UTS Institute for Sustainable Futures

UTS Institute for Sustainable Futures are a university research institute within UTS that has been creating change towards sustainable futures by conducting independent project based research for Australian and international clients since 2007.

As part of the overall scope it was proposed that the Institute relocate from Level 11 to Level 10 into a new purpose built environment which showcases and supports the Institutes diverse functions.

The challenge was to overcome a few physical factors of a difficult base building floorplate, outdated services and constrained ceiling space to achieve a 6 Star Greenstar rating for the interiors, which would be the first of its kind at the university.
Working closely with the client and university, we engaged the staff to promote an open and collaborative environment.

This meant not incorporating any offices into the design and introducing an Activity Based Working Environment – a drastic change for the staff and overall culture.

A change management component was implemented into the overall program to take ISF on the journey and minimise surprises. This created a collaborative nature between GroupGSA, UTS and ISF.

The outcome allowed for a permeable environment that promoted natural light and was aligned to ISF as an organisation. Due to the nature of the work (research & focus), GroupGSA created a diversity of spaces to support different ways of work/collaboration.

These included zoning the work areas from Collaborative and noisy to Silent Spaces for concentration.

The central hub was designed with flexibility to support a dynamic and modular environment for events and town hall meetings.