1. 1
SPACE MATRIXTHE NEW BOUTIQUE
PENTHOUSE LOFT OFFICE
OF SPACE MATRIX & BLINK
BANGKOK
Inspiring AsiaN Workspaces
OFFICE CONCEPT
MALAYSIA
SINGAPORE (Incl. GST)
BRUNEI
INDONESIA
THAILAND
WM/EM RM15/18
SGD13
BND13
IDR80,000
THB250
VOL.6NO.1
Feb-May2013
2. 32
Project: Space Matrix Bangkok
Design: Space Matrix
ENGAGING
WORK
SPACESCreative spaces that
invigorate work styles
Commercial Ad
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SPACE MATRIX
BANGKOK
THAILAND
INTERIORS Space Matrix has emerged as a one of the
strongest players in the design industry globally,
placing recently as the 23rd largest design
firm in the world in terms of revenue, while
commanding top 10 status among the world’s best
workplace and office design firms.
The company has one of the strongest regional
presences in Southeast Asia, and Bangkok has
risen to prominence as the Singapore-based firm’s
central hub for design excellence. Its Bangkok team
has risen from just 6 when the Bangkok office was
opened five years ago to a thriving stronghold of
more than 100 creative talents today.
Thailand has proven to be a rich pool of design
talent locally as well as an attractive destination
for international designers who yearn to
experience not only the exoticism of the country
and the region but also getting numerous
opportunities for career development in design.
Thailand now has a well-earned reputation as one
of the most competitive centres of design and
modern development, particularly in workplace,
architecture and hospitality design.
Space Matrix Bangkok is now one of the region’s
strongest workplace design hubs servicing
millions of square feet of turnkey and design
consultancy workplace projects within Southeast
Asia, India and Australia. Bangkok is the home of
the Space Matrix Design Excellence Center, which
is a pool of the best international creative talents
thatproducesconceptsandcreationsinworkplace
and hospitality design for the company across
the board.
THE NEW BOUTIQUE
PENTHOUSE LOFT OFFICE OF
SPACE MATRIX & BLINK.
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1. Open area office
2. Board room
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The growth of the Bangkok office has facilitated
a move from the firm’s humble offices in
the Zuellig building in Silom Road to a very
prestigious location in the financial district.
Space Matrix Bangkok now commands the
entire 30th floor penthouse of the Bangkok City
Tower. With breathtaking views of Bangkok,
the 8m loft ceiling enabled the design team to
create and build a fantastic metal mezzanine
structure which overlooks the open offices.
This turned the 8,000 square foot space
into a 12,000 sq foot double height space which
allows for the aggressive expansion of the office
to 125 in 2013.
Since the acquisition of the highly awarded
hospitality design firm BLINK, which now shares
the new Space Matrix Bangkok office, the
collaboration between the workplace and the
hospitality design teams has given rise to a new
and reinvigorated design culture in the company
with a strong influence of hospitality design in
the way it approaches workplace design. This
teamwork has proven a new and successful
formula for the firm, not only in Bangkok but across
its entire international operations.
With the firm’s philosophy of collaboration, the
Bangkok team has been using a new model of
“the influence of hospitality in workplace design”,
with the new Bangkok office being its priority
model project. The concept of the team was to
highlight the beauty of the massive double height
volume space of the penthouse and maximise the
commanding views of Bangkok, by day and night.
By creating the steel mezzanine structure and
retaining the high exposed ceilings, the team has
successfully realized a ‘Manhattan boutique loft’
feel for its smart new space.
1. Reception area
2. Breakout area
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Entering the office’s dramatic reception, you
immediately get the rush of being in an ultra
modern boutique space as you are greeted by a
sleek reception desk in black stone and textured
resin. The back wall in black stone is highlighted
with a video wall in a high polished stainless
steel casing. This showcases animation of award
winning works for both Space Matrix and BLINK.
The floor is light engineered oak in a herringbone
pattern giving the warmth and cosiness of a high-
end loft residence. The ceiling is a black metal
mesh that imparts an industrial modern vibe.
Large glass partitions lend a more intimate feel to
the open plan office space. The furniture is sleek
and modern and inspired by hospitality design.
