Citibank
Dublin’s growing attractiveness as an international hub for financial services received a boost with the decision of Citibank to commission a major new headquarter building. The client brief was to create a bright modern working environment for 2,000 staff working in their expanding front office and global support operations, including an important support centre serving more than 52 countries across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The international importance of the Dublin operation was recognised with the recent establishment of Citi’s first ‘Innovation Lab’, dedicated to research and development in the financial services industry. STW were again engaged to conceive and create a bespoke working environment honed to the needs of creativity and innovation.
Architecture
The building provides almost 22,500 sq.m of accommodation over 6 floors, not including the basement carpark. The efficient design achieves a net:gross ratio in excess of 80%, while the overall development achieved a plot ratio of 2.5:1 – the maximum permissible within the zoning parameters of the site.
Balancing the requirement to maximise the development potential of the site while achieving a high quality working environment, the office floorplates were arranged around two full-height, internal landscaped atria which introduce natural daylight to all staff areas.
The main entrance is defined externally by a 5-storey planar glazed wall, affording the building a dramatic presence on this prime waterfront site. The façade reflects both its setting and the corporate brand by the selected use of granite cladding and extensive areas of solar-shaded glazing. Internally, a sense of movement and transparency is achieved by the use of glazed lift shafts, open staircases and link bridges.
