Rio Tinto’s city office was exclusively fitted-out just 18 months ago however, rationalisation within the Rio Tinto organisation to streamline the company left them wanting to combine the senior management team with their Paddington office. This meant relocating to Paddington and closing down the city office.

Because the City office was recently fitted-out Rio Tinto were reluctant to dispose of the office fit-out both for cost reasons and because it isn’t sustainable to discard serviceable materials. Simply discarding the very high quality office interior was not a viable option.

Re-using as much as possible of the existing refurbishment materials was something IOR Group designed into the office refurbishment project from an early stage. Therefore re-using most of the fit-out material in the city office became something of a cornerstone for the whole relocation project.

IOR Group set out to take as much as possible of Rio Tinto’s city office and its design, fittings and fixtures and to relocate everything to their Paddington office. The focus on re-using as much as possible meant the cost savings were dramatic and at the same time it ensured that Rio Tinto didn’t have to waste any office fittings that were still in full working condition. Not only did this save money in property terms, and in fit-out terms, but was also a sustainable approach because little or no fit-out material was thrown away.

One of the main challenges for IOR Group was to implement a practical office design, and then to manage the project so that two different sets of office equipment and systems were blended together, and to ensure that disruption, noisy working, and downtime for the senior management team was minimal. Another problem when re-using fit-out material is ceiling height differences of “old” and “new” office but these challenges were overcome all within a fast project program.

Inherent in a re-stack project where existing fit-out is re-used is the potential disruption to people working within the spaces. In this instance the Chairman and CEO of Rio Tinto were being disrupted.

A fast-track program of works minimised the duration of the project, temporary spaces were used to re-home the people affected, and clear communication helped everyone affected to work around the project…but in the final analysis the Executive team at Rio gave the project full support so that the cost savings and re-use of materials could be achieved. Support from the very top people at Rio ensured that the bottom-line benefit was delivered.

When the relocation project finished the office re-fit was a success. Rio Tinto’s Paddington office was successfully refurbished with all the exclusive stand-out features from the city office. Highlights of the relocation were an illuminated floor-to-ceiling periodic table, as well as an ultra-high spec video conference boardroom. Both were successfully relocated and refitted, without any unforeseen downtime or technical delays.

For more information on this particular project or information on office relocation, fit-outs and office refurbishments, then contact IOR Group and find out how they can help you and your organisation.

Summary:

In times of cost savings, global recession and sustainability awareness, re-using existing fit-out material was an important factor for Rio Tinto when relocating the executive team from their inner city office to existing office in Paddington.

According to BNET Office Design is “the arrangement of workspace so that work can be performed in the most efficient way. Office design incorporates both ergonomics and work flow, which examine the way in which work is performed in order to optimize layout. Office design is an important factor in job satisfaction. It affects the way in which employees work, and many organizations have implemented open-plan offices to encourage teamwork.

The development of information and communications technologies has led to changes in traditional layouts and some offices are designed to facilitate hot-desking or hoteling. The design of workspaces must conform to health and safety legislation”.

Did you know that half of all employees say they would work an extra hour per day if they had a better workplace. So why do so many companies maintain dark, cramped, ugly, or poorly designed offices?

There are plenty of office design companies out there who offer modern, creatively designed offices for marketing companies who want their place of work to have a little more vitality than the norm. The concepts need to reflect the client’s personality, have modern, co-ordinated, quality materials, colours and finishes.

Inside a creative marketing agency many hours of employees’ time is spent discussing creative ideas, developing concepts or meeting with new and or prospective clients. So not only do they need an office space that will impress current and potential clients, they also need an office space where employees can interact easily and in comfort – which is especially important for the marketing industry where creativity is Key!

Some of the many challenges an office design company face during the office design process of a creative marketing agency is to capture the dynamic and flexible nature of working at such an agency, to enhance the creativity and to use it in the office interior design. Set out to master the creative human side of a marketing agency.

Marketing agencies who nowadays want to have their office designed or have their old one refurbished desperately need office spaces that eliminates barriers to team working, with personal design boards that can be alternated into a client-facing space plus the variety of brain-storming, workshop, presentation and meeting areas. Creative marketing agencies look for office work desks that can be fully customised to suit the user, by having desks and chairs to fully suit the user’s size and sitting position. In summary, creative agencies want to have office furniture which is completely user-controlled, meaning that the office layout can be adapted totally by employees.

Away from their desks, employees want to enjoy office breakout areas – designed especially to encourage interaction and collaboration. These breakout areas, typically non-working areas, give employees stimulation by being away from their usual environment – ideal for employees such as graphic designers who need to be at their most creative. Similarly, in meeting rooms, glass partitions, light furniture and maximum daylight make meetings feel more relaxed and informal. All these office design aspects are meant to boost creativity.

A creative marketing agency wants complete control over how their office will operate and how it will feel as a place of work. The office need to fit in with the way they want to work. The challenge is in finding an office design company to give you the flexibility and freedom to work the way you wish. Finding an office design company to give you an office you are always proud to show current and prospective clients.

When London-based marketing agency Base One moved to new offices, they wanted to move in style. So they looked to IORgroup – the tailors of office design – to give them an office that would become more than just a place of work.

Offering modern, creatively designed offices for companies who want their place of work to have a little more vitality than the norm, IORgroup’s bespoke office design concepts reflect the company’s personality, with modern, co-ordinated, quality materials, colours and finishes.

Established in 1989, the Richmond-based company have designed and refurbished office designs for a variety of projects nationwide, including corporate boxes at Chelsea Football Club’s Stamford Bridge stadium and a £6.5m office refurbishment project for a global telecoms company.

In the case of Base One – an agency with more than 40 staff – a lot of employees’ time is spent discussing ideas, developing concepts or meeting with clients. Not only did they need an office space that would impress current and potential clients, they needed a space where employees could interact easily and in comfort – which is especially important for an industry where creativity is key.

Speaking about the challenges they faced, IORgroup Ltd marketing director Mike Rivers said: “During the office design process we wanted to capture the dynamic and flexible nature of working at Base One, and to enhance it using the office interior. “Rather than roll over the human side of the business, we set out to champion it.”

Despite moving just a few hundred metres down the road, Base One’s new office in Teddington is an overhaul from the cramped space they had become accustomed to.

In their new building at Harlequin House, IORgroup created an office space that eliminates barriers to team working, with personal design boards that can be alternated into a client-facing space plus the variety of brain-storming, workshop, presentation and meeting areas.

Work desks can now be customised to suit the user. Not only can the desk and chair be set up to suit the user’s size and sitting position, it is now even possible to wheel away just part of the desk, leaving the computer and phone terminals uninterrupted – perfect for spontaneous meetings. The office furniture is also completely user-controlled, meaning that the office layout could be adapted totally by Base One without assistance from IORgroup.

Away from their desks, employees can enjoy office breakout areas – designed especially to encourage interaction and collaboration. These areas give employees stimulation by being away from their usual environment – ideal for employees such as graphic designers who need to be at their most creative. Similarly, in the three meeting rooms, glass partitions, light furniture and maximum daylight make meetings feel more relaxed and informal.

Speaking after the move, Base One director John Stanton said: “We knew that working with IORgroup would give us complete control over how our new office would operate and how it would feel as a place of work. “We had a very strong idea of how we wanted the office to look and how it needed to fit in with the way we want to work. “IORgroup gave us the flexibility and freedom to work the way we wish – and an office we are always proud to show current and prospective clients.”