Corgan Dublin Office Design
Nowhere to go but up
After expanding its international footprint in May 2023 to include a Dublin location, Corgan’s newest office is making another exciting move – from our current location in Lucan, down the River Liffey to the EXO building, located in the rapidly developing North Quays neighborhood. The 17-story, 73-meter office building – the tallest in Dublin – anchors the skyline and provides panoramic views of the city. In addition to placing the team in a centrally-located, desirable area, the move gave us the opportunity to craft our own workspace entirely from scratch.
Conveying connectivity
From the 11th floor, Corgan’s new office enjoys views of the city center to the west, river and Wicklow mountains to the south, Dublin’s airport to the north, and Dublin Bay to the east. The cranes and gantries that fill the port, which served as the inspiration for the building’s vivid blue external structure, take center stage from the collaboration areas, conference rooms, and private offices lining the eastern windows. The 5,575-square-foot floor plan contains 40 workstations as well as two private offices, giving our team plenty of room to grow in the coming months and years.
Our design team took inspiration from the port and the connectivity of Dublin with the rest of the world that it symbolises when planning the office layout and design features. To pull the a visual quality of the port inside, a bright, Corgan-yellow shipping container serves as the printing station. Other industrial elements, like the perforated powder-coated metal chandelier in the canteen, further reinforce a sense of place. The open office layout is dotted with semi-private nooks and touchdown spaces to encourage collaboration and connection between employees. Additional amenities, including a wellness room, private phone booths, and breakout areas, give employees opportunities to socialize, rest, and get focused work done.
Making ourselves at home
Gestures to Dublin’s landscape and history are interspersed throughout the office, beginning with the tiered, collaborative seating area in the southeast corner, overlooking the River Liffey and Dublin Port. The river itself connects the new office to our old location, and the weir seating area replicates an area along the river to function as both a landmark and an all-hands meeting and presentation area. A green wall behind the weir seating highlights the connection to nature and brings color to the calming neutral material palette.
Another Dublin landmark – the concrete bathing shelters at Dollymount Beach – was used as the inspiration for two 4-seat collaboration areas. These collaboration areas were intentionally kept low-tech, with magnetic whiteboards instead of AV, to encourage putting pen to paper to sketch out design solutions. The analog, old-school method of collaborating gives employees a break from technology and lets them add their personal touch to the design process. Finally, biophilic elements, like the green wall, suspended grid ceiling with hanging plants, and natural wood furniture and finishes throughout, were a natural fit for the Emerald Isle office.
Finding common ground
The office also features intentional callbacks to Corgan’s history in both Dallas and Dublin. Our design team looked at Corgan’s history to find commonality with our own roots, and found significant overlap in aviation, sustainability, and modern architecture. With recessed linear track lighting, acoustic panels, and long corridors simulating that of an airplane interior, the design of the conference and meeting rooms pay homage to Corgan’s long history of working in aviation, as well as Ireland’s role as the landing point for the first nonstop transatlantic flight. The recessed lighting also serves as a nod to the Dublin office’s luxury retail designs.
Ireland was the first country in the world to divest from fossil fuels and aims to be carbon neutral by 2050. Likewise, Corgan recently signed the Net Zero Carbon Buildings (NZCB) commitment, with the ultimate goal to be carbon neutral in 2025. With these sustainability commitments in mind, the office is designed to be net carbon zero by 2050. Sustainability and wellness were central concerns throughout the design process. Long sightlines, biophilia, and natural light work to reduce eye strain and anxiety while improving productivity. The working areas of the open floorplan are able to operate largely on natural light, reducing energy use. The materials were also selected carefully: vinyl tile in circulation areas reduces dust collection and provides slip resistance for safety and the acoustic panels and baffles use PET felt, a recycled material that absorbs sound well.
The modern feel of the new office matches that of other Corgan offices: between the open workstations, natural elements, neutral palette, and ample areas for collaboration, the design embodies Corgan’s values of balance and excellence. By incorporating bespoke design elements – like the weir seating, shipping container, and cinema-themed phone booths – we’ve added our own twist.
Onward and Upward
As the Dublin team settles into our new space, surrounded by reminders of who we are, where we come from, and where we want to go, it is hard not to be excited about the future. We are ready to grow and take on new challenges in Dublin, in Ireland, and the EU. The office is more than just a place to work, it is representative of Corgan’s investment in its employees and the expansion on the horizon. Our Dublin team mirrors the city's dynamic spirit by blending Ireland's cultural richness with innovation. Diverse and forward-thinking, they affirm Dublin’s reputation as a global gateway. By seamlessly combining innovative, beautiful design with data-driven, human-centric approaches, Corgan’s Dublin team is building a home that continues to explore the wonder and power of design.