The reception leads on to the main meeting rooms
which were created as a yin-yang design, bearing
the balancing touches of workplace and hospitality
design. On the right, the ‘Hong Sawang’, or ‘light
room’ has a more formal corporate feel with light
finishes. Its elegant white marble stone boardroom
table, champagne mirrors and light veneered walls
are at once sophisticated and corporate.
To the left is the ‘Hong Salua’ or ‘dark room’.
This room is the yang to the light room’s yin, and
bears a much more ‘hospitality design’ influence.
In dark finishes, continuing the black metal mesh
ceiling of the reception and having dark veneers
and black magnetic boards making the space
more relaxed. While the light room is used as a
main library and training room, the dark room with
its modular furniture can easily be transformed
from a conference room to a training room,
plus a superb event space for parties, supplier
presentations, exhibitions, client meetings and
town hall meetings.
1. Grand staircase
2. Library
3. Reception area
4. Picnic table
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1. Working space
2. Loft space
3. Mezzanine entry
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3
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Entering the main floor, one finds a ‘runway’ of
brown carpet and set within a hallway of vertical
batons of dark veneer. This leads to the grand
open office space which immediately draws
the eye upwards to the soaring ceiling by use
of industrial pendants hung from platforms of
painted beige. Main walls are left in raw concrete,
which juxtaposes dramatically with the jet black
carpet and the spectacular metal structure of the
mezzanine itself. Underneath the staircase, a Zen
garden with raked pebbles and carefully placed
greenery exudes a sense of calm.
Breakout pantry and services areas are located
within the main floor under the mezzanine
structure in a more informal yet comfortably chic
setting. Upon ascending to the mezzanine, the
experience is heightened by the surprise splash
of colour of an exposed red brick wall, kept from
the original design in this space. Exposed diagonal
large black metal L beams serve as support
and suspension for the entire mezzanine floor,
enhancing the Manhattan loft ambience.
This uber-cool suspended space is home to
Space Matrix’s gurus of animation, the animation
excellence center, renowned for taking 3D visuals
and animations for the firm’s designs to another
level within the industry. There is also a ‘design
laboratory’; a casual meeting space used for
collaboration and brainstorming by the design
teams.
Space Matrix has once more expanded the
horizon of what is possible with this stunning new
penthouse loft space. Its buzzing hive of designing
minds now has a fittingly chic, functional and talk-
of-the-town space to call home.
7. PARK VENTURES
BANGKOK, THAILAND
INTERIORS
The Park Ventures Ecoplex in Bangkok sought the
perfect meeting space for a business world that
now exists without borders. The design, therefore,
had to be modern, warm and welcoming yet
flexible enough for professional, multinational
businesspeople to what it is they do best. The
Space Matrix Victor Club concept took the organic
shapeofthespaceandprovidedanalternativelook
and feel to the meeting venue. An outdoor garden
can be accessed from the meeting facility, while
back inside you can find the most advanced
audiovisual systems, wireless technology, LCD
projectors, and Thailand’s first commercial
Telepresence meeting room – all tucked away
within the Victor Club’s environmentally friendly
surrounds.
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1. Executive lounge
2. Victor club
3. Victor 1
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3
2
4. Main entry
5. Conference room
6. Banquet room
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9. CLIFFORD
CHANCE
SINGAPORE
INTERIORS
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After winning a successful pitch, Justin Young of
Clifford Chance asked a number of companies to
design an “updated, more modern look” to their
new head office in Singapore, while staying within
their Global Brand guidelines. Space Matrix’s
solution was chosen because it provided more
than was expected.
Space Matrix were fortunate enough to work with
a very open-minded client who could see the value
in creative design. They managed to introduce a
Walnut timber which slightly steered away from
the more traditional timber in their other offices,
and helped them give a more up-to-date look.
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With the reception and pantry being either side of
the mains services core, the concept was all about
“connecting” - connecting people and connecting
the creative design, making this separation a
“plus”. With two full-length Walnut veneer ceiling
“runways” being a common detail in both of these
areas, the concept was linked visually from the lift
lobby. These ceiling runways were then repeated
on the floor, with the central floor and ceiling areas
finished white, enabling these perimeter areas to
stand out.
Using the color blue from the Clifford Chance
guidelines, three main meeting rooms in the
reception essentially formed a glass box, with
double-glazed glass frames concealed in the floor
and ceiling, giving the visual effect that it was
emerging from the floor and disappearing into
the ceiling. Inside the meeting room were Acoustic
Walnut-clad walls and a central Barrisol ceiling
light feature.
