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Positive Transformations in Office Space Design: Exploring New Trends Toward Shared Openness, Human-Centricity, and Green Sustainability

Release Time:

2025-10-29

Positive Transformations in Office Space Design: Exploring New Trends Toward Shared Openness, Human-Centricity, and Green Sustainability

In today’s era that champions humanization and personalization, office space design is continuously evolving, constantly pushing beyond traditional paradigms. Whether it’s a small studio or a large corporate headquarters, organizations are actively exploring innovative ways to foster communication and collaboration—and enhance employee well-being—through spatial optimization, seamless integration with nature, and meaningful cultural expression.

This issue, we've carefully selected 5 Relevant case studies of office spaces—from flexible workspaces transformed from residential units, to brand headquarters that seamlessly integrate local culture, to studios emphasizing interactive collaboration, and even innovative office buildings that prioritize energy efficiency, openness, and community vitality—clearly reveal The positive transformation of office spaces has profoundly impacted modern life. 。

Balance work and leisure, creating a comfortable environment

Thailand: Proud

Company: BodinChapa Architects

PROUD is located beneath a building in Bangkok, Thailand. Its goal is to ensure that the existing space meets the needs of architects and software developers. The design aims to make everyone feel proud and comfortable here, whether they’re working or unwinding. It strikes a perfect balance between workspaces and leisure areas. More than just for the team, it’s also incredibly welcoming to visitors—such as clients, friends, and family.

This building was originally a row-house residence, with its layout deliberately separating different functions, resulting in a limited yet densely packed interior space. To enhance functionality, The designer extended the space to one side while preserving its unique features, seamlessly integrating it with the existing structure.

The new design features elevating the building to create an underground area, as well as introducing more natural, semi-outdoor spaces that cater to visitors' diverse activity needs. Meanwhile, some sections of the existing structure have been reconfigured by removing floors, eliminating visual blind spots and enhancing visibility between different areas. Additionally, skylights have been incorporated to improve natural ventilation while letting in ample daylight—perfectly aligning with the project owner’s requirements.

The architectural design seamlessly integrates with the surrounding environment by extending the original roof slope over the pedestrian walkway, creating a smooth transition into the adjacent green spaces. This carefully crafted design not only enhances visual appeal but also helps maximize natural light penetration within the interior space. Moreover, the thoughtful arrangement of horizontal openings strikes a delicate balance between privacy and connectivity, creating an ideal environment for employees to focus on their work while enjoying moments of relaxation throughout the day.

The architectural vision behind this building outlines a dual purpose: on one hand, warmly welcoming visitors, and on the other, infusing contemporary style within the context of the original structure. This alignment is a testament to the team's collective effort, as they leveraged technology as a key tool to streamline and optimize the construction process.

Blending forests, urban landscapes, and industrial structures to create an architectural space rich in local culture.

Taiwan: Liyang Development Headquarters

Company: Hefeng Cangfei Design Co., Ltd.

In this developer's headquarters building, the factory's steel structure forms the basic framework of the spatial layout, echoing its founding origins as a brick kiln. The space is deconstructed and seamlessly integrated in sequence. Unlike conventional commercial spaces, The design emphasizes "opening up to the community," unveiling the brand’s vision to the public while seamlessly integrating and reinterpreting factory aesthetics with the essence of Taiwan’s forests within the urban landscape.

The design responds to the factory’s construction logic and the organic urban facade by deconstructing and reassembling architectural forms, blurring the boundaries of corporate architecture with its open spaces that seamlessly integrate public areas and retail functions. The fluid and open volume connects indoor and outdoor spaces, offering employees and clients a free-flowing urban experience as they move about.

