in workmanship and finishes that the client and our project manager identified as part of the quality assurance process.