-By Celia Ying, Photography by Vitus Lau, courtesy of M Moser Associates

project/client: Nokia
location: Beijing
designer: M Moser Associates Ltd., Hong Kong


Located on the outskirts of Beijing, Nokia's 829,350-sq.-ft. headquarters is an ambitious project that aims to offer a new home to its 2,300 staff, balancing work and life. This "mini-town," as described by workplace designers M Moser Associates, is essential to support Nokia's staff members' daily work and lifestyle needs, so as to continue to retain and attract the best talent in the industry.

The new headquarters combines all the different operations previously scattered around downtown Beijing into one single building to foster collaboration and synergy among R&D, business units and manufacturing. Situated in a place far from downtown in a location with few amenities, it posed a great challenge to the designer to make people feel stimulated working in a closely knit community. "The project had to reflect Nokia's strategy of unity and connecting people…The challenge then, is to convince people that this is a change for the better," remarks Meng-Chew Ching, head of real estate, APAC/China at Nokia. After extensive consultation with management and staff representatives, Nokia and M Moser designers devised an indoor mini-town scheme that is designed from the inside-out.

Inside this mini-town, a sunlit, full-height atrium serves as the "town center" and an integral part of the vertical circulation. According to John Sellery, group managing director for M Moser Associates, "Design solutions help staff balance work/life needs. To encourage collaboration, the R&D facilities and business units are grouped around a 'Main Street,' which features shared functional amenities such as client meeting suites, auditorium space, and a visitor drop-in center as well as shared social amenities that include restaurants, a café, ATM, convenience store, gym, jet-leg room, etc." This holistic approach improves staff morale and enables health benefits and greater productivity.

While sustainability is a strategic focus, mobility and ergonomics are other key design considerations. Staff mobility was grouped into three parts: staff who are generally mobile, campus-mobile, and desk-based. And aside from ergonomic chairs, employees also were provided with height-adjustable workstations, which also allows for greater access to cabling.

Everywhere along the public space offers full views of the collaborative interactions in the different settings. The sense of openness and "whole life experience" make the staff feel part of the community. Ching concludes: "This mini-town fully combines staff's working lives and their personal needs and provides Nokia with a facility that supports not only the staff but the company's core values of sustainability and innovation."


jury comment:

"This project neatly negotiates a grand but lively central space, giving a sense of focus and involvement from all sides. Well done and surrounded by spaces with real individuality, it is a considerate environment with a variety of shared spaces for individuals as well as groups."


who
Project: Nokia Main Building and Energy Center at BDA. Client: Nokia (China) Investment Co., Ltd. Architect: Arup International Consultants (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., Beijing Branch. Interior designer: M. Moser Associates Co., Ltd. Structural/mechanical engineer: Arup International Consultants (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., Beijing Branch; M. Moser Associates Co., Ltd. Electrical engineer: Arup International Consultants (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., Beijing Branch, M. Moser Associates Co., Ltd. General contractor: BCEG. Lighting designer: M. Moser Associates Co., Ltd.; Arup International Consultants (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., Beijing Branch. Acoustician: Arup International Consultants (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., Beijing Branch. Furniture dealer: Posh. Photographer: Vitus Lau.

what
Wallcoverings: RAK. Paint: ICI, Dulux. Laminate: Formica. Dry wall: Dragon Brand.
Masonry: Sadlerstone. Flooring: Perstorp Industrial Surfaces. Carpet/carpet tile: Milliken China Inc. Carpet fiber: Milliken China Inc., Shaw. Ceiling: Armstrong. Lighting: Thron. Doors: Faram, Jin Yu Bei Mu. Door hardware: Abloy. Glass: Faram, Hua Xu, GLASSOAM. Window frames/wall systems: Double Skin Glass Curtain Wall. Window treatments: Mingcheng. Railings: Hairline S/S. Workstations/seating: Haworth. Lounge seating: Posh, Furn Tech. Cafeteria, dining, auditorium seating: Furn Tech, BJ YIHE. Other seating: Wilkhahn, Lab SF. Upholstery: Infinity, Fabric Nation. Conference table: Faram. Cafeteria, dining, training tables: Logic. Other tables: Posh, Lab SF. Files, shelving, architectural woodworking/cabinetmaking: BCEG. Planters, accessories: Landscape-KNA. Signage: Ultimate Display System. Elevators: Kone. HVAC: York, Schneider/Wuxi. Fire safety: RELIABLE. Security, access flooring: SAT. Bulidling management system: Johnson Control. Underfloor duct: Wei Le. Plumbing fixtures: TT.

where
Location: Beijing Economic & Technology Development Zone, No.5 Donghuan Zhonglu, Beijing, 100176, China. Total floor area: 831,403 sq. ft. No. of floors: 8 (main building), 3 (energy center). Average floor size: 97,765 sq. ft. (main building), 13,622 sq. ft. (energy center). Total staff size: 2,300 staff.