New Zealand
Australia
United States
United Kingdom
IrelandMediaWorks
The project
A feat of innovative design and out-of-the-box thinking, the Mediaworks building tells the story of radio—a medium rich in history and soul—through a brave, game-changing fitout.
Project Team
Warren and Mahoney
Beejays
Anton Agnew
The Space
When MediaWorks set out to consolidate its radio brands under one roof, the brief was about much more than creating a functional workplace. The new home needed to unify teams, strengthen company culture, support high-performance broadcasting, and capture the rebellious, creative spirit of radio. Working alongside Warren and Mahoney, Autex Acoustics® helped transform a former warehouse into an immersive environment where acoustics became a key part of the storytelling.
The design was conceived as a cityscape, with each radio brand occupying its own “neighbourhood”. Connecting these spaces were three large-scale acoustic sculpture walls, each inspired by a different physical manifestation of sound: Anechoic, Noise, and Beats. Rather than hiding acoustic treatment, the project turned it into architecture, creating landmarks that shaped both the visual identity and acoustic performance of the workplace.
The Wall Concepts
The Anechoic Wall explored the concept of silence. Constructed from folded Cube™ panels, its origami-like wedges referenced the geometric forms found in anechoic chambers. Beyond creating a striking feature, the wall’s depth increased its surface area for sound absorption, helping control reverberation within the large, highly reflective warehouse environment.
The Noise Wall translated sound into texture. Resembling a vibrant shag carpet, the sculpture was created using carefully cut and layered Cube™ panels to produce an intentionally irregular form. Its extensive acoustic surface area helped absorb a broad range of frequencies, reducing reverberation in communal spaces while also contributing to sound isolation between adjoining rooms and studios.
The Beats Wall took inspiration from the movement of a speaker cone. Formed from folded hexagonal shapes, the undulating surface created a dynamic play of light and shadow while delivering acoustic benefits. An air gap behind the Cube™ cladding increased low-frequency absorption and enhanced the acoustic separation of adjacent spaces.
In the Studio
Beyond the feature walls, MediaWorks’ 16 professional broadcast studios required a different acoustic approach. To support daily radio production and emerging video-radio formats, each studio was treated with 50 mm Quietspace® Panel and 12 mm Cube™. Together, these materials created the dry acoustic environment essential for broadcasting by controlling reverberation, echo, and flutter while maintaining a clean, contemporary aesthetic suited to on-camera content creation.
The result is a workplace where acoustics do far more than manage sound. At MediaWorks, acoustic solutions became a storytelling device, expressing the history, energy, and culture of radio while delivering the performance required of a modern media organisation.
