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Space and Cloud
Jitesh Patel, Chief Executive
Officer of Peldon Rose
Workplace Consultants,
discusses how the cloud is
affecting workplace design.
Looking up from my iPad on a Monday
morning train journey, I am confronted by a
sea of faces staring at their tablets, laptops
and mobile phones. For many, the working
day has already begun as they reply to emails,
check voice mail messages and read the latest
industry news.When they arrive at their place
of work, they continue to operate in this way,
aided by a workplace that has evolved to suit
their needs.
Over the last decade, space planning in offices
has changed drastically in response to new
technology. The fluid workstyles that technology
allows has seen rigid planning with rows and
rows of desks alongside cellular managers’ offices
give way to more flexible layouts. At the same
time, greater use of cloud-based off-site hosting
facilities has enabled businesses to remove air-
conditioned comms rooms and bulky in-house
servers and re-use the space to transform the
entire dynamic of a workplace (and cut energy
use and carbon emissions).
As office-wideWifi and ever more powerful
portable devices have made it easier for
employees to work anywhere, office design has
had to adapt. Narrower desks for more convenient
touch-screen usage have been installed in
technology-forward offices, as have movable
screens to provide privacy for video conferencing.
Added power outlets for portable devices and
seamless wireless connections is a must.
Allocated desks are not the most conducive
arrangement for creative thinking or the most
cost-effective. Because technology allows
people to work wherever there is an internet
connection, many businesses are replacing one-
desk-per-person lay-outs with plug-in-and-go
facilities at hot desks and increasing the amount
of shared space within the workplace, giving
people the freedom to work at coffee benches,
informal meeting areas or breakout spaces.
Several Peldon Rose clients, including aia
worldwide and Save the Children International,
have installed small ‘pods’ around the office.
These one or two-person meeting spaces
provide seating,Wifi and Skype link-ups, as
well as power spots, and are perfect for ad hoc
meetings and solo work. In particular, they
enable staff to communicate spontaneously,
facilitating a more dynamic way of working
where ideas can be shared and captured using
ubiquitous IT.
Peldon RoseWorkplace Consultants is a
London-based design and build consultancy.
Established in 1986, it has designed, built
and fitted out workplaces for a wide range
of organisations including Google, Stella
McCartney, Tullow Oil, Sapient Nitro, BMG
Chrysalis, Save the Children International and
aia worldwide.
www.peldonrose.com 0208 971 7777
A combination of technology and office design
enables Save the Children International employees
to work at coffee tables, on benches, in meeting
rooms and in specially designed pods.
The atrium at aia worldwide provides a bright space for collaborative work.
changing rooms, kitchen and a chill out/
entertainment area with table football,Wii
machines and a more domestic look and feel
with patterned wallpaper and chandeliers.
Product showcase
As well as providing an inspiring working
environment, Autodesk wanted its new
workplace to act as a showcase for its
products. This is done in spectacular style
with colourful floor-to-ceiling prints of
designs made using Autodesk software
and, in customer-facing areas around
the conference room, physical models of
Autodesk-created projects and a 12-screen
media wall for show-reels.
Colour plays an important part in the
success of the design. In addition to vibrant
wall coverings and soft furnishings, coloured
carpeting tiles help break up the space. A
bank of 96 custom-built lockers where staff
can store laptops and personal belongings
adds interest with its brightly coloured
doors, as do colour flashes and design motifs
on wall-sized magnetic whiteboards used
liberally throughout the space.
Saving money
Office design of this quality is not cheap
but by moving into offices better suited
to its needs, Autodesk still expects to save
$1 million every two years. It has met
its sustainability goals and is on track to
achieve LEED Gold certification, as well
as SKA Silver accreditation. Perhaps most
importantly, it has created a stimulating
office environment that better reflects its
status as a leading software company.