The weathervane at the top of the tower reveals one of the former uses of this iconic heritage building in Adelaide. Formerly a brewery, mechanic’s workshop and leaking car park, it is now an extension to the offices of longstanding Adelaide engineering practice, Wallbridge and Gilbert.

A respect for the history of the place and the way that history is bound in the fabric of the building, steered the design of a significant intervention to convert a leaking, drafty and crooked space beneath the two barrel roofs, into a useable and unique office environment.

Based on best practice heritage principles, but also on a design premise that sought to use the patina of worn materials in the new work, the conflict between retention of old physical fabric and provision of new useable space has led to a design solution that elegantly references what came before.

The collaboration between architect, engineer, contractor, steel fabricator, and 3D modeller results in a deceptively simple interior space. Externally, works focussed on providing stability to the weathered façade, reinstating details where appropriate and removing later insertions to return the worn Wyatt Street façade, to a state of physical soundness without over embellishing.