How Sydney’s AMP Quay Quarter Tower went above and beyond – and onto the world stage

T o understand the level of detail involved in the design and construction of the 50-storey Quay Quarter Tower, you need to know about the cab ride Dan Cruddace, project director from BVN, and project architect Fred Holt for 3XN took early one morning across Sydney Harbour Bridge.

“It was 2016 and we were trying to address solar radiance from the building,” Dan says. “We realised that for two hours from 6am from April to September, the reflectivity in one spot of the tower could potentially blind some of the drivers on the bridge.”

After their run across the bridge, they modified the design of a select number of windows on the upper block of what was best known to most Sydneysiders as the AMP building, now Quay Quarter Tower.

“We developed a system of tilting the glass on the upper block by 2.3 degrees which resolved that issue,” Cruddace says.

It’s a testament to the attention to even the smallest details of this complex build that appears as a series of five stacked ‘boxes’, each slightly pivoted to manage light, connectivity between floors and the challenging topography of the Circular Quay site.

Award-winning local architectural firm BVN were chosen to partner with Danish firm 3XN, who won the international design competition for Quay Quarter Tower, partnering with construction giant Multiplex, to transform the AMP building, constructed in 1976, while retaining as much of the original building as they could. 

Now the building has been recognised for its approach to sustainable building practices, with the announcement of the International High Rise Award in Frankfurt overnight. Rather than demolish the building completely, as part of the construction process, 7500 tonnes in carbon dioxide emissions by saving the southern side and core of the building.

Although AMP is the ‘anchor tenant’ for the building, several businesses, including Deloitte, have signed on to lease space, with the building expected to be fully occupied by mid 2023. 

Cruddace says the team were very aware of the building’s place in Sydney’s story, in every sense.

“It’s at the front door of Sydney and Australia in terms of world precincts and connectivity to the harbour – it had that kind of gravitas,” says Cruddace. “It’s a once-in-a-generation project.”

Positioned in front of the historic Museum of Sydney, with the newly opened Quay Quarter Lanes to its left, visitors and office workers within are always aware of their neighbourhood, thanks to a skilful manipulation of levels and glazing so carefully crafted to control the worst of the summer sun from every angle that no blinds are required. Instead, occupants of each floor can appreciate views of nearby buildings – historic and contemporary – as well as through lines to the harbour and the iconic bridge.  

“It’s an amazing site but the original building had so many problems with it in terms of layers of poor planning and permeability and there were real issues with the topography,” Cruddace says.

The rotation of the ‘boxes’ also allow for outdoor terraces populated with landscape design by ASPECT so that, even on the 30th floor, bees can be seen hovering over the flowering plants on the terrace.

If there is a recurring theme in this project, it’s connectivity. Every aspect of this building, from the market hall designed by UK designer Tom Dixon at street level, to the natural site lines to surrounding buildings and the harbour, to the stunningly sculptural spiral staircase that links several office floors, has been considered in terms of its relation to  the other elements.

At the same time, spaces allow for intimate gatherings, private meetings or even solitude. It’s clear that at the heart of this project is the people who use it, whether they’re staff familiar with the layout or casual visitors to the retail spaces at street level. 

Holt says it has raised the bar for what high rise buildings can and should be.

“The expectation previously for high rises was that they were just for providing efficiently stacked workspaces,” he says. “And they still have to be there. But users are expecting the experience to be engaging and to have spaces for collaboration and all those things that make us feel human.”

The team of BVN and 3XN have also won the design competition for Sydney Fish Market, an equally complex site due for completion in 2023.

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