“A brief from the team to the team”. The new 4SPACE Design offices are designed for the team. The leaders put together a questionnaire asking the team to imagine their new workspace. Overall, the team wanted there to be an intrinsic sense of wellbeing and belonging within the space. They wanted light. And lots of it. Neutral monochromatic schemes and a large breakout area with a games and relaxation space for the team to draw breath and find a sense of peace from a busy day.
“When brutalism meets minimalism with a twist of industrial”. 4SPACE has paired unfinished concrete breeze blocks with a smooth monochromatic pallet and verdant trees to nod to biophilic living. Richly covered modern furniture, exposed piping, stainless steel accessories, and fluorescent lighting create exciting spaces for work, meetings, and play.
The 4SPACE Design offices are exciting. The exposed breeze block walls are treated with sealer material to enhance and preserve the brutalist look. It’s raw, unfinished, and playful. Modern angular lighting bounces light throughout the open spaces and communal workstations.
The central atrium of the offices boasts a beautifully preserved, semi-artificial olive tree that has been hand-fashioned by craftsmen in Dubai. The trees have come from historic groves across the region. Olive trees are known to flourish until they are several thousands of years old. Introducing biophilic design elements into a space can help alleviate stress, improve cognitive function, and enhance mood and creativity. The space is multi-functional, with open spaces for teams to assemble, but the team can create private spaces with impressive pivotal doors for important meetings.
This project was extraordinarily fast and only took a month to complete. It was a complete family affair where the 4SPACE design team, contractors and suppliers all contributed to the seamless execution of the new office space. Each person provided valuable support to achieve the tight timeline for the transition from the old offices to the new.
The 4SPACE office has the appeal of a solid but inviting fortress. The distinctive concrete modernism provides light-hearted intrigue yet is minimalistic and intimate. The office is set amidst endless city skyscrapers. As a result of the open workspaces, the office possesses spectacular views across the Dubai waterfront and the iconic Dubai Eye.
Contractors struggled to manoeuvre 2.70-metre glass partitions in the elevators; their hard work and brave efforts have created a remarkable installation. The concrete flooring was quite challenging; it had to be poured, dried and levelled precisely. From the questionnaire, the entire design process and construction took a mere 45 days.
There are many focal points, but the most exciting key features are the olive tree, concrete and exposed breeze blocks, the neutral monochromatic colour scheme and the open ceiling concept with exposed industrial metal piping.
Material selection: concrete, glass, metal, aluminium, wood and black leather.
About 4Space Design
Originally established in Damascus in 2001, founders, Firas Alsahin and Amjad Hourieh, moved their practice to Dubai to be at the centre of this vibrant market. The emirate’s booming growth in the commercial sector was an impetus for the firm to explore all the opportunities in the design industry. Eschewing quantity for quality, profile of the project and relationship with clients, the studio credit its people’s distinct ideas strategic business development.
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4SPACE provides quality, distinctive architectural, interior design and design solutions for commercial premises, restaurants, entertainment venues, retail spaces and private residences throughout the United Arab Emirates and further afield. 4SPACE has blossomed over the last 10 years and continuously innovates and intentionally disrupts interior design in one of the world's most extraordinary cities, Dubai. Recognised as one of the finest interior design companies in the region, the company prides itself on blending light and space with delicate, well-considered features to create memorable aesthetics.
Firas Alsahin and Amjad Hourieh adeptly lead the award-winning interior design firm. Their international experience encourages the team to go beyond limits in Dubai. They explore different shapes and forms to create unique buildings that incorporate feasibility, efficiency, and originality. They led 4SPACE to be the overall winner of the Society of British and International Design (SBID) Awards in 2018. Commercial Interior Design Magazine voted the firm among the top 20 most successful boutique interior design firms in the Middle East in 2019.
Firas Alsahin was named one of the 50 most influential interior designers on the power list in the Middle East. He's a fully accredited design professional with SBID. Alsahin's design finesse embraces futuristic, minimalist, functional and sustainable design. He is well regarded in the industry and has an active voice on various discussion platforms in the Middle East.