Adjacent to the reception was the main board
room with two smaller meeting rooms all divided
by collapsible walls enabling maximum use of the
space for all-hands meetings, presentations and
entertainment functions. All of the rooms were
equipped with projectors and flat-screen TVs with
video conferencing capabilities.
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3
4
2
1. Reception
2. Breakout area
3. Main office
4. Library area
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3 4
2
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3 4
2
1. Canteen view 1
2. Main board room view 1
3. Canteen view 2
4. Main board room view 2
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2
The limited palette of Walnut veneer and blue
filmed glass was continued through to the main
office area where the frames to the glass perimeter
lawyers’ offices were finished in Walnut veneer,
with Walnut finished doors. A series of strategically
placed break-out areas and a library were all
contained with full-height blue glass screens with
Walnut-clad walls, creating intimate private spaces.
The pantry area had a series of loose tables and
chairs and booth seating by the window where
a bamboo ceiling was introduced, along with
orange-and-green finishes from their brand
guidelines to give the space a more colorful feel.
The actual functional pantry had cupboards
finished in black laminate with green back colored
glass on the walls.
12. VESTAS
SINGAPORE
INTERIORS
22 23
When Vestas Singapore - a branch of the Denmark-
based Vestas Wind Systems A/S – presented an
eight-week production timetable for their one-
floor, 34,000-square-foot office for more than
200 employees, the need was for a superior
workplace embodying the parent company’s pure
Scandinavian aesthetic. Space Matrix saw the
need to keep the design philosophy simple – and
to keep it driven by the phrases Honest, Truthful,
and Natural.
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That meant leaning on local adaptation and
functionality, while adding textures such as raw
concrete, timber and open ceilings to achieve the
aesthetic which the design team had visualized
at concept stage. Plants were integrated into
this LEED Platinum workplace to assist in better
internal air quality as well as visual relief, resulting
in LEED Platinum CI status – the first time an office
in Singapore had been rated so, and a honor which
marks the office down as the third most sustainable
facility globally.
Anurag Srivastava, CEO, Space Matrix, explained:
“The Vestas project is a prime example of our
commitment to world-class design and its role
in creating productive environments that inspire
today’s workforce. It also serves as a leading
example of our internal design quality initiative
‘Design 5’, which speaks to our core design values:
emotion, excellence, innovation, responsibility
and value.”
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1. Pantry
2. Meeting room and main office
3. Library
1 3
2
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SAPIENT
SINGAPORE
INTERIORS
SapientNitro’s role as Singapore’s leading
integrated marketing, commerce and technology
services firm required that the company’s
new workplace fostered communication and
collaboration, inspired creativity and enhanced
Sapient’s branding and identity.
With a tight deadline set, the onus was on Space
Matrix to choose equipment models with a shorter
lead-time to ensure the system could be delivered
on time. The solution was found in designing the
office in such a way so as to allow all staff access to
an abundance of natural light that fills the space.
There is a collaboration hub in the centre of space,
containing a design centre, a VC room, meeting
rooms, phone booths and utility area.
1 2
1. Bar and entertainment area
2. Bar and entertainment area
3. Zen garden
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The walls of the design centre are composed of
operable acoustic glass for flexible use so the staff
can transform this space into individual rooms, a
combined larger room, or a town hall space at any
time. Workspaces that promote collaboration are
scattered throughout the office to inspire informal
discussions, with writable wall surfaces that allow
members to meet and chat anywhere they like,
and functional AV systems nearby at all times.
And to infuse energy into the workplace, vibrant
colors were used with Sapient’s brand and identity
brought to life with their corporate color (Sapient
red) and funky graphics.
1. Townhall space
2. Cafe view 1
3. Cafe view 2
4. Reception and waiting area
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16. BPTP
NEW DELHI, INDIA
INTERIORS
30 31
BPTP has since 2003 evolved into one of northern
India’s leading producers of high-end residential,
commercial and hospitality properties. So, when
looking to its new, six-floor, 175,000-square-foot
corporate office in New Delhi – branded BPTP Crest
– the company wanted a complex that served as
a dramatic expression of its values and philosophy.
