ARCC – The Afternaut Group

ARCC Spaces
One Marina Boulevard

ARCC SPACES
ONE MARINA BOULEVARD

Client / Arcc Spaces Pte. Ltd.

Sector / Real Estate

Service / Spatial Design, Experience Design

Overlooking a spectacular view of the Marina Bay area, ARCC @ One Marina Boulevard (ARCC@OMB) is the second installment in a flagship of co-working spaces that we’ve designed for Arcc Spaces.

As more people place an importance on mental wellness, this has resulted in an emerging prominence for ‘third spaces’ that are not like places where we work or deal with family commitments. ARCC@OMB aims to be an office of the future that redefines the conventions of a co-working office, as well as to support and elevate work-life harmony needs of its modern-day users so that they can have a blend of productive ‘work’, and an enjoyable ‘life’.

In 2022, ARCC@OMB won the SG Mark 2022 Award.

The Challenge

Elevating a Conventional Office

The challenge was to elevate the conventional co-working office and reimagine it as a human-centered ‘third space’. It should exude the expected sophistication befitting ARCC Spaces’ clientele; and caters to the changing needs of its users. ARCC@OMB would also serve as a model for future flagships to follow.

We had to cater to a range of user typologies, and conceptualise and strategise ways to create a co-working space that was both flexible while tailored at the same time. The various concepts of live, work and play had to be translated into the design of the built environment in a harmonious way.

Insights

Identifying Key Personas

When designing a place that can tailor to a range of users, we first identified key personas of users as well as their characteristics and preferences. We asked ourselvses: How do they work? What types of work activities do they engage in? What do they crave for in terms of relaxation and enjoyment?

We identified three key personas:

'Idealist': Seeks perfection & balance, meticulous and detail-oriented. The Idealist also seeks for a prestige look and feel.

‘Curious’: Open and collaborative, searches for new insights. The Curious crave for social and lifestyle spaces.

‘Aspirational’: Forward-thinking, passionate and driven. The Aspirational also desire high-performance workspaces

The Approach

Dynamic Spatial Planning & A Hospitality Approch

One key approach we took was to adopt dynamic spatial planning to develop zoning strategies, as well as design flexible and vibrant spaces that can be tuned to meet a range of user needs and settings.

For example, ‘Social’ zones are intended to house activity hubs and multi-purpose event spaces such as the town hall area. ‘Collaboration’ zones provide informal discussion settings and ‘Focus’ zones are designed to provide spaces and the right tools for both productive work as well as recharging and unwinding.

On top of dynamic spatial planning, a hospitality approach was also incorporated to elevate the experience at ARCC@OMB into one that is warm and welcoming.

The Outcome

Hospitality-led Design

As the first spatial touchpoint, the ‘Arrival’ zone at the entrance of the co-working office houses a main reception that’s much like the front desk of a hotel lobby. Here, a concierge warmly greets customers who enter and leave the space, making them feel welcome and building a sense of belonging.

Right at the main reception, a ‘Welcome Lounge’ was created so customers can browse reading materials displayed on feature shelves while waiting. The lounge is also designed to feel relaxing, so when users first enter, they can comfortably settle in instead of having to jump right into work.

Dropping by the "neighbourhood" for a break

Neighbourhood and breakout areas are strategically positioned to be adjacent to work zones to allow an easy transition from work to live and/or play. Users can easily step away to take frequent breaks from work, or come together for casual socialisation. With moveable furniture, users are also able to flexibly adjust settings in these breakout areas to their requirements.

Seamless, Flexible Spaces

Instead of fixed walls or dividers, using pivoting ribbed-glass screens in areas like the ‘Drawing Room’ allow for the space to be enclosed independently and then easily reconfigured into a conference-type room for private events. This is on top of its natural configuration which already provides for a range of work and discussion settings. It can also allow for larger events such as town hall gatherings to be held.

With movable furniture, the ‘Drawing Room’ can also be easily reconfigured for various settings and different groups of users.

A hidden door within the ‘Drawing Room’ provides a shortcut access to the conference room. Thus, after larger events, if smaller breakout rooms or private meeting rooms are required, users can adjourn to the conference room or ‘The Library’.

Right Tools For The Right Settings

The Endemic Workforce

The ‘Collaboration Lounge’ has acoustically padded fabric-lined booths to buffer noise from conversations, and the more open discussion areas of the lounge are buffered by indoor greens within the built-in seating, ensuring a balance of interaction and privacy.

Private rooms were planned into the space, and we carefully picked furniture to meet the needs of users - the discussion lounge has tables with hydraulic height adjustments to cater to sitting or standing while working.

ARCC@OMB was designed with users in mind to cope with the pandemic’s impact on work and lifestyle. The space seeks to be an office of the future that is flexible and comfortable for its users.

However, Singapore and the world has opened up, and things seem to be going back to the way they were before the pandemic happened. Our workplaces need to constantly evolve to the requirements of the workforce and the times we live in, by ensuring that our spaces can be easily adaptable and modular.