New Entrepreneur and Innovation Centre to create 400 jobs

Property private equity company Quintessential Equity will deliver the $400 million Entrepreneur and Innovation Centre (EIC), which is expected to create 400 local jobs at the peak of its construction, with flow-on effects to the rest of the economy.

Designed specifically to suit the needs of defence, space, hi-tech and cybersecurity businesses and education and research organisations, the Lot Fourteen Entrepreneur and Innovation Centre will consist of secure commercial, education, research and networking spaces. The 16-level, 35,000 m² building will be central to the precinct and home to a flexible, campus-style Innovation Hub.

The $722 million transformation of Lot Fourteen is a key focus of the Adelaide City Deal to provide a springboard for innovation and industry. The Australian Government has committed up to $20 million in capital towards the establishment of the Innovation Hub on the first and ground floors of the EIC, through the Adelaide City Deal.

Premier Steven Marshall said the EIC will become the new heart of Lot Fourteen and a beacon for sustainable growth and innovation, generating jobs of the future and representing the next major stage of investment at Lot Fourteen.

“This year the number of people doing business, working, researching and studying onsite at Lot Fourteen is set to reach 1000, with continual growth forecast over the coming years. High-growth industries like defence, space, hi-tech and cybersecurity are taking an increasing interest in the platform Lot Fourteen provides and we are continuing to capitalise on that opportunity with the EIC,” Premier Marshall said.

Quintessential Equity Executive Chairman Shane Quinn said the EIC will bolster the South Australian Government’s objective to create an innovation precinct for the next generation of businesses in Adelaide.

“This will become a key destination for government and private sector tenants, working collaboratively to accelerate innovation and ideas that will create jobs for the future. Technology and flexibility will be deeply embedded in this building, allowing our tenants to attract and retain world-leading talent, which is a massive driver in the competitive modern world,” Quinn said.

Federal Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts, the Hon Paul Fletcher MP, said the EIC will build on the capabilities of Lot Fourteen by attracting talent and investment at scale.

“The EIC’s purpose-designed Innovation Hub will be a unique space capable of hosting around 300 people — a perfect environment for exchanging ideas and ultimately delivering business and jobs growth through commercialisation of those ideas,” Minister Fletcher said.

The EIC will connect the various commercial, education, cultural, heritage and tourism components proposed for the precinct. Quintessential Equity will undertake a detailed design review, alongside Cox Architecture, and their engineering and technology partners.

The partnership announcement has followed the Commission Assessment Panel’s (SCAP) approval of the development application for the project. Early site works and excavation have started, with the building scheduled for completion in late 2023.

Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/ymgerman