1
3 4
2
1. Central atrium view 1
2. Central atrium view 2
1 2
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For Space Matrix, the concept meant increasing
collaboration between employees through
design, and for the entire facility to be the physical
manifestation of the company’s rapid growth. It
was also important to infuse a sense of pride in the
employees about the company they worked for.
To foster interaction through interconnectivity of
floors as well as visual connectivity, a cut out was
created from the 2nd to 6th floors, thus allowing
this “void” to become part of one common space
instead of getting divided into two separate floors.
Various options on the interventions in the void
were then explored - various shapes, forms and
functions – to make the space more dynamic. The
project was honoured with the 2012 International
Property Award for Best Office Interior in India,
a reflection, according to BPTP chairman Kabul
Chawla, of Space Matrix’s ability to understand“our
existence and our philosophy and thereby create a
memorable real estate experience.”
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1. Managing DIrector’s
Private Dining Room
2. Managing Director’s Cabin
1 2
18. BANGALORE
INDIA
INTERIORS
The award-winning Sterling Clubhouse project
afforded Space Matrix an opportunity to explore
the very meaning of modern community living
in India. The concept took in the 27,000 sq. ft.
(built-up area) clubhouse at Sterling Villa Grande
– the top villa property in Whitefield, Bangalore,
described as not only a parallel lifestyle but an
experience of paradise itself. To that end, the club
house-leisure centre would form the very heart of
the villa development, integrated with an eco lake
and its manicured gardens.
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The villa development’s vibrant, active community
will now be served by such facilities as a fully-
fledged gymnasium, spa, billiards and snooker,
table tennis, bar, cafeteria, cigar lounge, guest
rooms, full size swimming pool, and barbeque
pavilions. As the clubhouse plot is surrounded
by roads on three sides and water on the fourth,
all the facades of the clubhouse are visible to the
villa occupants ensuring the facility is the centre of
attention – and of life in and around the villas.
Space Matrix’s concept was rewarded with the
Cityscape Global Award in the Leisure and Tourism
(future) Projects category. “We are delighted to
have received this award. Given the advancements
in community living in India, design in luxury
residential properties is a critical element today
and developers are riding on uniqueness and
exclusivity to differentiate them from competition.
Working on this project has been a rewarding
experience and we are glad that it has received
international recognition,” Anup Naik, Space
Matrix, said.
1. Lounge off main atrium
2. Garden
3. Pool
1
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SUZLON
ONE EARTH
PUNE, INDIA
INTERIORS
39
Sustainability is at the core of the Suzlon
One Earth concept, in keeping with the work
done by Suzlon Energy Ltd from its base in
Pune, India. Spread across 10.4 acres – and
encompassing corporate offices and the Suzlon
Excellence Academy - the design called for four
interconnected business function buildings
each with a central well-designed lounge to
facilitate movement towards the left and the right.
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Space Matrix saw the challenge was in finding a final architectural plan that was flexible, yet ordered;
serves vehicles, yet is pedestrian, is a work place, yet a garden; allows concentration, yet gives the
wandering eye a chance to relax. Once achieved this would create a sustainable environment of its own
- and a great place to work.
The One Earth Corporate Campus has been awarded the highest rating ever from the GRIHA (96/100)
and it has also achieved the highest LEED Platinum rating (57/59) in the world. The campus recycles
100 per cent of the water it uses, and it generates 154 KW of energy on site through a combination of
windmills (80 per cent), and photovoltaic panels (20%). The project was handed the 2012 International
Property Award For Best Office Interior In India and the 2010 ACETECH Award For The Most Outstanding
Project In The Commercial Sector.
1. Waiting area in main reception hall
2. Green wall feature
3. Open office area
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Expertise, rigor and discretion are the values that
drive BMR Advisors, a professional consulting firm
founded in 2004 and providing tax, risk and MA
advisory services to Fortune 500 companies as
well as major Indian corporations. When it came
to designing BMR’s new, one-floor, 45,000-square-
footcorporateofficefor300employeesinGurgaon,
a booming satellite city of New Delhi, Space Matrix
soughttoaddressbothclientprivacyandemployee
collegiality. The brief was to have high-end client-
facing areas with an aesthetically pleasing and
comfortable open-plan work area to minimise the
impact of the move.The nature of BMR’s business is
such that they required a certain degree of privacy
for their clients coming to the office. For this,
enclosures at the reception/client-facing area were
created with wooden lattice to maintain privacy
and confidentiality while still allowing for some
transparency. The meeting rooms and boardroom
have all been planned together at one end of the
reception, before the Access Control Area starts to
prevent visitor movement in the work areas, as is
the requirement of the nature of their business.