Amjad Hourieh is also a fully accredited design professional with the SBID. He loves to create an element of surprise and intrigue with his designs. His designs incorporate the organic influence of Art Deco with the expected natural curves and geometry but with an unexpected sense of drama. Hourieh strives to unify visions between each client with innovation and technology.
Their imitable growth led to Ehab Alhariri joining 4SPACE as the principal architect to shape the new architectural division. His experience has seen him work on various projects in the USA and with world-famed Emaar, Dubai properties, Wasl, and Hilton. Alhariri earned global recognition for his sustainable mountain pod that pushed boundaries and merged his design capabilities by integrating art and science.
4SPACE creates environments that inspire well-being, drive innovation, and boost company development. Dubai is the world leader in unique and well-designed properties. 4SPACE, as a full-service design firm, has revolutionised the hospitality industry with its unique floating villas, futuristic sustainable mountain pod, the tube house and the towering Marina Twin Towers. The city’s impressive VR Park located in Dubai Mall is over 5,000 square metres and is the largest virtual reality experience venue in the region. On a smaller scale, designers have created extraordinary interiors for restaurants and retail including, Kava and Chai, Space Cup, Charcoal Garden, Karamna, PAPA Dubai, Tutus Kurniati and the Discovery Channel Store in Dubai Mall.
4SPACE has two fully immersive experience parks in the pipeline; 7000 square metres in Dubai Mall and 2000 square metres in Wafi Mall. The team are also expanding into Saudi Arabia with many food and beverage projects being successfully delivered such as Kactus and Dopeamine. Steam Kitchen, HOOK, Verde and Sandwhere are currently being designed and constructed.
For a comprehensive understanding of the client's needs, the interior designers examine the context of every space and deliver innovative solutions. 4SPACE is considerate and intimately works with each client to generate a comprehensive plan using physical models and mock-ups and provide accurate time frames and budgets. They seamlessly manage projects from beginning to end and communicate freely throughout the design process. The extensive team draws on the knowledge and expertise of in-house architects, technologists, engineers and project developers.
The team of architects and interior designers provides wide-ranging designs for various buildings, including homes, hospitality and entertainment venues, offices, and event spaces. They sympathetically design every element of a visitors journey. 4SPACE intelligently reformulate expectations and create innovative experiences that encourage interaction by playing with textures, materials and light. Their designs encourage touch and are delightful to the eye. 4SPACE creates memories and pleasure.
2021 has seen various successes for 4SPACE. Not only has the firm formed the architectural division, but they have moved offices, launched a new website and expanded their team with new hires.
Throughout the pandemic, each designer's curiosity contributes to impressive restaurant design transformations; they are learning how to evolve, improve and remain relevant. Alsahin and Hourieh believe that their transformational philosophy, continuous development and evolutionary approach will ensure that they remain front of mind in the design field.
Interprotección is a Mexican group of companies that are distinguished experts on insurance, bond and reinsurance brokerage. With more than 40 years of experience in integrated risk management and consulting, their business model is based on flexibility, decision making, responsiveness and creativity to solve risk problems.
Offices are beginning to be analysed away from the mere “employee container” mentalities, and closer to being recognised as competitive tools for organisations. Interprotección understands that during this period of forced isolation organizations have been affected by the impossibility to physically share ideas and have the processes of co-creation among collaborators that shape the office experience. spAce has detected the new needs and functions of the corporate space in pandemic and thus reinterpreted the requirements of Interprotección.
The office, in addition to attracting talent, has certain elements that make it a valuable and incomparable experience, where the brand and space coincide in a unique experience that strengthens the organisational culture. For example, through elements such as meeting rooms, dining room, informal meeting areas, the oasis and other flexible spaces of inspiration and interaction accompanied by technology.
Offices are no longer just places to work, they are spaces to interact, collaborate, connect, strengthen resilience, and even play. This is achieved through high-spirited and playful spaces that allow collaborators to disconnect, but also to experience, hence the concept coined by spAce: The Resilient WorkPLAYce.
