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57

Officelayout 169

aprile-giugno 2017

The trend of gathering together scattered

divisions and facilities into a single complex

is spreading on both the national and the

international level. It is not just a matter of

costs, but also of a new focus on

organizational efficiency and wellbeing of

workers, and on questions of corporate

identity. One new example of this global

trend can be found in Rome, in a recently

completed headquarters of a multinational

corporation active in the health care and

scientific research sector.

The interior design by GaS Studio, the

design firm guided by

André Straja

,

Giacomo Sicuro and Lenka Lodo, covers an

overall area of about 6500 square meters on

six levels: entrance, meeting rooms, private

offices and open-plan areas for

workstations.

The project stands out for the application of

concepts connected with task oriented

design and the smart office, aimed at

optimizing the potential of the building and

the performance of staff, while improving

efficiency of the use of space for different

company functions.

An uncommon office

To create harmony in the spaces of the two

brands that share the headquarters, GaS

Studio had to interpret a range of very

different needs. For the first company, with

many departments, the workspaces have

been adapted to single functions, but with a

single concept that becomes a shared

language on all the levels. For the second

firm, which required meeting rooms that

could be adapted and reconfigured for a

range of uses, the design offers the

possibility of organizing spaces as

boardrooms, or as a series of smaller zones

for informal encounters.

The layout alternates open-plan areas with

closed offices and meeting rooms, giving

form to an architectural concept in which

boxes of color break up the rigid

morphology of the building. The layout

scheme changes on the ground floor,

A single location, for better work

Open-plan areas, closed offices and meeting rooms, to embody an architectural concept

in which boxes of color break up the rigid morphology of the building

structured to contain a variety of meeting

spaces for presentations and

demonstrations of the company’s

products.

The role of color

The concept of the interiors involves the use

of colors and partitions, which play a

leading role in the definition of more

traditional work areas, and other zones

based on the principles of the smart office.

The selected colors do not reference the

coordinated image of the company or the

brands, but function to optimize the

asymmetrical division of the floors, which

have one side of limited depth, and another

of great depth. The chromatic choices serve

to "energize" the deeper portion of the floor,

which is more suitable for group activities

like meetings and teamwork sessions.

GaS Studio has exploited this unusual

characteristic of the building with “zoned”

design, characterizing each half floor on

the basis of function, applying tones of

gray for separate office spaces, printing

and copying areas, and other fixed

functions; instead, the deeper part of the

floor has been organized to offer spaces

for activities marked by greater flexibility.

Curtains with vertical stripes of bright colors

make the meeting rooms recognizable and

appealing, with the insertion of an

automation system to generate particularly

efficient and innovative spaces.

The traditional work zones have furnishings

in neutral tones, suitable for denser areas,

while the waiting and break areas and small

zones for informal meetings feature "soft

furniture" in bright colors, creating a strong

contrast with the white Gyptone of the

offices, which plays an important role in

improving acoustics.

The range of materials produces a contrast

between the neutral colors of the work

areas and the forceful hues of the

communal zones, with niches inserted in

the accessorized walls in the individual

offices and meeting rooms.

To achieve the right balance in this game of

colors, GaS Studio has selected neutral

finishes for the floors, including vinyl flooring

in high-traffic areas for easy maintenance,

and gray carpeting in the closed rooms, to

optimize acoustic comfort.