Multi-disciplinary engineering consultancy, Cundall, has moved to a brand new, sustainable office in the heart of Dublin city. Previously located in the West of the city, the move reaffirms the practice’s commitment to expanding its European business and the successful growth of the Dublin team.

Designed by Studio Ben Allen and delivered by Cundall Dublin’s in-house consultants, the new office is a symbol of Cundall’s commitment to healthy and sustainable design in every aspect of the business.

Situated overlooking the historic St Stephen’s Green in Dublin’s bustling centre, the newly opened office embraces the principles of the international WELL building standard and was also designed to achieve net-zero carbon certification. Key features include 100% recycled bespoke office furniture with sit/stand desks for all staff, circadian lighting to emulate the colour shift and intensity of natural light, and the integration of planting within the structural aspects to give refuge and a sense of place.

Derry Kearney, Managing Director of Cundall Ireland, said: “We are very excited to open this brand-new office space in July. The events of the past year have changed the way we design in the built environment, especially office spaces. The design and fit-out has been a true demonstration of our team’s creativity and commitment to sustainability, but it is also a safe place for people to work. We gave them the opportunity to create their own office space and we are hugely proud of the result.

“The brief required us to consider health and wellbeing as well as creating a space that aligned with the business’s net-zero carbon commitment. Our design has eliminated the need for air conditioning and utilises the inherent design features of this historic building, with its high ceilings, to allow us to naturally cross ventilate the space. We have also installed an Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) monitoring system within the space to measure and report in real-time the internal environmental condition of the office. This system was developed in-house by Cundall and has allowed us to create a better workplace for our staff.”

Ben Allen, Architect at Studio Ben Allen, elaborated further, saying: “We’ve designed several of Cundall’s offices around the globe, and the new Dublin office builds on the distinctive and highly sustainable design that runs through the other offices, whilst accommodating the needs of the Dublin team.

“We were keen to respect the historic building’s traditional form and features whilst also demonstrating that it is possible to reuse existing structures and achieve the same high sustainability standards as a newly built workplace would. New timber and pigmented wood fibreboard elements were 100% digitally machine cut (using CNC method) and assembled to reduce waste and save costs and construction time. We brought additional top light into the space by uncovering two existing skylights that had been covered, and also exposed the rafters and original studwork, which not only helped with the natural ventilation strategy, but also gave us the opportunity to show the texture of the original building and bring a material richness to the space. We wanted to blend old and new structures to create an engaging and striking intervention.”

The move puts Cundall squarely in the heart of Dublin and at the gateway to European business for many tech companies. It is symbolic of Cundall’s renewed ambition to continue to grow its European business from its offices in Ireland, Romania, Spain and Poland.

Tomás Neeson, Managing Partner at Cundall, commented: “Over the past 20 years, Cundall has developed a reputation for technical excellence in all of Ireland and with a new home in the heart of Dublin’s business district, Derry and his team are perfectly positioned to continue to create, pass on our knowledge of sustainable engineering and grow that reputation for excellence. Dublin is our key hub for our European office network, and we are both delighted and excited to support the team in their role in developing the local and global business.

Our global network is providing the opportunity for Irish talent to work across the globe, and in many cases return home to continue sharing their knowledge in Dublin and Belfast, and we are delighted to build on this going forwards.”

The Cundall Dublin office is located at 7 St Stephen’s Green.