The virus has confirmed the fact that we are fragile and vulnerable beings, both physically and emotionally, and for that reason the importance of protecting health and strengthening the immune and mental systems has been heightened. Therefore, a different, more empathetic, more flexible and much more fun working model emerges with a comfortable and welcoming physical adaptation that offers strategic lighting and acoustics to enhance pleasant moments. The global trend of improving health and seeking well-being is certainly reflected in the space.
In a constant evolution of motivation and productivity, the design was based on the interconnection of workspaces with the right balance for individual and group work, with high efficiency in the sanitisation processes, that also allows you to choose the amount of sensory stimulation and physical support for every work moment.
The finishes make up an integral part of the project, by combining them in a complementary way, we discovered coloured carpets, glass, wood, vinyl and furniture that emphasises the connection between collaborators and leaders. In general, neutral colours predominate throughout the project, but in some key points (walls, columns and carpets) bright tones were used according to a colour palette that uniforms the image and helps reinforce the identity of the corporation.
The atmosphere and sensations emanating from this space were strategically generated with architectural elements that refer to a place very different from that of a traditional corporate. With the aim of encouraging socialisation in a relaxed, fresh, natural and totally welcoming atmosphere, a large cafeteria is designed as the heart of the company—the nodal point that connects the three levels of the company in different atmospheres to achieve different levels of privacy and collaboration. On a cafeteria wall, shaped with black lines on a white background, different faces that the graphic artist interprets as "short stories to live today, because tomorrow who knows” have been shaped with the intention of activating creativity and inspiring.
Interprotección wanted to integrate an iconic element within its offices: a slide. Considering that it is an innovative, futuristic and avant-garde organisation, the company vision is projected through this different and fun component that connects both levels. It is important to fuel the concept of the importance of play and fun in a workplace as part of the experience, just as it is advocated in The Resilient WorkPLAYce. A visit to Interprotección, both from collaborators and visitors, will be hard to forget.
Interior design by Juan Carlos Baumgartner/Gabriel Téllez (spAce Arquitectura).
About spAce
spAce have structured a new way of looking at architecture: intending to be the best if not the biggest, they have integrated an interdisciplinary staff of highly talented and compromised professionals. spAce take into account the importance of research and technology development, then they include them both in their method of thinking and working, always seeking after SUSTAINABLE solutions which not only RESPECT environment but actually help to improve the natural habitat. spAce have created various lines of business, both interior and exterior. No matter it is a small space, a large building, campus, offices, shops or housing settlement, they do know that to achieve a great solution they have to begin from the inside. This is the basis of their philosophy: designing from inside out.
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Sanofi is a company dedicated to human health with a diversified portfolio of innovative solutions that respond to the needs of the population. It transforms scientific innovation into solutions for wellbeing.
One of the most difficult challenges facing the world today is to improve health. As a global biopharmaceutical company, Sanofi, driven by scientific innovation, renews and expands its offices, taking advantage of its great global commitment focused on continuous improvement.
The design was based on a new trend of image and architecture being different from the rest of the world. Sanofi's concern for the social, environmental and labour welfare of his collaborators has driven the company to implement I+D strategies with the collaboration of various national and international institutions that increase the creation of ideas and prototypes in line with what they do. Life is a journey that takes place in different stages and Sanofi wants to be a companion along that journey.
The project is developed in 3 levels with key spaces strategically distributed through a route that connects the different stages of human life, understanding that architectural design creates memorable experiences in matter and time with points of connection through the senses. Starting with the reception, the playful heart of this organization, continuing through the innovation lab that inspires new ways of working, following through with the open area that encourages productivity and high performance, including the large dining room as a cozy interior patio that promotes friendship, relaxation and freedom of assembly.
Sanofi is a sustainable, flexible, inspiring and innovative organisation. The five senses are expressed in the textures, 3D finishes, interactive walls, colour applications, smell and acoustics in various areas. Space is experienced as the time is experienced, seeking to associate the world of sound, vision, colour and form in figures and volumes.
The finishes were very significant in the project. Combining them in a complementary way - wood, marble, carpets, glass, murals and furniture - helped accentuate the character of each stage. In general, neutral colours predominate throughout the project with some key colour accents on walls, columns and carpets, where bright tones were used according to a chromatic palette that unifies the image and reinforces the identity of its values. The flow of reality is structured by overcoming the barriers of the common, functional and habitual, creating well-lit spaces designed to increase productivity and that celebrate comfort and versatility.
