+IMPACT Magazine Issue 25

COVER STORY
COVER STORY
Positioned on Cape Town’s Foreshore at 35
Lower Long Street is the signature glass-planed
office building developed by Abland Property
Developers. The base building, designed by dhk
Architects, had been awarded a 4-Star Green Star Office
V1.1 Design certification, which solidified law firm ENS’s
commitment to achieving a high rating for its interior fitout.
Closely aligned to the firm’s commitment to upholding
environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles,
the office fit-out was designed and constructed to achieve
a 5-Star Green Star Interiors V1 certification. It secured
the required 60 points, many awarded for the group’s drive
to innovate and focus on staff wellness.
For ENS’s COO Lee Mendelsohn, “It is not enough to
say you believe in those principles – you have to change
how you do business to ensure ESG becomes a way of
life. This is something that can happen only when each
of us changes our approach to what we do, day to day,
little by little, and across all aspects of our operations,
which includes our Cape Town office interiors. It is the
only way we will sustain our business – and in so doing,
demonstrate how much we care for our clients, our people,
and our planet.”
Health and wellness is integral to ENS’s vision for its
staff and workspaces, and providing them with a “green”
workplace and the tools to optimise it was important,
The stand-out, glamorous
staircase links floors 22 and 23.
continues Mendelsohn. “We developed a User’s Guide to
ensure that our people and operations teams knew how
to best use the building sustainably. Ongoing awareness
campaigns – from simple things like switching off the
lights to ensuring you focus only for 50 minutes and break
for 10 – educates and encourages staff to play their part.”
The sustainability consultant was Annelide Sherratt,
Solid Green’s Head of Department: Green Building
Certifications (New Build and Interiors). Sherratt explains
that, although the criteria for the base building 4-Star
certification is quite different from the focus on materials
in the Interior certification, many of the design attributes
contribute and follow through, and points are acquired
in the interior rating tool.
PARADIGM SHIFT
ENS’s fit-out spans the building’s upper ground level, floors
10 and 23, and five integrated office levels. Thinkspace was
the interior design consultancy tasked with the project.
Director Guido Tagge describes how, in constant close
collaboration with his client, the design vision shifted away
from a traditional office-bound concept to a reimagining
of the space. Central to this were considerations such as
post-Covid health and sustained wellness, confidentiality
and security (imperative in a legal firm), the elevation of
Client-staff meeting rooms were constructed with
vertical aluminium fins to break up the volume of
glass, increase privacy and create visual interest.
The natural earthy imagery is pulled
through the space in gentle ways.
the staff’s experience and well-being, and underpinning
it all, a union of functionality, design and sustainability.
A reduction of the fit-out’s environmental impact was
a given. All the paint, adhesives, sealants and carpets
procured had low volatile organic compound (VOC)
emissions; so too, usage of third-party eco-labels and
certificates for furniture, assemblies and floor covering.
The appliances and tenant equipment deployed are also
energy efficient (rated under the Energy Star® system or
the European Energy Labelling scheme).
VISUAL DESIGN
Spread over different floors – comprising just over 7 750m 2 –
spatial planning and the flow between functions and floors
is key. The street entrance on the ground floor is a general
reception area for all tenants. An elevator provides direct
access to level 10, which is populated with dedicated nonclient-facing
collaborative spaces for ENS staff. This works
well for those working remotely and only needing a space
to work from, or to utilise firm resources on occasion. It’s
also a sanctuary-like space for office staff to work away from
the busyness and buzz of an office level, or those who need
a change of venue. The 23rd floor houses a client-facing
front-office – along with a restaurant for everyone.
Five “staff-only” office floors are below that, each with
an identical footprint comprising individual areas called
“own spaces” and collaborative facilities.
Although there are separate floors and functions,
a discernible design language and uniquely personal
handwriting is carried through all the spaces. The bold
land art by Strijdom van der Merwe and his sculptural
stonework was a concept departure point for Tagge. Working
with ENS’s brand team, a visual design link was created
between them and the custom zen-like planters filled
with indigenous plants. This organic sensibility is a thread
that flows throughout. From a sustainability perspective,
the plants not only contribute to better air quality, but
are aesthetically pleasing, contributing to staff wellness
and, ultimately, productivity. A horticultural maintenance
contract using green supplies ensures the health and
Small clusters of private “own spaces” are
positioned centrally on the staff floors.
constant visual value of the greenery. The interior design
team drew inspiration from these elements – the natural
earthy imagery – and pulled it through the space in gentle
ways, into the organic-shaped light fittings, wallpapers that
speak to the zen garden, oversized photographs printed on
panels, and graphics etched on glass.
Tagge took it further: “You’ll see repetition in a stylised
way in different media, but there’s also adaptation from
the ENS brand identity – there’s a natural flow of form
that has its footing in their logo. This language starts at
the reception desks – almost sculptural – [and it’s] a gentle,
welcoming movement that directs the space. The materials
are distinctly different on the client-facing 23rd floor, but
that organic flow remains.”
“OWN SPACES”
Office floors 18 to 21 are exclusively for staff, designed
with certain principles in mind. Unlike the offices of
yesteryear, ENS’s reimagining began by moving away from
a hierarchical layout. Every staff member who works in
office – irrespective of title or position – has an identical,
dedicated “own space”, specially designed for concentration,
focus work and collaboration on virtual platforms. The
term “own space” relates not only to privacy, but also to the
individual’s customisation potential. Each is individually
controllable from a lighting and HVAC/air conditioning
perspective – this means that lighting is controlled via wallmounted
switches, enabling each occupant to control the
lighting levels in their immediate environment.
Similarly, an occupant can determine their own
temperature and air flow, and the air they breathe is
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POSITIVE IMPACT ISSUE 25
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