Client story

Delivering Aurecon's aspirational office 

JLL helped Aurecon move into a space that embodies its culture of ambition and excellence – an office building constructed almost entirely from timber at 25 King Street in Brisbane, Australia

Location

Brisbane, Australia

Spotlight

6 Star Green Star rating, 5 Star NABERS Energy rating

Spotlight

Largest engineered timber office building in Australia

Size

6,500 square metres

"The outcome of the process was beyond anything Aurecon could have hoped for."

Michael Greene, Head of Tenant Representation, Australia, JLL

Aurecon is one of the world’s leading engineering and infrastructure advisory firms, behind projects including Sydney’s Bankwest Stadium, the fibre roll-out in South Africa, and Macau Eiffel Tower.

The firm’s Brisbane office at 25 King Street has earned international acclaim for its sustainability and innovation. The nine-storey building is constructed almost entirely of timber and has set new environmental benchmarks across the real estate industry.

Now one of Brisbane’s most desirable addresses, Aurecon’s office is the product of a collaboration between landlord and tenant rarely achieved in the highly transactional world of real estate.

Setting out the vision

Aurecon’s office began as an aspiration in 2017 when the firm had a team of 600 employees in Brisbane working from a place that was less than ideal. The firm had envisaged a space that could adapt with the business, one that would embody its culture of ambition and excellence, a place they would be proud to work.

As a longstanding adviser to Aurecon on its real estate interests across Australia and Asia, our Tenant Representation professionals raised the idea of a relocation, presenting the firm with evidence that moving into a new, purpose-built office would deliver its office goals and financial objectives. The Brisbane market was in Aurecon’s favour.

With Aurecon suitably enthused, we formulated a business strategy and began the enormous and exciting process of choosing a developer that could bring to the table bold ideas to build on an already ambitious brief – ambitious in environmental efficiency and in functionality. 

Meeting their match

We engaged with many leading developers, designers and architects, and with Aurecon workshopped their ideas to arrive at the best in class. Lendlease, which required a major tenant commitment to commence construction on a site in the RNA (Brisbane Showgrounds precinct), was a clear front-runner, securing the deal on an aspiration clearly shared with Aurecon to set a new benchmark in environmental sustainability.

Lendlease would build the largest cross-laminated timber office building in the southern hemisphere. By the time of completion it had achieved a 6 Star Green Star rating, 5 Star NABERS Energy rating and WELL Core & Shell rating.

Aurecon committed to 6,500 square metres of the 13,000 square metre building on a 10-year lease. The collaboration gave the firm a unique opportunity to be both the designer and the user of their workplace and to create an office with multiple, much needed collaborative spaces.

A rare collaboration

The outcome of the process was beyond anything anyone could have hoped for, says Michael Greene, Head of Tenant Representation – Australia, JLL.

 “Both Aurecon and Lendlease were determined to make this Brisbane office a showcase of what they do. Anyone can have that aspiration, but it’s rare for landlord and tenant to listen to each other and both agree to contribute more to achieve an ambition. Their aspirations were completely aligned.”

Aurecon’s decision to relocate was not without its challenges. The firm had 18 months remaining on its existing office lease, which required us to undertake complex negotiations and deal structures to produce the best possible outcome for our client.

However, the process overall was positive for everyone involved, drawing on a variety of skills sets and experiences within our own firm to support Aurecon throughout this milestone move.

Our Research and Valuations teams matched the on-the-ground expertise of our Tenant Representation professionals with their unrivalled data and market intelligence. Later, our Capital Markets experts advised on the implications to Aurecon of the building’s eventual sale to Australian funds manager, Impact Investment Group.

Lendlease appointed our office Leasing experts to secure tenants for the building, as well as our Property Management team to ensure everyone who visits the building has the best possible experience.

Meanwhile, staff at Aurecon continue to reap the benefits of its fantastic new space, says Ellie Hubbard, Senior Project Engineer, Aurecon.

“If you ask people how they have felt since they’ve been in the building, they’ll say there’s an overall sense of calmness.”