The use of brand identifiers throughout the spaces - built through murals made by a great Mexican artist, furniture with artisan manufacturing techniques and symbology inspired by indigenous cultures - seek to honour Mexico’s rich natural heritage, from the Tarahumaras in Chihuahua to the Mayans in the Yucatan Peninsula.
Mexico is a tapestry of ancestral villages with unique visions, customs and aesthetic values. Taking patterns, textiles, colours and techniques from these tribes as inspiration, created a rich design language to sustain the connection. Death has meant, ever since ancient times, transformation, an opportunity to be reborn. The concept of life after death is also honoured in this great architectural space. Architecture allows us to perceive and understand the dialectic of permanence and change to establish ourselves in the world and ally with culture and time.
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This week’s instalment of Project of the Week series features joined office and night venue designs by 2021 SBID Awards Finalists Teodora Panayotova & Max Baklayan.
The designers received one of the most unusual briefs for Tavex's new home Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde - to transform one space to incorporate two areas that completely contradict each other. The challenging project was a great success with the team achieving outstanding results upon completion of the brief.
SBID Awards Category: Office Design
Practice: Teodora Panayotova & Max Baklayan
Project: Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde
Location: Sofija grad, Bulgaria
The clients' desire was to create a two-purpose space – a functional, convenient office during the day and a party venue in the evenings, but without the need to actually move anything around. This puzzle made the brief irresistible to the designers.
The space itself created many challenges due to its position on the ground floor and the single space layout. However, it was simultaneously the biggest inspiration. "From the moment we set foot in the office, it screamed at us – Industrial Minimalism." Teodora Panayotova says that as a designer, she could not ignore the scream.
The office presented two problems - one was obviously the duality of its purpose, the two could not be further away on the spectrum. The second was the fact they needed to increase the office area by about 150 square meters, yet keep everything airy and minimal. Since the space is on the first floor, with no panoramic views and no full day of sunlight, nothing was walled off, and only glass, OSB, and metal rails were used. We are particularly proud of the two balconies on each side of the office and the tall ceiling in the middle of the office, interrupted only by the mirroring meeting rooms with floor-to-ceiling glass walls.
The project's highlight is the 6-meter marble bar that greets you when you walk into the office. With just a flick of the switch, the purpose of the bar changes instantly. It is the place where you get your morning cup of coffee, your 5 o'clock tea in the afternoon, and a sip of London Dry after 7.
Teodora sincerely believes that what they created here is unique. Countless offices have game rooms, pool tables, relaxing zones, and lots of areas for different purposes. This project incorporates two of the most opposite use cases possible. It does so in a single space, without one interfering with the other. It contains everything that an office needs and so much more yet stays true to the industrial minimalism the designers set off to achieve.
Questions answered by Teodora Panayotova, Interior Designer, Teodora Panayotova & Max Baklayan.
We hope you feel inspired by this week's design!
If you missed the last instalment of Project of the Week, featuring a restaurant renovation in a Victorian bank building by Blue Sky Hospitality, click here to read it.
Launched in January this year, Workspace Design Show is an exciting addition to the global design events calendar, with the inaugural edition taking place from 4-5 November 2021 at London’s Business Design Centre, at the heart of the UK’s commercial interiors community.
After all the recent disruption to the Workspace industry, there is huge change underway in how we are designing our office interiors to improve the employee experience. The Workspace Design Show will be a great chance to listen to the latest thought leadership, check out the newest and most innovative interiors products, and network with your industry peers again.
Workspace Design Show
When: 4-5 November 2021
Where: Business Design Centre, London
The Workspace Design Talks will feature top level A&D speakers from Gensler, Grimshaw, Perkins&Will, AECOM, Arup, Areen, MCM, tp bennett, MF Design Studio, BDP Architecture, and end-user clients such as HMRC, PwC, BBC, McCann, Aviva, The Office Group, Co-space, DLA Piper and more. Panel discussions will open up challenging debates to uncover the latest thinking in how design can influence employee wellbeing, engagement, creativity & productivity, as well as the latest workspace design trends in sustainability, flexibility and inclusivity.