Architectural composition follows the logic of "form follows function." Just as in a factory, where control rooms are temporarily added based on functional needs, these units are embedded within a steel structural framework and positioned at angles that follow the site’s contours. The fan-shaped layout subtly blurs the hierarchical relationship between the facade and the flow of movement. Meanwhile, the dynamic interplay of volume shifts across the continuous corner spaces allows light and shadow to dance gracefully with the changing sunlight throughout the day. Notably, the external staircase connecting the first and second floors is deliberately offset, echoing the fragmented character of the industrial space. And here, materials commonly found in factories are presented in their most authentic form—almost untouched, preserving the raw, unadorned texture of the industrial environment.

The overall volume is crafted through layered and diverse geometric forms, maximizing the negative space between different blocks while incorporating transparent, open windows that allow the interior environment to subtly connect with and reflect the surrounding ambiance. In the process of architectural deconstruction and reorganization, the open and fluid spatial form seeks to build a bridge between people and the city streets. Meanwhile, a more intimate scale encourages greater interaction between the building and its urban context.

The section closest to the street features cafes, bookstores, and tranquil resting areas, while the corporate functions have been deliberately set back as secondary spaces. This project redefines the traditional corner building archetype in the dense high-rise landscape of the new city, enabling corporate headquarters to engage more deeply with the city's public life. Echoing the organic essence of Taiwan’s forests and mountains, interwoven geometric forms create fluid, free-flowing pathways that wind along the building’s perimeter—guiding people to move through, linger, and explore. Paired with thoughtfully arranged landscapes and vegetation, this design fosters an atmosphere where nature’s untamed beauty gradually seeps into the heart of the city.

Forests, urban landscapes, and factory structures are the organic ecological types that Taiwan is familiar with. These three elements—each deeply rooted in Taiwanese identity—are thoughtfully integrated in this project, giving rise to a building rich in local culture. It doesn’t stop at the surface level—instead, it goes further to reflect society’s inner state, presenting an intricate interplay among nature, architecture, and urban culture.

The Poetry and Philosophy Within the "Cabin"

Beijing: Xi Gou Wooden House Studio

Company: XiGou Architectural Space Design

"The戲構 Architectural Space Design" Beijing studio is located in Jingying Menggu Industrial Park on Guangqu Road, Chaoyang District. Inside the space, a public staircase area once served as the property’s warehouse before being repurposed into a milk tea shop. Originally, the layout was long and narrow, with natural north-facing daylighting. Situated right at the entrance of the entire park, the studio boasts an expansive facade and ample outdoor seating area—yet the interior itself measures a mere 20 square meters. Surrounded by a massive, uniquely shaped white structure, the studio was drawn to this distinctive site environment and decided to transform it into a workspace brimming with character.

The design team aims to create a unique little haven tailored specifically for theatrical set design, transforming this compact stairwell into a brand-new "home" brimming with endless possibilities.

The theatrical design reimagines the original stairwell space, carefully considering the skin and color characteristics of the surrounding architectural environment. It divides the area into two distinct halves using black carbonized wood and white sandstone paint. The black zone is nestled between two white architectural volumes, creating a strikingly clear entrance facade that effectively guides visitor flow.

The entrance design is situated at the intersection of the black-and-white areas, featuring a concave opening that enhances the facade's three-dimensionality and highlights the display area—while also sparking curiosity and encouraging visitors to explore further. The concave opening extends inward, subtly blurring the boundary between indoor and outdoor spaces. The entrance features an "in-between" or gray space, with three doors that create distinct spatial configurations. When the shop is closed, the rolling shutter is rolled down; during office hours, two room doors can be opened to connect the spaces, forming a seamless indoor area.

The corner features a curved design that echoes the adjacent site and street, offering a welcoming flow of movement while partially yielding to the site’s red line. Through elements like flower beds, seating areas, and display windows, a transitional space is created, effectively separating indoor from outdoor areas—and opening up new opportunities for people to engage with the architecture, such as pausing to admire or capturing photos.

