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| A Prestigous Workplace Issue 42 - June 2008 When mainland developer R&F properties were creating their Guangzhou head office, senior management expected the finished product to set an international standard. Guangzhou R&F Properties is one of China's largest developers, with a wide ranging portfolio of commercial and residential properties across the Chinese mainland. The company has experienced rapid growth since its incorporation in 1994, a process which culminated in a listing on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong in 2005. However, like many fast expanding enterprises riding the real estate boom in China, managing the workplace for a rapidly expanding workforce was a considerable challenge. Standing at the heart of Guangzhou's "new CBD", the newly developed R&F Tower had long been earmarked as a home for the headquarters of the new conglomerate. The Grade A building boasts 54 storeys and reached 240 metres, standing tall as a symbol of the arrival of Guangzhou as a major international business centre. Located on the top ten storey's of the tower, the office encompasses 12,000 sqm, including a three-storey 15- metre high atrium (see photo right), conference centre, finance and banking centre, food-and-beverage zone, conference and training zones and a number of lecture halls. Among the most noticeable features of the space are a soothing running water feature in the lobby, an eye-catching 'suspended' conference room, and a highly symbolic bridge linking the chairman's office to the larger working area. Zhang Hui, Deputy Manager Director, R&F Properties, was tasked with driving the new office. To reflect its new status, R&F would require an international standard office, one which took the best of international design while retaining its Chinese culture. As a large developer, R&F had access to internal design, engineering and project teams. To complement these skills, Zhang decided to find a high-profile lead consultant for the project, a search that took him to Europe, the U.S., and Australia. "He was looking at the different culture, a different design approach," says Marie Suen, Associate, Woods Bagot. While Woods Bagot are perhaps more known for their architectural and master planning work, workplace consultancy is a growing area of their business and they have dedicated research teams looking at ways design can improve how they work.
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| Design from research Having been engaged as lead consultant, Suen's team began to apply the latest research to the space. "We looked at a number of different elements when considering the design," she explains. "We examined the natural lighting conditions, the sightlines from various areas with the space, especially in relation to the view." Once this initial research was complete, an initial layout for the office space was proposed. It was, perhaps, a little unorthodox by the standards of Guangzhou companies at the time. "We placed the office spaces around the core, and the open-plan areas between these offices and the curtain wall," says Suen. Selling this concept was a challenge, as it meant that the management staff would not get prime access to the view and corner office spaces. However, the configuration has a number of benefits. The placement of the offices around the core the opened up more workspace. Everybody would get the benefits of natural lighting and have access to the view. Instead of corner offices, break-out areas at the corners meant the space could more fully utilised by all. "They are a big company, trying to attain a global benchmark in terms of the way they work. After a few meetings on the subject, they began to appreciate these benefits, even though the layout may not have fit the traditional view," says Suen. Creating an effect The brief demanded a space that incorporated the best of new workplace theory, but also one that was visually arresting and communicated a sense of prestige. The massive atrium on the top few floors was always part of the building design, however, Suen felt that "when we came onboard, it seemed quite empty. The staircase was positioned straight outside the lift lobby, so that as soon as you came out the view was obscured." She immediately suggested moving the staircase to the side and then we looked at the whole space, but even then the atrium lacked a real focal point. "Then the thought occurred to us, why not have a conference room hanging in the middle of the atrium." Despite some trepidation from R&F's in-house architect and structural engineer, the designers kept stressing how impressive this was going to be, and the impact it would bring to the whole area. They even drafted some of their own architectural expertise to suggest the best way to create this hanging conference room, and to reposition the staircase. While it was not possible to implement the original idea of a whole transparent box exactly, the impressive hanging conference room is the first thing that clients and business partners see when they enter the atrium. R&F's senior management took a long-term view when it came to the fit-out. They demanded high quality finishing and furnishing, and backed this up by allocating an additional 30 percent to the budget. As a large scale developer, R&F was able to source materials very easily and get preferential rates in many cases. This helped the fit-out to achieve an international standard at considerably less cost than would be possible in Hong Kong or Singapore, "I would call this project quite successful," says Suen. "We managed to match an international benchmark and in terms of the budget and timeline we were within both." RFP
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Key title: RFP magazine
Abbreviated key title: RFP mag.
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