The attendee list includes delegates confirmed from Government Property Agency, Oktra, Unispace, Vodafone, Barclays Bank, NHS Property Services, Crown Commercial Service, Faith and Gould, We Work, CBRE, British Land, Morgan Lovell.
Your complimentary guest pass will give you access to the exhibition as well as all the talks featuring the above speakers, the Leisure Area to use as a co-working space or a meeting space or just a place to relax/ work from during the 2 days as well as free coffee, tea, hot chocolate throughout the 2 days at 3 dedicated coffee stations sponsored by Liquidline.
The Show floor will also feature re-creations of commercial interiors such as the Design Talks Lounge designed and curated by The Furniture Practice, The VIP Lounge designed by Rainlight Studio, built by AASK US and curated by Obolife, and the exhibition area including leading brands such as Humanscale, Spacestor, Tarkett, Interface, Actiu, Zumtobel, Andreu World, Benchmark Furniture, Buzzispace, and many more.
About Workspace Design Show Workspace Design Show is the UK’s only exhibition focused purely on Workspace Design, including the latest thought leadership from the country’s top architects, designers & corporates. It brings together the entire commercial interiors community to discover and discuss tomorrow’s workspaces.
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Dentsu Hong Kong is an international advertising company which strives to create the best solutions and services, and unlock new opportunities for their customers.
Responding to the client’s brief, Crosstec International Ltd has renovated the office of a total of 23,640 sq. ft. with two floors in the heart of the City in Hong Kong. They designed a spacious open office with a feel of unity over the entire floor in order to introduce vitality to the workspace and enhance staff interaction.
The office floor is divided into the three main zones: workstation, town hall and cafeteria. Since an open plan layout was applied, it was essential to tackle the noise disturbance within the functional areas. In order to do so, the areas' locations were determined based on the level of noisiness - the pantry is located at the top-left corner, the furthest distance from the workstation where silence is required. The town hall, which is located between the pantry and the workstation, plays the role of a separator. The conference rooms are located at the window side with glass partition in order to bring in more natural light across the whole floor.
The client emphasized that communication and interaction are the core values of the company. To facilitate the communication between co-workers, break-out areas and conference rooms are scattered all over the story. The main entrance is always open during office hours to welcome business partners.
In order to represent the dynamic working environment of Dentsu Hong Kong the spatial design concept of “Work in Progress” is applied. Industrial approach is used at the reception area to give visitors a workshop impression, which highlights that Dentsu Hong Kong provides a one-stop solution to their clients.
The area connected to the reception is the “Town Hall” - a place which aims to enhance internal communication by encouraging the staff to have meetings and share ideas. As per the client's wish, this space has a seating capacity of one hundred. In addition, an open pantry provides even more interaction opportunities between co-workers.
Across the overall office design, biophilia is applied to stimulate natural and casual atmosphere, which is enhanced through the wooden elements of the interior. The open plan layout minimizes visual blockage, which allows natural light to come through the whole space.
About Crosstec International Ltd
Crosstec Group Holdings Limited is a one-stop provider of interior design solutions; the majority of their clients are global luxury goods and high-end fashion brands with retail stores across the world. According to Frost & Sullivan, they are the largest Hong Kong-based luxury retail interior designer in terms of revenue in 2015. They serve a global client base in various parts of the world including Hong Kong, China, the United States, Europe, Middle East and other Asian countries.
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Shared workspace provider Clockwise has arrived in the capital with expansive new offices in the Wood Green area of North London to provide an alternative location for city workers and businesses.
Measuring 32,000 sq. ft across five floors, the bright, airy offices feature two rooftop terraces with stunning views of Alexandra Palace, and plenty of event spaces, breakout areas and kitchenettes.
Designed to support the differing working methods brought on by the pandemic, Clockwise Wood Green is comprised of 664 desks, with technology to support hybrid teams and a range of spaces to work in, from meeting rooms to lounges.
Working with leading architect Hawkins\Brown and SBID Accredited fit-out specialists Portview, the shared offices took inspiration from the surrounding area and local community by incorporating abstract artwork from neighbourhood artists into the design.
