Eagle Hills

Creating a creative workspace that fosters enlightened ways of working.

Eagle Hills, the property development group, asked us to create the concept for their new headquarters in the iconic Capital Gate skyscraper in Abu Dhabi, the world’s furthest leaning man-made tower.

The brief was to design a new floor to house the company’s architectural design and construction teams. The floor needed to have its own distinct character while complementing the company’s existing loft-style headquarters above. It had to provide an inspiring workspace for employees, plus host client meetings.

As a forward-thinking company, Eagle Hills wanted to demonstrate their working process as well as showcasing projects. The new design had to fit with creative working patterns, offering a range of flexible working and meeting spaces.

The design is based on the concept of a draughtsman’s studio – a flexible and inspirational space that feels more like a creative atelier than a traditional office.

A cool and contemporary materials palette brings the concept to life, with natural finishes including slate, concrete, rope and timber. The choice of light grey for the ceiling and main structure makes the deep space seem lighter. The flooring adds an urban, contemporary feel, with dark grey ceramic and light poured concrete. We clad the building’s central core in wooden paneling, adding warmth and richness.

We transformed the corridor in the building’s central core into an intimate exhibition space. Recent projects are displayed here, offering a talking point for clients and inspiration for employees. 

At the heart of the main working space sits a plinth displaying large models of current developments. Here, staff can talk clients through new schemes visually, involving them in the process.

An informal coffee bar nearby offers an ideal breakout area. Behind, modular glass partitioning surrounds meeting areas. The screens can be adjusted to create spaces of different sizes, or can collapse away entirely.

We created strategically-placed breakout spaces around the office, with pebble pouffes adding a relaxed feel. There are clear sight lines around the workspace – glass and rope walls surrounding managers’ offices ensuring they feel like part of the main studio.

Lux lighting is tailored throughout to change the atmosphere based on the working needs of each zone. Dropped feature lighting over key desks creates task lighting and focal drama. A-frames, reminiscent of draughtsmen’s tables, frame select desks to add visual interest.

The result is a calm, adaptable and light working environment that’s ideally suited to the varied working patterns of Eagle Hill’s staff. The concept brings the company’s creative vision to life, inviting clients into the process.

Client and staff feedback has been fantastic. Eagle Hills commented: “The unique, distinctive design of our headquarters reflects our aspirations to be a world-leading developer and provides a cutting-edge creative environment for our team.”