Four Concept projects were awarded Silver at the 2026 Melbourne Design Awards, part of the Better Future Awards program. Two are workplaces built for the teams who occupy them. Two are speculative suites on Flinders Lane.
Blinq Technologies, 321 Exhibition Street
Silver, Interior Design (Corporate)
Blinq were growing quickly and needed a Melbourne workplace that could keep pace. The brief was for 1,100sqm on the top floor of 321 Exhibition Street that reflected the business rather than simply housing it.
The kitchen sits at the centre of the floor with tiered seating alongside it. Together they carry the all-hands, the daily lunch and a good share of the work that does not require a desk. Lounge areas, quiet rooms, phone booths and brand-led meeting rooms sit around the perimeter.
Exposed ceilings and polished concrete give the floor its industrial character, balanced by timber and generous daylight. The plan holds room for staged growth, including provision to upgrade the kitchen to commercial specification as the team expands.
Reliable Plumbing, Notting Hill
Silver, Interior Design (Corporate)
Most of this team works on site, so a conventional desk-led office would have stood empty for much of the week. The kitchen and breakout area were placed at the entry instead, which makes the social heart of the business the first thing anyone sees.
Across 305sqm, checkered floor tiles, bold laminates, layered warm lighting and custom joinery give the workplace its character. Acoustic treatment is integrated into the walls, ceilings and light fittings, which is what keeps a busy room comfortable to work in.
The project was delivered inside a tight programme, with long material lead times planned around from the outset.
Read the Reliable Plumbing project →
H2: Level 4, 415 Flinders Lane
Silver, Interior Design (Commercial)
A 638sqm turnkey suite for ST Real Estate in Swann House, a recently redeveloped heritage building. The brief was a floor a tenant could occupy immediately, at a standard that justifies the address.
The palette draws on eucalyptus forms and the Art Deco period, deep greens set against light and dark timbers. A vaulted ceiling marks the entry. Arched openings, decorative cornices and mouldings, and a metal mesh ceiling detail carry that character through the floor. Behind the look is a working plan at a 1:11 workstation ratio, with a central social hub and town hall seating, a business lounge, collaboration zones, two meeting rooms, quiet rooms, a wellness room and staff lockers.
Limited ceiling heights, existing ducts and cable trays, and uneven floors all had to be resolved without giving up the design intent.
Read the 415 Flinders Lane project →
Level 4, 226 Flinders Lane
Silver, Interior Design (Commercial)
Swann House is a refurbished Art Deco building being leased floor by floor, with each level offering something distinct. Level 4 is a 638sqm turnkey suite for ST Real Estate, finished to a standard a tenant can occupy immediately.
The palette takes its cue from eucalyptus and the building’s Art Deco period, setting deep greens against light and dark timbers. A vaulted ceiling with cornice, moulding and feature paint anchors the arrival, and the same language carries through the archways, a metal mesh ceiling and bespoke joinery. The floor accommodates a business lounge, a 14-person boardroom, a social hub with town hall seating, a wellness room, a cafe-style kitchen, quiet rooms, meeting rooms and collaboration zones, planned at a 1:11 workstation ratio.
The base building set the constraints. Low ceiling heights, existing ducts and cable trays, and services that could not be relocated. Lighting proved the most demanding element, with every fitting positioned around what was already in place and locked in early to meet lead times. The existing floor was uneven and was levelled as far as the structure allowed. Each of these was resolved on site without altering the design intent.
Read the 226 Flinders Lane project →
Design and delivery under one contract
Two of these projects are workplaces for businesses that will occupy them for years. Two are speculative suites built to lease. All four ran through the same design team, the same trades and the same process.
Concept designs and builds under a single contract, with one point of contact and one fixed price, and the trades are ours. On the two heritage floors that is the reason the finished suites read as considered rather than compromised. When a floor proves not to be level, or a service cannot be moved, the decision is made within the programme rather than passed between a designer and a separate contractor.
Thank you to Blinq Technologies, Reliable Plumbing and ST Real Estate for trusting us with these spaces. And congratulations to the design and delivery teams who brought them to life.
See all four entries on the Better Future Awards site | View more of our projects
