Tower Power

After arriving in Australia with 35 tradesmen and $10,000 in his pocket in 1951, Dutch immigrant and innovator Dick Dusseldorp has come a long way in the building and construction industry.

He formed Lendlease in 1958, out of a vision to create a company that could successfully combine the disciplines of construction, development and investment. Lynda Turnbull reports. Issue Three | June/July 2018 | MBA NSW 11

Mr Dusseldorp said in 1973: “Companies must start justifying their worth to society, with greater emphasis placed on environmental and social impact rather than straight economics.”

Today, the company can boast one of the finest architectural achievements in the world – Barangaroo in Sydney has won 51 awards to date and it has been a finalist or highly commended in a further 16 categories (see factbox for examples). Working in partnership with the NSW Government, Lendlease has created the ultimate business address. It has regenerated 22 hectares of industrial land to create new parks, harbour walkways and a dynamic extension of Sydney’s Central Business District. Comprising of three skyscrapers, International Towers Sydney at Barangaroo has been designed by the internationally acclaimed architects Lord Rogers and Ivan Harbour from Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners. The towers, reaching 217m tall, 178m and 168m tall, are considered to be of world-class design, showcasing the utmost in environmental thinking and positioning Australia as an international leader in building a sustainable future. The three towers’ design comprises of 280,000m² of premium office space, accommodating more than 20,000 workers at present. The large, flexible 2,400m² floorplates enable occupants to personalise and arrange their office spaces according to their needs. Day-lit lift lobbies, panoramic prows from a 50-storey construction, 100 per cent fresh air, high ceilings and large open vertical spaces throughout the building all combine to promote a state-of-the-art workplace. Benchmarked against the best office developments in New York, London, Hong Kong, Singapore and Shanghai, its large flexible floor plates have attracted many companies including Westpac, PwC, HSBC, KPMG and Gilbert + Tobin. Lendlease managing director Barangaroo South Rob Deck said: “Lendlease’s mandate is to create the best places…Put very simply, Barangaroo South has become a place that people want to be, and we could not be prouder. “Barangaroo South has also provided a rare opportunity to explore and innovate with new products, systems and methodologies. This includes important initiatives such as International House, Sydney, currently the largest engineered timber commercial building in the world, and the innovative Barangaroo Skills Exchange (BSX) in which we partnered with TAFE Enterprise to help more than 10,000 workers gain more than 20,000 accredited training outcomes in their workplace. “We believe Barangaroo is a model for how Government and the private sector can work together to deliver large-scale urban regeneration projects that maximise the development outcomes for the community and future generations.” The six-hectare park, which was a former container terminal, involved the recreation of a naturalistic headland designed to mimic the pre-1836 shoreline on the western edge of Sydney’s Central Business District. Among the park’s most outstanding sustainability achievements are: • In total, 98 per cent of excavated fill material, or 200,000m³, has been reused within the park. This volume sets out a new precedent in materials reuse, saving up to 60,000 truck movements throughout the centre of Sydney. • Over 10,000 sandstone blocks have been used for the sandstone foreshore and throughout the park. Ninety three per cent of this sandstone was sourced from the site’s extraction pit, beneath the underground car park of the Cutaway cultural space. • Beyond its original purpose as an extraction pit, the space beneath the underground car park also served as the final location for the state-of-the-art integrated water reuse system, which captures treats, stores and reuses seepage and storm water for irrigation of the park. • Two tanks – an enormous 1,200m³ rainwater tank and 180m³ seepage tank will irrigate

Barangaroo Reserve during and beyond the park’s 100-year design life. • A special soil containing crushed sandstone from unused blocks and recycled waste

was especially manufactured for the park to replicate the sandy texture of the original headland, allowing plants that had once flourished there to fix their roots again. • The remarkable planting program, comprising 675 trees, 2,200 shrubs and 75,000 plants all native to Sydney, has been hugely successful with a failure rate of less than 1 per cent. The Barangaroo project is also targeting a net carbon neutral outcome for the precinct inclusive of on and off-site renewable energy, waste and commuter carbon emissions. In a world first, Lendlease’s International Towers Sydney have been awarded the highest level grading in the WELL Building standard. The new standard rates buildings on how well they support the health and wellbeing of their occupants by assessing the impact of air and water quality, nourishment, light, fitness and comfort. Lendlease chief executive property Kylie Rampa said: “There’s been a big focus on sustainability and having sustainable buildings and sustainable precincts…We see this as the next evolution. It’s about attracting major corporate tenants that are focused on the evolution of their workplace, their ability to attract and retain talent.” Barangaroo South is visited daily by thousands of people who are drawn to its vast array of cafes, restaurants and shops, as well as the parkland. With 96 per cent of people arriving or departing from Barangaroo travelling by public transport, bike or on foot, the integration of transport links is vital. The Barangaroo project is supported by a cohesive transport network, which includes: • A new western ferry hub at Barangaroo for workers and visitors • New bus routes to Barangaroo and along

Hickson Road • Extensions to Wynyard’s rail and bus interchange, including the new Wynyard Walk

pedestrian tunnel and bridge • New cycleways and facilities to accommodate up to 1,000 cyclists within the precinct. From winning a host of awards for its internationally acclaimed design to its superior construction, environmentally sustainable initiatives and integrated transport network, Barangaroo really does have it all. Be sure to check it out next time you’re visiting the Emerald City. Issue Three | June/July 2018 | MBA NSW 13

1) Large contiguous floorplates of approximately 2,300 sq m offering a flexible solution. 2) High performance solar shading facades orientated to offer a sustainable environment. 3) Vertical Villages located in the mid and high rises with the flexibility for vertical connections between floors. 4) Landscaped podium roofs of up to 3,000 sq m for enhanced tenant amenity including fresh air, natural light and views. 5) Outdoor sky terraces designed for employee attraction and activity. 6) Vertical gardens within the low and mid rises for visual amenity from tenancy space. 7) Solar photovoltaic panels for renewable low carbon energy generation. 8) High-speed fibre optic backbone for base building services. Flexible work spaces that include: 9) 150mm access floors for fit out flexibility and greater connectivity. 10) Ceiling heights of 2,900mm of typical floors, higher than industry standard. 11) Ceiling heights of 3,100mm on designated client floors at the top of each rise. 12) Bathrooms and fire staircases capacities designed beyond industry standard and accessibility code.

Awards highlights

1) Property Council of Australia Innovation and Excellence

Awards 2018 2018 Development of the Year: Barangaroo South 2) Property Council of Australia Innovation and Excellence

Awards 2018

Best Sustainable Development – New Buildings Barangaroo

South 3) UDIA National Awards for Excellence 2018

President’s Award – Best of the Best: Barangaroo South 4) Master Builders NSW Excellence in Construction Awards 2017

Excellence in Resource Efficiency:

International Towers Sydney, Barangaroo 5) Master Builders NSW Excellence in Construction Awards 2017

Commercial Buildings $150,000,001 and over:

International Towers Sydney, Barangaroo 6) Australian Timber Design Awards

Australian Timber Design Award 2017: International House

Sydney 7) Australian Property Institute (API) National Excellence in

Property Awards

Best Environmental Development 2017: Barangaroo South 8) International Lighting Design Awards for Australia and

New Zealand

Award of Excellence 2016: GenLED One Luminaire (developed for Barangaroo) 9) The National Association for Women in Construction (NAWIC)

Excellence Award for Contribution to a Project’s Development 2016: Tower Three International Towers Sydney (Joanne Lees) 10) Australian Steel Institute

Steel Excellence in Engineering Projects 2016: City Walk (now called Napoleon) Bridge.