Inside, the cabin concept continues, serving as both a reception area and a presentation space. The TV is fully rotatable, and a built-in fireplace is nestled beneath it. Paired with straw-infused art paint on the walls, this creates a warm and natural ambiance. The floor and ceiling feature meticulously crafted wood planks arranged in concentric patterns, subtly revealing the organic, curved grain of the wood—perfectly aligning with the site’s unique shape and the "playful architecture" philosophy, which emphasizes harmony between design and nature. Seeking poetry within reason, and returning to reality through imagination. 。

A large shared atrium space that fosters interaction and collaboration

Germany: EDGE HafenCity Office Building

Company: HENN

In the former industrial port area to the west of Hamburg's HafenCity, a vibrant new urban community combining residential, office, and leisure spaces is steadily taking shape. The recently completed EDGE HafenCity project has become another key milestone in the Elbbrücken district. This energy-efficient office building not only fosters interaction and collaboration by bringing users together, but also welcomes visitors and local residents alike.

The new building consists of two parts: a square, seven-story structure and a tower located at the southwest corner, soaring nearly 60 meters high. The square grid structure provides the flexibility needed for the efficient use of individual office units.

The main entrance features a striking landmark—a two-story-high arcade paired with an 8-meter-wide grand overhang. At the heart of the building lies an atrium open to the public, serving as the central space for communication and interaction. An open staircase winds upward around the central atrium, seamlessly connecting all levels; each flight of stairs is accompanied by cascading platform spaces that add both functionality and visual interest.

Abundant natural light streams into the interior through the atrium and expansive windows, complemented by plants, natural materials, and digital networking technologies—collectively creating a comfortable environment for both work and social interaction.

By establishing a close connection with the social environment through its open, multifaceted design, the building’s red facade harmoniously blends with the urban texture of the eastern part of Port New City. All of the building’s rooftops are designed as water-retention roofs, with most areas densely planted with greenery; additionally, photovoltaic panels have been installed on the tower’s rooftop to generate renewable energy.

Shared spaces bring vitality to office buildings.

France: Facette Bordeaux

Company: Studioninedots

Image courtesy of Architizer

This project is threaded throughout by a series of distinctive shared spaces—extending seamlessly from the ground level along the facade all the way up to the rooftop terrace, creating a vibrant "social axis." It is these very spaces that breathe community-like energy into the entire building, making it a truly modern workplace that perfectly aligns with today’s evolving work dynamics.

The plot is located at the corner of the central axis of Joliot-Curie Avenue, a prime location that inspired the design team to make the ground floor as transparent and open as possible. This space is no longer a traditional lobby—it has evolved into a "living room" that seamlessly opens up to the city, where workplaces meet public areas. The building maximizes the integration of its surrounding shared spaces, even "embracing" the street scene within its interior. Meanwhile, the striking concrete arcades deliver a powerful visual impact. The design team calls it "WeSpace"—a multifunctional space that’s perfect for working, relaxing, and spontaneous encounters.

Image courtesy of Architizer

The floor-to-ceiling glass wall seamlessly connects the ground level with the adjacent pocket park. A vertical garden rises upward from the park, linked by an open staircase that winds through multiple outdoor green terraces, spanning the entire width of the building and providing effective cooling during Bordeaux’s scorching summers. The vertical garden ultimately reaches the top-floor communal space—offering a 360° view of the Bordeaux cityscape, where greenery seamlessly blends with panoramic vistas. 。

Looking toward the future, flexibility is at the heart of the design. The architect opted for a load-bearing prefabricated facade and relocated one of the two evacuation staircases outdoors, thereby compressing the core tube to its absolute limit. As a result, we achieve The column-free, large-span space can be freely divided according to needs, easily adapting to future functional evolutions. 。

A unified grid system organizes the facade’s order, while the window openings gradually enlarge from bottom to top, seamlessly framing the cityscape layer by layer within the interior. The exterior façade features precast concrete mixed with sand-colored mineral pigments, echoing the timeless stone architecture of Bordeaux while simultaneously exuding a contemporary texture and warmth.