RA OFFICES
Palma de Mallorca
The growing business of Relojeria Alemana, for whom OHLAB already designed two of their jewelry stores, demanded a new office space. The new 125 m2 office is located in the top floor of their headquarters in Palma de Mallorca.
The project proposes two very different types of spaces juxtaposed. In one hand, a Cartesian space, rectangular, neutral, bright and open. The core element of the office is a 14 meter long table placed in the middle of the space, it is a working platform that can be easily reconfigured to accommodate a variety of needs, tasks, technologies and workflows. Staff and directors share the same table with only a transparent glass separating the director’s board room where the long table becomes a meeting desk. The glass partition provides acoustical privacy while the transparency and continuous table reinforces the team’s cohesion.
On the other hand, an irregular area houses all the complementary spaces for the working environment. Four spaces are carved into this irregular area creating different zones: the kitchen space includes a full kitchen for the staff, an informal meeting table, a bar and the staff bathrooms; the entrance space with access to the elevator has a small lounge and waiting area; a niche devoted to a walk-in vault; and the director’s bureau with his desk and a private bathroom. In between the four spaces one can find, hidden behind the wood panels, extensive storage, archives and the bathrooms. The wooden paneling cladding this four spaces is made of thin vertical wood fins, a paneling system that hides the difference in all the storage door’s sizes creating a continuous finish that is warm and has a great acoustical performance. In the ceiling the wood fins conceal the lighting, impulsion and return of air as well as the access to access doors to all the machinery. This area is cladded externally with chromed stainless steel with mirror finish. The reflective material is a direct reference to the material used in the last 2 jewelry stores built by the company and designed by OHLAB. This mirror also blurs the line in between the working platform area and the complementary spaces.
Leaving aside the dichotomy between life and work this office proposes a place for teamwork juxtaposed to a place for social interaction, a lively meeting point. An office to work, concentrated in the pristine center platform, but also an office that provides a variety of relaxing spaces, working possibilities, optimizing communication and interaction while supporting teamwork and sense of community.
OHLAB team: Paloma Hernaiz and Jaime Oliver with Rebeca Lavín, Marina Esteban
Project Management: Paloma Hernaiz, Jaime Oliver (architects), Jorge Ramón (quantity surveyor)
Photos: José Hevia
Awards:
Winners of the Record Interiors Awards 2016
Publications::
ARCHITECTURAL RECORD Oct 2016
PLATAFORMA ARQUITECTURA Nov 2016
DISEÑO INTERIOR April 2017
PROYECTO CONTRACT May 2017
INZIDE June 2017
THE OTHER OFFICE 3 Jan 2018
