December_1970 — Page 14

14

Central zone containing the library to the left and secretaries to the right. In the distance is a partner's area. By raising planting trays, pedestals and library shelving on fine metal legs, an appearance of lightness is given as the space and carpet flows under all units.

sign was to keep the units as light in appearance as possible and to let the space flow under and around them.

In essence this approach was to make the gold coloured carpet the secondary element (after the consis- tent ceiling plane) in unifying the com- plete space. We chose a light coloured paint (BS 4047) for the frames and kept all pedestals 9in. clear of the car- pet.

All table and desk tops are covered with textured, light sage-green leather- cloth which provides a good writing surface, a sympathetic background to white paper and a non-slip surface which grips drawings much better than polished wood, linoleum or plastic laminate, and assists the quality of general illumination at working level.

Loose furniture and storage units

There were many items of fur- niture which we brought with us which set the problem of how to make them blend into the overall picture. The answer lay mainly in

pot of paint (BS 4047):

Filing cabinets were painted (BS 4047) and back and sides clad with blackboard panels covered with dark brown hessian (BS 3038). The hessian matched both the colour of the few screens we had provided and the in- ternal facing brick walls. The screens were made to the same height (4ft. 4in.) as the filing cabinets.

Drawing storage units were covered with dark brown hessian and raised on a plinth and castors to 4ft. 4in.

Drawer cabinets were painted BS 4047 and had their tops re-covered with sage-green leather-cloth to match the new workstations.

Freestanding library shelf units were painted BS 4047 and their height of 5ft 8in. established the height of the higher screens and new coat stor- age units.

Drinks vending machine. This showed the most dramatic change. The magic BS 4047 obliterated a sparkling tea pot and baloon lettering and trans- formed a crude box into an elegant piece of furniture.

Plan layout

The layout of furniture within the 70ft. by 70ft. room proved to be re- markably simple. The secretaries and their type-writers were placed in the centre of the square, to benefit from maximum sound absorption of the carpeted floor and acoustic tiled ceil- ing, and alongside them our quick- reference library (serious study is easier at the individual workstations).

The main circulation space forms naturally around this zone, and archi- tects' and technicians' workstations fill the perimeter band apart from three areas occupied by two partners and the office manager. The coffee area is in an open pocket off the main area.

ON entering the building one can immediately see the whole room. The limits of the space (and therefore the firm itself) are clearly defined. The room appears smaller than one would imagine. This is because of the strong colouring of the brick walls and the carpet which make it easy to assimilate the space as a whole.

Coats are deposited in two free- standing units adjacent to the recep- tion area as there is no provision at the work-stations. This is a deliberate of- fice policy and can sometimes be ag- gravating if you forget something (e.g. diary, pen, glasses etc.). However habit soon overcomes most of this problem.

Walking through the office is a wel- come change from the usual corridor arrangement. The colour scheme is restful but positive and the two main colours (yellow-green carpet and brown brick) provide continuity with- out dominating the visual field. The plants too, are an attractive addition and the overall effect is quite unlike the usual concept of a drawing office.

Physical environment

The lighting level (600 lux) is high enough to eliminate the need for local board lights. The quality and quantity of the artificial lighting is such that it is impossible to discern the transition between it and daylight.

The mechanical heating and ven- tilation system has proved to be very good for most of the year and only on a very few hot days has there been any measure of discomfort. Windows are limited to clerestorey glazing and ver- tical viewing slots. The glass is tinted and this limits sky glare to a reason- able level. Looking out is limited but this is acceptable when one considers that the view is not particularly stimu- lating at the present time (vacant sites and factories on an industrial estate) and the interior is sufficiently visually interesting and large enough to allow one's eyes to rest.

Noise is successfully controlled by providing sound absorbent surfaces on the ceiling and floor and an ambient sound level from the ventilating sys- tem. Reverberation is cut to a mini- mum because of the absence of parti- tions.

Telephones which are often a major source of disturbance in conven- tional offices have muted bells. They are positioned under the absorbent pin-up surface of the ramped reference board and a greater degree of acous- tical privacy is possible than normal.

Far East BUILDER, December 1970