Designed to foster Fisher & Paykel’s R&D strategy, this extensive re-fit of an existing factory will cater to F&P’s growing product design and engineering team, accomodating 400+ employees. At the heart is the ‘Social Kitchen’ with a timber louvre ceiling and natural light filtering from two large funnels in the ceiling. The kitchen provides a setting for F&P’s engineers and designers to engage with their products on a daily basis.

Custance developed a modular pod system with fully illuminated ceilings and writable/magnetic design walls. Additional lightwells bring a spread of natural light throughout the floor which also supports large trees and extensive planting. This realised F&P’s desire to extract the design process from individual workspaces and make the knowledge visible, encouraging a more collaborative design process.

Custance engaged collaboratively with Fisher & Paykel Product Development, merging the respective design processes and ideas. The result was a world class environment that clearly reflected the principles of how we work as an organisation. Custance continued this collaborative approach through the project build to ensure the design was achieved to the highest standard, and importantly, cost effectively. The partnership with Custance produced a workplace that we can be equally proud of.

Wayne Jones
Product Design Manager, F&P Appliances

As a design led organisation, Fisher and Paykel had some key principles we wanted to live out in our new design centre. Custance worked closely with us to understand our core brand values, culture and design thinking. They also understood the importance of quality of detail and materials. Custance have a created an adaptable, multi-use workplace that is not only highly creative and inspirational, but is improving the productivity and quality of design across the wide range of activities we undertake.

Mark Elmore
GM Design, F&P Appliances