CSL Global Headquarters and Centre for Research & Development

CSL’s new Corporate and R&D headquarters at Elizabeth Street Melbourne provides a future-ready environment enabling the organisation to continue its contribution to Bio-Medical science. The project includes agile workplaces, development laboratories, exhibition spaces for external stakeholders and an extensive variety of meeting, collaboration and breakout spaces. The building was conceived as a reinterpretation of CSL’s founding campus in nearby Parkville: a new vertical campus, connected by a green spine through the building. Architecturally, this is expressed by a dynamically activated staircase from which collaborative, hub and retreat spaces emerge. Internal planting and a deep green reminiscent of the Parkville landscape link these spaces conceptually and provide biophilic benefits to staff. The project concept celebrates the history of CSL and showcases the organisation’s values, particularly around healthier lives, medical innovation and superior performance. As a biomedical leader, the project supports CLS’s objectives to engage with the community. Designed around discrete tiers of access, visitors gain seamlessly controlled access to the building’s shared facilities, including exhibition spaces, an auditorium, meeting spaces, a business hub and innovative ‘start-up’ labs. The transparent design of the R&D labs is a platform to showcase the culture of innovation within CSL. Together, these facilities have allowed CSL to radically expand their education, engagement, and collaboration programs, becoming a cornerstone contributor to the emerging biomedical precinct in North Melbourne. Despite being very different functional spaces, the workplace and labs were designed around similar principles of flexibility, agile working, collaborative and a core focus on staff wellbeing. The design was initially developed pre-Covid, with some responsive redesign once the impacts of Covid were better understood. As a global company founded in Australia, the project’s materiality draws strongly from the Australian landscape. Australian hardwoods, eucalypt greens, soft ochres and stony greys define and link different programmatic areas whilst being warm and tactile. A custom artwork rug based on a sketch of the local topology connects both spaces within the building to each other, and also the Elizabeth St/ Parkville histories. The project included meaningful ESD targets, including 5 Star Green Star. Sustainable design initiatives included design for longevity, dematerialization, energy efficiency, waste minimisation and selection of local materials with an emphasis on non-toxic, renewable and recyclable products. User comfort and wellbeing was critical to the project and the fitout achieves very high levels of staff amenity. A long-term leasing model, combined with an integrated fitout supported a decision-making framework focused on quality and longevity. This complex project recognises the significant contribution of experts across many fields, especially the CSL stakeholders. The collaborative and multi-disciplinary team advocated for design excellence and fitout requirements drove much of the base build design, including relocating the central core to a rear core and resizing the slab-to-slab levels. The project has been an opportunity to highlight CSL as a global biomedical leader. It has brought together the many facets of CSL, showcasing the past and present achievements of its people and creating a workplace of excellence for its current staff and collaborators.