At Arkitema we have extensive experience of all types of commercial building projects. Over the years we have designed everything from office buildings, hotels, cinemas, shopping centres and company headquarters to interior fittings and improvements to existing facilities. The architecture is an important communicator of a company’s brand. The design, location and materials used in the building itself help to support the brand and express the organisation’s values and culture, and this is clear when we work on projects for companies within e.g. industry and energy.
We know that the design of the physical setting has a bearing on a company’s success, either by providing optimum working conditions, increasing efficiency and making an impression on customers, or by attracting and retaining staff. The aim is also to enable a new commercial building to bring the company’s operating costs down. Functional thinking and the use of the latest technical solutions can minimise operating expenses. A flexible commercial building will adapt its architecture to the business – both by matching today’s requirements and needs and by providing a flexible and adaptable design so the building is both functionally and technically future-proof.
Architecture boosts job satisfaction and productivity
Buildings shape people and people shape buildings. At Arkitema we are very aware that, as human beings and as employees, we are affected by the spaces we find ourselves in. That is why we always focus in producing optimum and attractive working conditions for our users. We design the physical setting for the organisation so the human resources are provided with the best possible conditions for collaboration, knowledge-sharing, well-being and performance.
We focus on the relationship between the size and design of the room and the work to be done in it – from cellular and open-plan offices to meeting rooms, quiet areas, small spaces for short meetings, centrally-placed coffee machines etc. We also have extensive knowledge of open-plan offices and the importance of ancillary rooms.
Each room has its own function, and major factors for well-being and productivity in all of them are the right airflow, plenty of daylight and of course good acoustics. Consider how people move from the welcoming receptionist in the entrance area and into the building. Flow and logistics are key concepts in this context. We take a knowledge-based approach to create the right flow and consider logistics from arrival to all parts of the building.
Who are the users, and what is the company’s working method?
When we design commercial buildings, our architecture is based around the company and its organisation. A move into new surroundings is a chance to adjust or launch change programmes in the business. Simply by changing and implementing new working methods, the architecture and the process of bringing it about can contribute to this. We see the physical setting as a strategic tool to help achieve the company’s goals. By applying a coherent strategy to the interior design and layout of the different areas, we make room for active knowledge-sharing and both informal and large-scale meetings, but also for confidential discussions behind closed doors, concentration zones and so on.
This is especially true when today’s workplaces have to be adapted to the greater flexibility that employees are now demanding. We are increasingly dealing with activity-based workplaces as the requirements relating to job content change and the capacity of a building has to be used more efficiently. Our knowledge and experience ensure that the best use is made of workplaces and that they have the necessary flexibility to allow the employees to move around easily and to come into the office for just a few days a week.
All types of expertise available
The interior is one of the areas that are often emphasised, and this is important, but the same is true of the outdoor areas. Both can serve as green ‘lungs’ close to the building or provide life-enhancing and de-stressing views. Arkitema has one of Denmark’s largest landscaping departments, with experts in the importance of the surroundings for productivity and job satisfaction.
We also have extensive experience of incorporating sustainability measures into our projects. Needless to say, we make active use of life cycle assessments, and together with our sustainability department, we can incorporate a host of other measures into the project to help achieve the most ambitious sustainability goals, whether it be for certification schemes, timber construction or the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). All of these can help a project to have the least possible impact on our customers’ ESG.
We always set great store by input from the client/developer, and also from the future users. In that way we can provide for active user involvement in new commercial building projects, in part through our own in-house process tool which ensures a fruitful user process. Through a well-organised process, we draw up common objectives and visions and gain insight into the potential benefits, challenges and problems that need to be addressed if we are to achieve the specified goals.
At Arkitema we have the necessary professional skills and resources to satisfy the client’s specifications through effective project control; from the embryonic ideas in the development process through to the inspiring furnishings that complete the finished building. The process is based on a sound and close relationship between the client/developer and the architect, and we see it as our primary task to understand, challenge and advise the client in the important choices associated with the whole construction process. This approach has resulted in long and fruitful partnerships with a number of influential companies in the Nordic region.
Arkitema has developed commercial projects for:
