Dolby
The Opportunity
Dolby was consolidating its North Sydney workplace from 3,100m² across two floors into a single 1,044m² floor. The opportunity was not simply to occupy less space, but to create a workplace better aligned to how its 76 person hybrid team actually worked, without compromising the specialist technical environments at the heart of the business.
At the same time, there was no established workplace design language to work from. For a globally recognised entertainment technology brand, the challenge was to define what a Dolby workplace could be, technically, spatially and experientially, while coordinating decisions across stakeholders in Sydney, San Francisco, Singapore and Poland.
How We Delivered
At the centre of the workplace is a purpose-built critical listening lab, supported by specialist rooms engineered to achieve an exceptional level of acoustic performance, more than double the benchmark typically associated with a commercial office. Across the wider workplace, meeting rooms and technical labs were each designed to meet their own specific acoustic requirements.
Delivering such a high level of performance within an existing commercial building required every specialist room to be resolved individually. Restricted ceiling heights, extensive ductwork and existing building services meant each room needed a tailored solution, developed in close collaboration with acoustic engineers.
Dolby's identity is embedded into the design itself. A custom reception desk inspired by the compact disc sits beneath a dynamic LED feature, while curated record displays acknowledge Dolby’s contribution to recorded sound. Joinery draws from the geometry of the Dolby ‘D’, while hardware and detailing subtly reference sound waves and vibration throughout the workplace.
The Impact
Dolby now occupies a workplace approximately one third the size of its previous office, despite delivering specialist acoustic capability rarely found within a commercial workplace. The project demonstrates that right sizing does not have to mean reducing performance. With careful planning and technical precision, a smaller footprint can deliver more from every square metre.
The project also establishes something Dolby did not previously have, a defined workplace design language. Built around its heritage, technology and culture, the North Sydney workplace provides a framework that can be adapted for future Dolby workplaces globally, creating a consistent identity without losing the character of the brand.
