New Zealand Commercial Design Trends Series NZ Commercial Design Trends Vol. 34/01C | Page 23

Below:Curved architectural
insertions in the Z Energy office
call to mind the sweeping lines of
a streamlined motor vehicle and
define the flow of the space.
If a commercial fit-out is a design statement
of company philosophy, then the new Z Energy
office reflects the go-ahead energy company’s
sense of heart and community in several ways.
When Z Energy bought out competitor Caltex, it
also leased the whole floor that had been partially
occupied by Caltex in a contemporary city fringe
building. The move was essentially an integration,
with the existing Caltex staff working alongside
Z Energy staff, sharing the same flexible work and
meeting spaces. After all, the fit-out project was
called kotahitanga – or oneness.
Right from stepping out of the lifts into the third
level office, staff, clients and visitors alike have an
impression of flowing spatial organisation and a
stripped back ergonomic efficiency, says designer
Chantal Gaiqui of Stack Interiors.
“Curvaceous forms – including the Z Energy
reception pod with meeting rooms behind and a
two-conference room pod – delineate the curving
passageways flowing to the outer workstation areas
and individual break-away spaces.”
In a fit-out that’s all about inclusion and the New
Zealand way, the semi-transparent blue-tinted glass
conference rooms have empowering words in Maori
and English on them in a slanting format, referenc-
ing the slope of a marae roof. The words splashed
across these spaces include wharenui (meeting
house), kotahitanga and everyone is welcome.
Also defining the pedestrian flow in the arrival
area is another large, equally curvaceous, dark-
stained pod. This element has a bar at one end, a
barista operating at the other and a third, long side
of the pod has a cafe servery.
The cafe opens to a broad seating area called the
‘deck’, a timber-floored space intended to evoke
New Zealanders’ love of decks and barbecues.
Portable barbecues are brought out for classic
Friday evening staff gatherings in this area.
The space is highly flexible – with tables and
chairs moved away, it provides a spacious town hall
area for meetings and other gatherings of up to 300.
In fact, there is a limited built environment in the
office, with many stations able to be reconfigured
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