ThoughtWorks Barcelona
The new headquarters for a renowned American tech company was to be located at the top floor of the Media-Tic Building at the Poblenou district in Barcelona. The existing space was neutral, repetitive and cold; it was configured around a central courtyard, and was interrupted by the overwhelming presence of the top trusses that support the building.The design foresaw an open and continuous office space yet subdivided by long acoustic-curtains into 8 smaller rooms, all equivalent in size amongst them. Within each room, a big piece of furniture determines its function. Each of the rooms is composed with similar construction and detailing, conforming, alongside the programme variations, an interior landscape that is systematic as well as diverse
The new headquarters for a renowned American tech company was to be located at the top floor of the Media-Tic Building at the Poblenou district in Barcelona.
The existing space was neutral, repetitive and cold; it was configured around a central courtyard, and was interrupted by the overwhelming presence of the top trusses that support the building. The two curtain wall enclosures, the internal as well as the external one, were of uneven nature and quality.
The main goal of the design strategy is to define a contemporary office workspace which puts the employee’s comfort at its core; creating an inclusive, diverse and homey atmosphere.
A whole range of strategies were devised so as to re-inhabit the space seeking clarity and systematicity. One example of this, was to design an open and continuous office space yet subdivided by long acoustic-curtains into 8 smaller rooms, all equivalent in size amongst them.
This strategy allowed to scale-down the space into more domestic proportions keeping, nonetheless, the option of rearranging the layout in a flexible manner according to the activity conducted.
Within each room, a big piece of furniture determines its function. Each of the rooms is composed with similar construction and detailing, conforming, alongside the programme variations, an interior landscape that is systematic as well as diverse. Their construction is fully prefabricated with a timber stud-wall system.
The deliberate simplicity and discretion of each pod, emphasizes the protagonism of the green area and the informal furniture. At the centre of the floor plan, wrapping around the void, one encounters informal meeting spaces recalling from the distance the typical Mediterranean courtyards and cloisters.
Such space, planted with abundant vegetation, performs as main circulation ring avoiding the creation of redundant corridor-like spaces within the office layout.
The main area of required programme, the actual office workspace, is broken down into smaller units, trying to level the work team’s privacy with rather modest dimension.
A diversified catalogue of possibilities to work in the office is provided to help users change their postures and find more convenient spots for each developed task. They can work standing up, sitting around a table and even resting on a deck chair.
Given that a conventional reception area was not requested, the welcoming feel into the offices, is achieved by deliberately placing the kitchen at the main entrance.
Two large pieces of furniture inhabit this particular room. On one hand, an 11m-long counter that performs as large gathering bench but can be also used as an informal meeting table, on the other hand, a compact kitchenette.
The smaller furniture and the overall decoration resorts to local Catalan design which makes use of materials such as esparto, pottery, timber or cotton fabric. All of them being traditional handcrafted products locally sourced and produced. This pursues the creation of a characterful ambiance which drives a very particular warmth, comfort and sensuality for the gratification of the employees.
