As offices expand many clients look to use the opportunity to capture the momentum of their business and establish a new aesthetic for the company. In many instances the existing office is a reflection of a starting business, more focused on getting into a space and starting up rather then focusing on employee needs and a design that captures their business culture. LogMeIn sought to capture their expansion needs as a way to exemplify the company’s technologically rich and inventive spirit.
As offices grow and new offices and workspace is needed companies look to satisfy the immediate need for work area. One thing that should not be overlooked is a place for employees to congregate for eating together, have large and small format meetings and simply to socialize. This could be the perfect opportunity to satisfy both needs. Burdening the square footage with separate locations for eating, large meetings and casual social areas would be extremely inefficient and costly, but creating an environment that is flexible and accommodates all these needs is a cost effective solution and spatially efficient. Therefore, the addition of a multi-purpose space can engage the users and offer programmatic relief. It can also identify a new aesthetic direction for the company overall.
In stark contrast to LogMeIn’s existing ordinary workspace, the new environment reaches the same functional and cost effective achievements, but in a completely reinterpreted way. Conceived as embracing forms made out of painted surfaces, café counters, lighting and curtains, these elements work in concert to envelope the space and create an environment that is dynamic, active and engaging. This multi-purpose space stands centrally located about the office plan and is a threshold between the old and new expanded office. Acting as an object in the work space, employees can see it from their work stations, they can circulate around and through it during their work day. The new space also serves as an iconic feature that defines the growth of their business and the excitement of their success, interpreted architecturally.
For functional reasons, the space employs operable curtains and acoustic ceiling tile to assist in sound absorption. This removes any inconvenience to those working in proximity to the room. Inexpensive and functional, these design features assist in sculpting the ceiling plane and vertical surfaces to move people through the space as well as creating pockets of activity. Other inexpensive devices such as painted drywall, vinyl floor tile and linear strip fluorescent fixtures come together to assist in the feeling of movement and dynamism.