An office refurbishment, three construction challenges

ANTANA completes the refurbishment of an office in the centre of Madrid.

The client, a leading IT consultancy, awarded Antana the complete refurbishment of its Madrid office, posing three construction challenges:

The space Antana encounters is defined by the armoured walls of the original building. The site was formerly occupied by an embassy, which explains the need for this powerful armour. Now it was no longer necessary; it had to be demolished.

Client activity requires open workspaces - open space. This new concept of the corporate office is gaining ground in large cities. Openness, fluidity, agility, modernity... Business dynamics mean little time to make decisions. It is necessary to act with reciprocity, but quickly and efficiently. In response to this demand, new spaces are being created, meeting areas for teams to interact in real time, without restrictions or mental or architectural barriers.

The execution of the office refurbishment must maintain non-stop working. In other words, it is essential that the employees of the consultancy do not stop working during the course of the works.

The challenges of this office refurbishment project were laid out. The resolution began:

The existence of armour-plated walls required a complete - and complex - demolition of the old existing office, in order to leave the premises unfinished with an exposed pillar structure. The walls were made of 1.5 cm steel plates. After demolition, new air-conditioning, electrical, data transmission and fire protection installations had to be installed, as well as new plasterboard and glass partitioning, floor, wall and ceiling finishes.

Colour is the protagonist in canvases and furniture, providing a high dose of dynamism and optimism. To take advantage of the light that comes with the midday orientation, an open space layout was chosen, using half transparent and half translucent glass, which favours the flow of ideas and their sharing in the informal meeting areas. The meeting area stands out among them, oriented to bring in an enormous amount of inspiring sunlight.

The activity of the consultancy could not stop. While the works were being carried out on one side, the employees and the activity continued uninterrupted in the other wing. Weeks later, the space, without altering the day-to-day running of the office, had been transformed into a new open space, the trend of the moment, which, as well as being modern and architecturally decisive, is demonstrably effective in terms of productivity. Once the implementation of the offices in this area had been completed, the company staff, who continued to work in the adjoining premises, were moved to start work on this second area, which is still unfinished, along the same lines as the work previously carried out. Finally, the two premises were joined by means of a common reception.