Room with a view

Danish investment firm Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) manages funds that invest in a portfolio of renewable energy projects, including wind power and solar power. Last year, CIP acquired a majority share of Mulilo Energy Holdings, a South African renewable energy developer based in Cape Town.

Leading design and build fitout specialist Tétris Design & Build was commissioned to design a new headquarters for Mulilo to reflect their new global corporate identity as part of and CIP’s global network and establish a workspace environment that would support the wellbeing of employees and allow them to thrive.

Appropriately for a company focussing on green energy, the headquarters is located in Portside in Cape Town’s CBD, which is the tallest green building in South Africa. It has a 5-star Green Star rating. At 32 floors, it is also Cape Town’s tallest building. Mulilo occupies the 21st floor, which is just short of 2 000m², and has spectacular
360-degree views that take in landmarks including Table Mountain, Cape Town Stadium, the harbour, the ocean and the city.

Inviting in the views and maximising the abundance of natural light were central to Tétris’s approach, harnessing the unique benefits of their position. The opportunity to emphasise the natural beauty of the surroundings and forge a connection with the palpable presence of nature outside resonated with the company’s core values and activities.

Somewhat serendipitously, CIP’s corporate identity includes a palette of soft blues and greens with neutral tones and natural textures, perfectly complementing the natural scenery visible through the wraparound floor-to-ceiling windows. CIP’s Scandinavian-inflected aesthetic, with an emphasis on clean lines and simple forms, minimalistic furniture design and light, uncluttered spaces serves to create a calm, soothing, comfortable and distraction-free environment.

Mulilo required 120 workstations accommodated in an open-plan environment, flexibility for unassigned seating and dedicated project rooms, as collaborative project-based activities make up a significant part of the staff and partner requirements, alternating between various sites and the office. The floor plan cleverly accommodates both of these necessities.

A reception area with a vertical-slatted timber feature wall orients visitors and reprises a signature sofa island that features in all CIP’s international offices, establishing a recognisable international identity and ethos.

Meeting rooms, boardrooms and enclosed focus rooms are positioned on the periphery of the floorplate, alternating with pockets of open-plan desking in a free-flowing arrangement. This layout deftly breaks down the open-plan desking into comfortably sized, semi-contained spaces while maintaining visual connections and a sense of office community with opportunities for spontaneous interactions. At the same time, it mitigates against the accumulation of noise.

Another benefit to this floor plan, when combined as it is with various pods, lounge areas, phone booths and other collaboration and breakaway spaces, is that it facilitates ease of transition between various work modes, allowing employees to make quick and easy shifts as they need to, whether they need privacy or to gather spontaneously.

Beyond this, many spaces are easily adaptable and multifunctional. Light, mobile furniture makes it easy to configure and reconfigured spaces to suit the circumstances at a moment’s notice. The project rooms also include easy-to-manoeuvre counter seating and mobile whiteboards. Even the café area can be transformed into an event-, gathering- or entertainment space with minimal effort and fuss. The emphasis is on providing employees with the scope and the variety to choose the work modes and patterns that best suit them.

The individual health and wellbeing of employees, too, is central to Mulilo’s and CIP’s corporate culture. The office furnishings were selected to facilitate ergonomic comfort. All desks, for example, are height adjustable. Thus, at the level of individual workstations, each employee’s preference and comfort is catered for.

Individual choice is emphasised to in the refreshment areas. Sophisticated coffee offerings (including a barista space) are on hand at several points around the office, as is the option of carbonated water. A dining area with a café environment, once again, offers a variety of seating options, ranging from café tables to booth seating and counters with stools. These, too, are equipped with network and power connections, thus adding a ‘work café space’ to the multifunctional offering.

The sustainability of all design and furniture choices was paramount, and Tétris carefully tracked and scored every aspect of the design, documented using the group’s global sustainability code via its proprietary app. Tétris custom-designed several furniture pieces, including the servers, which were locally manufactured. In addition to the wall graphics featuring sustainable energy-themed imagery, local artists such as Gavin Collins were commissioned to create bespoke artworks with local resonance.

Mulilo’s new headquarters embody the company's commitment to sustainability while fostering a supportive and productive environment for its team in a cohesive and environmentally conscious workspace aligned with CIP's overarching goals in the sustainable energy sector.

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