Around the Industry in 80 seconds

In the lead up to the end of the year and with one eye firmly on 2019 and beyond, Urban.com.au is coming to you with a number of announcements from within the architectural fraternity. This follows on from Urban.com.au's article earlier this month detailing some key appointments around the industry.

Read on for news from i2C Architects and Architectus:

Experienced retail design firms merge, cementing position as leaders in national market

Currently located in Melbourne, Sydney and Perth, i2C Architects is set to expand up the country’s east coast, announcing its amalgamation with Brisbane-based TRG Queensland.

With a similar client sect in the retail, industrial, mixed-use, urban and build-to-rent sectors, the merger will now see i2C Architects offer an enviable skill set and expanded client database, with full coverage across Australia.

While in a coup for Queensland, the move will mean a truly international offering to the design and architectural market with i2C Architects providing an expansive global alliance and network of offices.

It is expected that the combined revenue of the merged entity will exceed $16 million per annum, with the i2C Architects team growing to over 100 members across the four locations in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Perth.

Following a reevaluation of the business and its brand after almost 20 years in operation, co-founder and Managing Director of i2C Architects, Anthony Merlin, said the desire to expand the company’s offer and value to clients was the motivator to merge.

According to TRG Queensland Managing Director, Rod Rose, who will become a third Director at i2C Architects, it is the larger scale projects the office can now take on that will bring a dynamic offering to clients in the Sunshine State.

TRG Queensland will officially transition into i2C Architects Queensland office effective 1 January 2019.

“i2C Architects has been privileged enough to work alongside TRG Queensland on a number of projects over the past 18 months, and it became very apparent to my co-founder Brian Jende and myself, that the synergies between our two companies were almost identical, from the client base to our core values.

In the past we haven’t been able to service Queensland as much as we would have liked to, and in our vision to become a truly national firm, it was vital that we made a strategic move.

We now have an established office in Brisbane that is home to talented building designers and architects, and that is a very exciting prospect for the company.”

-  Anthony Merlin, co-founder and Managing Director of i2C Architects

“From our inception 13 years ago, our focus at TRG Queensland was always on small to medium projects, the largest we’ve worked on is $30 million.

Joining i2C Architects allows us to offer our current and prospective clients additional services, and we will certainly be able to provide incredible value with our skill set particularly architectural documentation.” 

-  Rod Rose, TRG Queensland Managing Director

Architectus welcomed to Perth by property and construction industry leaders

Top-tier Australian design practice, Architectus, has officially launched its Perth studio welcoming over 100 leaders from the WA property and construction industry to its fifth capital city workplace located at QV1 in central Perth.

On the back of sustained national growth and building on a portfolio of local Architectus-designed projects, Managing Director, Ray Brown said the Perth studio affirms the practice’s commitment to servicing clients nationally and strong belief in the Western Australian market.

Architectus’ growth has been driven by a number of key project appointments including the design of the Western Sydney Airport Business Park Master Plan; 505 George Street, Sydney - a landmark mixed-use residential tower; ‘Triplets’, a high rise office building in Brisbane; several education projects including for Macquarie University and the Growth Area Schools Project for the State Government of Victoria; Sydney Metro City and Southwest in collaboration with Foster + Partners as part of the METRON consortium; and as part of the Aurecon Jacobs Mott Macdonald joint venture (AJM JV) consortium, appointed as technical advisor to Rail Projects Victoria (previously the Melbourne Metro Rail Authority) for the Victorian Rail Infrastructure Program (VRIP), which includes amongst other projects investigations into the Melbourne Airport Rail link and Geelong fast rail.

Providing services in urban design and planning, architecture and interior architecture, Architectus has experienced substantial growth over the last three years, comprising 400 employees across Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney and more recently Perth.

With key senior hires already underway, the Perth studio is expected to grow to a team of around 30 under the leadership of Managing Principal Mark Mitcheson-Low, supported by well-known Perth design architect Paul Jones who has been working with Architectus for the last three years.

Perth projects designed by Architectus include multi-unit residential developments Waterbank Building J, The Islands at South Beach, and The Esplanade on the site of the historic Steve’s Hotel, Nedlands (in association with Kerry Hill Architects).

“To be a truly national practice it is imperative that Architectus is in Perth,” Brown said. “Like all growing cities, the complexity and scale of projects is increasing which suits our skillset, whether across education, workplace, commercial, transport, or residential. It’s a great city with a really deep talent pool, which we’ll utilise not only for local projects, but to support our projects across Australia.”

- Ray Brown, Managing Director

“Architectus announced its intention to open a Perth studio in August this year and we were thrilled to see so many of the industry turn out to celebrate the arrival of the practice with us.

The opening of the studio provides our national clients with access to the expertise they’re familiar with on the East coast, and our Perth clients with a long-awaited new national entrant to provide a fresh design offer into the market.”

- Mark Mitcheson-Low, Managing Principal

Lead image: Kerstin Thompson Architects