The passage leading up to the meeting area has
a feature wall with raised letters that spell out the
philosophy of BMR for the visitors and employees
alike. Over the office now occupies a sophisticated,
modern environment of Italian marble, granite,
hardwood, textiles, carpet and fine furnishings.
BMR
ADVISORS
GURGAON
INDIA
INTERIORS
42
1. Reception
2. Feature wall at reception
3. Cafeteria
4. Informal meeting areas
1
3
4
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GARTNER CONSULTING
BEIJING COMPANY LIMITED
BEIJING, CHINA
INTERIORS
Site-specific problems led to site-specific solutions
for the new offices of Gartner Consulting Beijing
Company Limited. Set over 30,000 sq ft, the
project included building selection/feasibility
studies, space planning, design concepts
and implementation and project and cost
management.
To cater for the needs of the company’s 120
employees, Gartner required an open office area,
a casual collaboration area, a hot office, VC room,
boardroom, meeting rooms, outdoor pantry
and a breakout area. The building was fitted
with a chilled-beam ceiling and under-floor air-
conditioning system for energy efficiency.
Moving or altering any piece of ceiling involved
precise calculation of dimension, with any error
affecting the entire air-conditioning system
and so all the rooms needed to be designed in
such as way so as to avoid having to make any
alteration to the ceiling. As a spokesperson for
Gartner explained, this proved to be the project’s
stiffest hurdle as everything had to be kept under
the ceiling line. “We were not able to secure the
partition studs to the slabs the conventional
way,” said the spokesperson. “We had to design
a framework to contain the partition to ensure
stability and proper installation and also to size
out the room so that the rooms end nicely at the
end of each piece of ceiling tile and not near the
centre. But the work was worth it. Everyone loves
the design, and it has been a hit globally.”
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“EVERYONE LOVES
THE DESIGN, AND IT HAS
BEEN A HIT GLOBALLY.”
1. Main boardroom
2. Discussion area
3. General office view 1
4. General office view 2
5. Collaboration area view 1
6. Collaboration area view 2
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DESIGN TO
LET PEOPLE THE PLANET
LIVE BETTER
Leap Sustainability Design Consulting was
formed almost two years ago from the in-house
sustainability team within Space Matrix and
another 10-person, India-based design consulting
firm. Its founder and director Kevin Sullivan had
been active in the green building movement in
New York for almost 10 years before coming to
India on a Fulbright fellowship and setting up his
own green design consultancy in 2008. Leap’s
Team of specialised architects and engineers share
offices with Space Matrix in Singapore, Delhi and
Bangalore and deliver sustainable design and
green building services to projects across Asia.
DESIGN WITH RESPONSIBILITY
All Space Matrix projects start with an essential
green focus regardless of whether a client
decides to go ahead with a formal green building
certification. In fact, “design with responsibility”
is one of the firm’s five core design principles.
Responsible design means not only meeting
a client’s brief and budget but also doing it
according to a well-defined environmental vision.
At Space Matrix, all projects go through an initial
green design analysis to set the basic sustainable
vision for the project and its specific green goals.
The Leap team supports the designers by setting
a green building framework – either LEED or other
rating systems - and a critical green path for the
design team to follow. For an interiors project
this may mean engaging with the company’s
corporate social responsibility policy to see how its
core values can be translated into the design. For
example, transparency and openness is reinforced
by maximising the use of natural daylight and
glazed surfaces. Specific performance outcomes
like lux levels and lighting controls are then
established through computer modeling at the
concept stage of the design.
