Commercial Architecture May 2018 - 9

FEATURE

offices

An Office For Office-Furniture Firm
O

ne Workplace, Santa Clara, CA (oneworkplace.com),

approach to workplace layouts.

hired Blitz, a San Francisco architecture and interior-de-

Given the raw nature of the existing warehouse and of-

sign firm (designblitzsf.com), to combine an existing stand-

fice building, Blitz determined that the design vernacular

alone, mid-century office building and warehouse into a

would celebrate the site's industrial history. The building's tall

35,000-sq.-ft. space accommodating an office and showroom

ceilings, concrete-block walls, and concrete flooring were

for the Bay Area workplace furniture dealers.

preserved and integrated into the project. Artifacts from the

As an adaptive-reuse project, the company's headquar-

original buildings, such as fire doors, space heaters, and a

ters invigorates a previously overlooked industrial area and

chimneystack, were painted and re-installed to add context

gives it new life. A highlight of the interiors is the central form

to the raw, energetic atmosphere.

of two stacked boomerang-like C-shaped structures-repre-

To coincide with One Workplace's approach to sus-

senting "collaboration" and "creativity"-that house an ele-

tainability, the workspace reflects the company's "smaller

vated conference room and observation platform for a bird's-

office, bigger opportunities" philosophy. The company moved

eye view of systems solutions. The boomerang concept also

from a 45,000-sq.-ft. space into the new 35,000-sq.-ft. office

shapes the user experience, which assures that customers

while increasing staff from 101 to 165. Blitz increased office

are guided through the entire showroom, stopping at a se-

efficiency by reducing the number of dedicated workstations

ries of mapped touch points showcasing a variety of furniture

and moving the majority of the sales team to a mobile work-

vignettes. The meandering path ultimately brings customers

flow. Mobile workers store their belongings at a centralized

back (boomerangs them) to the front of the showroom. The

location and work either at a shared workstation, soft seating

installation of mobile and flexible work systems improves em-

at the work café, or alternative meeting areas.

ployee effectiveness across all parts of the business, while

The architects planned for longevity and flexibility by

sustainable features provide energy efficiency throughout

future-proofing the open office through the installation of a

the building.

raised-floor system for easy furniture reconfiguration. InteriUpon entering the building, one is immedi-

or offices and small meeting rooms were constructed using

ately presented with the work café-an area

a re-usable and demountable partition system that allows

to meet and eat. Leading with this hospitality

structurally isolated rooms to be created without connecting

function ensures that customers and users en-

to the ceiling. Minimal colors and patterns allow easy inter-

counter a warm and welcoming atmosphere,

changeability to reduce waste as furniture trends change.

embodying One Workplace's mission to trans-

Lighting and environmental strategies maximize energy

form the furniture-specification process into a

efficiency. Offices and meeting rooms are centrally located

more collaborative endeavor. The break room

using glass to maintain views of interior and exterior spac-

is located at the intersection of the buildings

es. Daylight penetrates the office through 14 new skylights,

and serves as the first introduction to the

four 20-ft.-high windows, and three 10-ft.-high windows along

space. It functions as the central hub to cele-

the front building elevation. Existing single-pane glazing was

brate the familial and communal quality of the

replaced with dual-pane low-e glass, and window sills were

company and create a programmatic connec-

removed to extend glass throughout the main floor. Motion

tion between the two buildings.

sensors were added to interior building fluorescent lighting,

The workspace design encourages movement, dynamic thinking, and efficiency. By hous-

while light-reflecting insulated foam was added to the existing roof without disturbing the structure.

ing an elevated conference room and observa-

The office includes an on-site gym, showers, and bike

tion platform in the C-shaped structure, Blitz

racks to encourage fitness and promote cycling to work. The

made it possible for sales-team members to

water fixtures meet California's Green Building Code Stan-

survey the entire floor and show customers

dards for water use, and Energy Star appliances were in-

how the various furniture products can be inter-

stalled throughout the building. Electric car-charging stations

mixed to create a unified, flexible, and layered

are located adjacent to the front entrance.

commercialarchitecturemagazine.com

MAY 2018

COMMERCI A L A RCHI T EC T URE

http://www.oneworkplace.com http://www.designblitzsf.com http://www.commercialarchitecturemagazine.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Commercial Architecture May 2018