Australian Red Cross Blood Service
Housed within the shell of a 1920s warehouse, originally a Morris Minor assembly factory, this facility provides the Australian Red Cross Blood Service with a new state of the art headquarters in West Melbourne.
A series of dramatic internal courtyards and spaces utilize the redundant car park ramps from the previous building structure. The lush, animated planting provides key places of respite for the employees and contributes to a healthy building. Our design approach employed the poetics of replacing the previous history of auto-orientated activity with one that emphasises the importance of people-focussed amenity and access to ‘green space’.
Internal planting formed a major element within this considered design approach, along with balconies, bridges and decks remaining highly transparent in order to borrow the view of the greenery from inside and maximise tall narrow spaces. The brilliant internal vegetation, natural light and refined detailing against the industrial backdrop provides a truly inspirational facility with immeasurable benefit to health and well-being.
