Westpac Tatukai Square

The design for the interior space of Westpac Tatukai Square was influenced by its site context - the historic Britomart foreshore. As a result, the interior makes subtle references to the land/water connections throughout the building. This project also incorporated the old 4-storey Tingeys Building on the corner of Customs Street, which straddled what used to be the cliff edge and the foreshore. This visual imagery influenced the creation of boardwalk bridges and internal stairs connecting through the historic cafe space.

In conjunction with Westpac, the design team also developed an aspirational brief which talked about connections between business, the land, and the people.

Westpac wanted to add a distinctly NZ flavour to the fitout and we developed the notion of connecting the people to the building and the land by creating a sense of climbing through the strata of NZ landscape as you ascend the 12 levels of office space.

There are common elements on every level but each flavoured with distinctive colours and textures of the Tectonic plates. This linking has a strong resonance with the users. The occupants of the tectonic floor describe themselves as "the movers and shakers"!

Westpac’s wish to unify its workforce is expressed in the architecture by the link stairs that connect all levels next to the main breakout common spaces. The use of Westpac red to link stairs and Lobby Ribbon meeting rooms symbolise this unity of the business and the building.

Sustainability was an integral part of this project, with the building achieving an NZGBC 5 Green Star Rating for Office Interiors.