Referencing the green spaces of Alexandra Park, Clockwise Wood Green has adopted a biophilic aesthetic with a statement ‘living wall’ of plants spanning the full height of the central atrium. By breathing oxygen into the surrounding spaces, the ample use of flowers and foliage help to promote a healing, peaceful working environment, which in turn improves memory, cognitive function and productivity.
Portview worked closely with Hawkins/Brown to design an intricate framing system that enabled them to manufacture the large garden trellis offsite, so the living wall could be transported and installed quickly, seamlessly and without complication.
Portview Contracts Director, Sean McEvoy said: “It’s been a really rewarding project to work on, particularly during a time when the role and design of future workspaces is being reimagined across the industry. Hawkins/Brown have already paved the way in this sector by designing a workspace that will appeal to both current and future generations, where wellbeing, sustainability and flexible working take centre stage.
“By collaborating with the client and design team, we were able to come up with innovative fit-out solutions to achieve their project aspirations and realise their vision. This includes establishing closed-loop solutions that reduced waste and benefitted the local community by either restoring, recycling, donating or repurposing old materials that otherwise would have ended up in landfill.
“We’re hugely proud of what we have achieved here and have no doubt people will love working in the space as much as we enjoyed building it.”
To reduce carbon emissions, the redevelopment of the building focused on retaining its original character, whilst adding a new design aesthetic. To do this, Portview stripped the building back to its original steel and concrete core and refurbished the interior with post-modern finishes to reference those who originally inhabited the building.
The new design aesthetic boasts playful geometric shapes and an earthy colour palette of pastel and teal tones to give the offices a fresh and domestic feel, as embodied by a statement reception area which has been finished in bespoke cream and pale terrazzo.
Retaining the existing building and some of the original services helped to reduce carbon emissions throughout the fit-out, while furniture and finishes were sourced from sustainable suppliers to help achieve BREEAM ‘Very Good’ standards.
Chief Operating Officer of Clockwise, Alex Brunner said: “What’s really special about this building is the design and the high level of finish. It involved Hawkins/Brown, Portview and ourselves jointly believing in the same vision to create workspaces that really function within our needs as human beings. It’s a home for work. As simple as that.”
About Portview
Portview is a leading fit-out specialist that has been transforming ambitious design concepts into reality since 1975. With teams covering the whole of the UK and Ireland, Portview manages projects of all shapes and sizes, including major refurbishment and roll-out contracts. Services include design development, planning approval, technical surveys, project management, contracting and fit-out.
About Clockwise
Clockwise provide well-designed, contemporary private offices, shared workspaces and meeting rooms with brilliantly flexible membership plans. They zero in on the details, so users can zoom out to the big picture. Clockwise make sure everything works, so users can do their best work.
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EPISODE TWO: The Future of Workplace
Following on from the last episode on the hospitality industry, this online panel in collaboration with Zaha Hadid Architects explored the future of the workplace. Hosted by SBID’s founder & CEO, Vanessa Brady, the series intends to examine the new definitions of interior space and the consequential impact on the people who commission, design and use them.
With the two areas most affected by the pandemic being ‘work’ and ‘home’, and as their traditionally segregated contexts were challenged while the demand for a hybrid work/live space evolved, the guest speakers addressed how their boundaries have blurred and what the future might hold for these fast-changing environments.
Arjun Kaicker | Co-Head of Zaha Hadid Architects Analytics & Insights
Arjun has worked with ZHA since 2015. He co-leads ZHA’s Analytics & Insights (A&I) in-house research and development team, which applies algorithmic modelling and ‘big data’ analytics to optimise workplace architectural designs, including for wellbeing and operational efficiency. Arjun previously founded and led the Foster+Partners Workplace and Strategic Consultancy division (for 14 years), where he developed strategy and design for 200+ design projects in 50+ countries. Arjun also previously worked as a workplace consultant and designer at Morgan Lovell and at the London International Financial Futures & Options Exchange.
