Cracking the capacity code: rethinking building occupation in a new era of work

How many people can a workplace hold?

RE-IMAGINING THE FUTURE OFFICE

Open plans, activity-based working, co-working spaces and café meetings have changed the world of work. But the building code harkens back to a time of enclosed offices and typewriters. Is it possible to re-imagine these regulations to make safer, more comfortable, more usable and more profitable workplaces?

“The number of persons accommodated in an office, including one for typewriting or document copying … is one per 10 square metres.”

Building Code of Australia

LIVING BY A DIFFERENT CODE

We’re advocating for a new framework to measure office density — one that reflects the ways we work and occupy workplaces today.

In workplaces, the average space per person has decreased 8.3% in the past 10 years.

Cushman & Wakefield