With a surface area of 60,000 m² including a parking deck of 600 spaces, the CNESST head office can welcome over 1,800 employees. Its work environment unfolds around an eight-story atrium featuring a hybrid, steel-wood structure. This one-of-a-kind space testifies to the organization’s commitment to social and environmental responsibility. The project is a candidate for WELL Platinum and LEED Silver certifications.

Innovation resides in measures taken to overcome regulatory limitations and integrate wood into the structure. Fire simulations funded by a Ministère des Forêts, de la Faune et des Parcs (MFFP) grant program in support of innovation were used to determine the compensatory measures required to develop an alternative solution approved by the competent authority. As a result, the building demonstrates a spectacular use of a renewable material that contributes to reducing its carbon footprint.

The warm aesthetic of wood contributes remarkably to enriching the users’ experience of a space dedicated to socialization and relaxation. 26 metres in depth and 36 metres in width, the atrium embodies the building's identity. It features an eight-story transparent facade as well as a sculptural staircase that connects every floor, encouraging physical activity.

Innovation is also found in the multi-level parking deck’s envelope, which presented a critical integration challenge in the eco-neighbourhood. The modular envelope system developed specifically for this project was made with industrial stamping, casting and 5-axis digital machining processes that take advantage of its components’ repetitiveness.

The 9,765 aluminum deflectors were attached to vertical masts and oriented with precision with parametric design tools. These deflectors perform a dynamic choreography that allows natural ventilation of the parking deck and limits snow penetration. The various orientations of the deflectors reveal part of their green backing, creating a multitude of compositions that change depending on the observer's location.