Juergen Junker | Head of A&D Development for Vitra
Juergen has been with Vitra for almost 15 years in various roles. Over time he specialised in collaboration with the architectural and design partners, the associated design of work spaces, their dynamics and continuous development. Over the last 20 months, as the world switched to remote, Juergen started focusing on lectures, digital format conversations and discussions, while working on the outreach to bring people back together in the analog realm.
Bidisha Sinha | Senior Associate at Zaha Hadid Architects
Bidisha finished her first degree in New Delhi before moving to London for her Masters at the Architectural Association. She has had an architectural career spanning over 18 years, delivering projects in India, UK and Hong Kong. In her role within Zaha Hadid Architects, over the last 15 years she has personally delivered projects which have made a positive difference to the revitalization agenda of the programs that were associated with them.
Cover image credits: Project by Zaha Hadid Architects
As we return to the office, many organisations are looking for inspiration on how to best prepare and adapt to the post-COVID hybrid working model. In May 2021, KI had the pleasure of hosting 'Designing for a neurodiverse workspace' with networking group Women in Office Design. The hybrid event brought together a small group of people from across the workspace sector both at the KI Showroom and via Zoom.
During this interactive session, Julie Lecoq of HoK was joined by Sarah Miles from Arcadis, to discuss the growing importance of worker wellbeing, and how companies can optimise their workplaces from very early on in the design phase. There was a strong consensus that there is a business case for diversity, equity and inclusion - and designers are in an important position to help their clients understand early on that it is affordable, achievable, and essential.
Julie did a fantastic job of laying out the research and examples of neurodiversity and its importance in the workplace; whilst Sarah presented a great case study that resulted in a completely new workplace concept developed in collaboration with KI's 'Infinity' design team - Colonnade.
Neurodiversity is an umbrella term that covers a range of conditions such as dyslexia, autism spectrum disorder, ADHD and others. It is estimated that 1 in 8 people fall under this umbrella, and whilst awareness is improving, only half of those affected will know it. The complexity and severity in which these conditions affect different individuals are also highly variable. So, unlike many other considerations when creating more inclusive spaces, neurodiversity factors might often be unknown or unseen.
Workplaces that support neurodiverse employees allow every individual to perform to the best of their abilities. This is an exciting opportunity for any organisation, ensuring that everyone in their team has the tools they need. Having a one-size-fits-all approach might deprive a company of hiring or retaining fantastic individuals who have so much to offer, simply because the working environment compromises their wellbeing so badly. For example, vast uninterrupted, busy open-plan spaces can be filled with noise and visual distractions during a workday. For some individuals, this would be overwhelming and overstimulating - so if they aren’t able to find a quieter space, they would not be able to cope and would have no choice but to seek an alternative place of work.
COVID has really disrupted traditional workplace strategies with new emphases on work-life balance, hybrid working models and heightened sensitivities around personal safety. But what's most important to remember is that inclusivity measures will benefit neurotypical individuals as well as those who are neurodiverse.
Nurturing individual needs can be enhanced by offering greater user control within the workspace. Rather than expecting individuals to adapt to their environment, create an environment that can be adapted by the user to suit their requirements.
This has already been important for a number of years with growing emphasis on collaborative and creative working, rather than process-driven static work done at an individual workstation. But now, the remote working model has been thrust upon all kinds of organisations, pushing forward a hybrid working model. One of KI's major clients faced these challenges pre-pandemic, working with Arcadis and our design team to create Colonnade to help meet the project requirements.
Sarah and her team worked with us to develop this brief which manifested in some really clever ideas that maximised user-controlled customisation. It was important for users to have full autonomy to reconfigure the space without having to call in support from facilities or IT. This makes it easier for those with varying physical abilities to be able to use the space. It also facilitates easy modification to help control noise and visual distractions.
HOK's extensive research also looks at other factors that can be quickly and readily addressed such as:
A recording of the event is available via YouTube, below. If you'd like to discuss Colonnade, or anything else from this session, please get in touch with KI: [email protected]
About KI In 1941, KI introduced their first product – the folding chair. It answered the call for portable, stackable seating. Today, this chair symbolizes a legacy of listening to the customers. They've grown well beyond their origins, designing locally in response to their customers' needs and providing contract furniture solutions that fit their environment, brilliantly.
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