Name of company
BuroHappold Engineering
Sector/Company’s profile
International engineering practice
Name of president or managing director for the region
Ian Booth
Countries in which company operates
Poland, Denmark, Germany, The UK, USA, China, United Arab Emirates, China, Malaysia, India
Number of offices in Poland, locations and its space
There is one business unit in Poland – in Warsaw
New space leased in Poland between October 2015 and September 2016
The new BuroHappold Engineering office is located in Spektrum Tower building in Warsaw. The new premises occupy the sixth floor of the building. The office area is 1000 m2. BuroHappold signed the lease contract for 90 months (7,5 years).
Description of the office in terms of their functionality and the optimisation of the office space
The story of our new office started with an employee perception survey conducted in the previous premises. Our people had their say on what they were not satisfied about in the old place and what they need in new premises to be able to enjoy working there. This is how we invited our staff to co-create our new space.
How do we take care of the environment and improve our people’s health in our office?
We eliminated plastic bottles use by installing hot water tap boilers and filtered tap water for drinking purposes. In our office we breathe filtered, clean air. Our open plan office is well lit so our eyes feel comfortable. Our work requires both focus and communication so we designed our open plan office to be peaceful space where you can hear just a soft, pleasant background noise. If you want to make a phone or a video call you can go to a ‘phone booth’. For privacy or concentration, there are quiet rooms that let you work in absolute silence. Workplaces are equipped with height-adjustable desks, ergonomic chairs with individual position adjustment. Employees can also sit on fitness balls. The office promotes healthy lifestyle. The kitchen offers a blender, juicer, steamer. Employees can use changing rooms equipped with special clothes dryers and showers. There is one shower per 10 cyclists assuming ¼ team commute to work by bicycle.
All the solutions implemented in the office are characterised by low use of energy and water. To ensure savings water and energy consumption is extensively monitored. Grey water system saves 30% of daily water usage. Also, for the sake of the budget and the environment, significant part of existing interior features has been re-used.
Plans for the future / expansion plans
We registered our new office for WELL Building Standard® certification in order to officially confirm the office positive impact on the employees’ health and well-being.
Verification of the design and an extensive monitoring system was installed to measure and record consumption and performance parameters of all the systems. In future, we will be publishing performance and consumption data for the benefit of our clients and other designers. Also, we’ll conduct an employee perception survey to get an insight of how the employees feel in the new space.
Please say why you should be considered for the award
BuroHappold’s new office is proudly being used as a showcase for the latest technologies and solutions that enhance the well-being and productivity of employees whilst minimising energy consumption. It’s worth highlighting that this is the first such office space in Poland. The office is not only a truly healthy environment but it also educates people and inspires them to lead a healthy and environmentally friendly lifestyle. The advanced metering of energy and water consumption results in higher awareness of environmental impact of the office. Our office showcases what BuroHappold offers its clients: technically robust, innovative and future-proof solutions. Moreover, it also attracts the best engineering talent on the market.
