Office Fit-Out and Networking

With less than a month until relocation date we took the reins of fitting out Savills new office build at 41 Shortland Street, scoping the new tenancy on behalf of Sydney-based technical lead Luke Jarden. The new site was a skeleton teeming with tradespeople; and it was clear that their new space faced rapid development.

The layout, design and short timeframe presented a number of technical challenges and the build had to be completed in alignment with Savills standards for I.T.

Facing pressure from architects, we worked in consultation with Luke and his team to design and document the project; and within 24 hours we had the planning approved. There was no time to muck around.

Within three days our team had the pre-wiring fitted and our progress pushed ahead of other trades. With the basics complete we took on the next challenges.

Chorus refused to provision premium HSNS service through to the tenancy at short notice, instead opting to leave the service labelled in the PABX room at the basement of the building. We recognised that this could derail the project, and though it was not expected our team quickly got stuck in arranging keys and after-hours access into all tenancies beneath the new Savills office. Over the following evening we pulled and fitted off the required cable, and eliminated the stress. Sounds easy? The risers were packed with mess!

Ambient noise from the cooling of network hardware was forecasted as an issue, as the new location of the communications cabinet was within the open plan office area. We sought advice from acoustic specialists who set about providing an innovative resolution based on their previous experience managing studios and  film sets. The resulting combination of acoustic padding and sound-absorbing lining was outstanding; the operational equipment is barely noticeable even with the cabinet completely populated with equipment.

Temperature and dust control within the cabinet was another concern. Initial plans showed a dedicated air supply from the incoming HVAC ducts. This would have been effective in delivering cool air during summer, but in winter the duct would supply concentrated warm air – which was not ideal. The ambient office temperature was our only option for stable supply, so we organised for the cabinet to be fitted with a chimney duct that feeds filtered ambient air down into the base of the cabinet. The filtered supply combined with the positive air pressure keeps the dust from making entry into the cabinet and clogging the fans and vents on the core equipment, and the movement of air keeps the temperatures within a safe level.

As the Auckland Savills staff celebrated their departure from their old office on the Friday afternoon, our final phase of the relocation kicked off. Luke and his colleague flew over to join us as we began the biggest logistical part of any move – the decommissioning and relocation of network, Wi-Fi and end-user equipment. We had the old tenancy cleared by 8pm, and the core equipment online in the new office shortly after. Desks were assembled, equipment was tested, and by Saturday afternoon the new office was ready. Good preparation and planning in the build-up to the move reduced pressure and ensured that the outcome was a stress-free and successful relocation, delivered in less than three weeks.

This was an exciting project that delivered an outstanding result for Savills. Our team worked well in partnership together. We’re aligned with their culture of professionalism and we took ownership in the delivery of our work for them.

Our experience, can-do attitude and empathetic approach allowed us to lend efforts well beyond the reasonable expectation of a normal provider or contractor. We communicated transparently throughout the project (with both the Savills team and other contractors), and our flexibility and adaptiveness ensured success in partnership.

Savills continues to be an exciting client to work with and we are pleased to provide continued support for their organisation.