WINDS WATERS OF PLACE
“Green design starts with deep understanding
of context, in both its natural and built form,”
comments Leap Director, Kevin Sullivan. “Mother
Nature is the master architect and we draw our
inspiration from beauty and simplicity of natural
systems. ” The Chinese design principle of Feng
Shui, loosely translated as “winds and waters of
a place”, takes architecture back to its essential
origins in the natural elements.The Indian principle
of Vaastu and sacred mandalas also trace their
rules and patterns to cycles in nature. Designing
with these elements is the theme for Space
Matrix’s greenest projects for two of the world’s
largest wind energy companies, India-based
Suzlon and the Danish wind giant, Vestas. At
Suzlon’s “One Earth” Campus in Pune, the design
takes maximum advantage of the moderate
climate of India’s western ghats to create a flow
of indoor and outdoor spaces, and play of natural
light in all parts of the building. For the Vestas
corporate office in Singapore, the focus was more
on the use of natural materials and materials
with high recycled content and low-emitting
properties. Both projects received the highest
Platinum LEED rating from the United States Green
Building Council. Vestas is the third highest-rated
LEED commercial interior project in the world.
THE ART SCIENCE OF SUSTAINABILITY
The unique collaborative design approach
between Space Matrix and Leap has produced
award-winning interiors and architecture projects
inspired both by art and science, evocative
aesthetics and innovative engineering. The
approach combines the breadth and diversity of
Space Matrix’s design and planning experience
with Leap’s mastery of environmental and building
science and state-of-the-art computer modeling.
The result is design that lets people and the planet
live better.
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1. Suzlon One Earth Green Wall
2. Vestas Corridor1 2
26. companies of Space Matrix group also collaborated
on the pitch with LEAP on the environmental
strategies, SMAP on workplace planning strategies
and finally QSigma doing cost engineering.
Starting off on a strong design concept which
utilised the existing architectural features with
had multiple exterior plazas and ampitheatres, the
DEC conceptualised bringing the outdoors to
integrate within the interior spaces. With four
main floors, the interns team utilised four way
finding colours for each floor. Then the Space
Matrix graphics team went in to assist in doing
environmental graphics collaboration with
the clients graphics agency. The beauty of the
design was achieved through multiple processes
from exquisite interior sketches, to multiple 3D
animations and walkthroughs generated by the
Space Matrix animation excellence team based in
Bangkok.
All in all the project became a labour of love
which now is a source of pride not only to Space
Matrix group but with the end users themselves.
This completely demonstrates the culture
of collaborations of Space Matrix group and
their aspirations to constantly achieving design
excellence.
Design Excellence or DX is the biggest initiative of Space Matrix for the next
five years bringing together a united design ethos using the Space Matrix
parameters of Design Excellence. These DX parameters are five words that
guide each and every designer on every design project towards achieving
design excellence. There simple words are; Emotion, Value, Responsibility,
Innovation and Aesthetics. With these DX Parameters, the Space Matrix
family achieves a single united voice towards Design Excellence.
In every design firm, a certain culture is fostered by
the company due to the mission and vision of the
company’s founder or figureheads. Space Matrix is
set apart from this ethos as the culture is based on
a collaboration of not a selected group but by a set
of values that have been nurtured in the past ten
years by the founders and the succeeding Space
Matrix members that we now call family.
These values are a set of design principles that
guide each design member towards the aspiration
of achieving excellence. These parameters are five
simple words which inspire each product. Emotion.
Value. Responsibility. Innovation. And Aesthetics.
Design excellence in the firm is purely achieved
through the collaborative efforts of each sub unit
within the Space Matrix group within various
countries, and with the guidance of these design
principles.
A prime example of this process was a key project
which was recently completed in Hyderabad India
which is a large campus of 240,000 square foot of
renovated intricate existing piece for architecture
which now turned into a beautiful modern
workspace for almost a thousand.
The design and build project was a pitch that was
won against numerous international design firms.
The edge that Space Matrix leant was the pitch
was completely integrated piece of design by
numerous teams and business units. The interiors
were designed by the design excellence centre
based in Bangkok with close collaboration with
the workplace team in head office Singapore. The
planning strategy was a collaboration with their
network of multi-regional offices, harnessing talent
where needed. Architecture was designed by the
Bangalore architectural team. the partner sub
THE SPACE MATRIX
DESIGN PROCESS 1. Reception sketch
2. Reception perspective
3. Façade perspective
4. Open office perspective
5. Atrium perspective
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27. including: workplace, commercial, hospitality,
retail, education, civic, transport, residential and
mixed-use projects. With more than 500 members,
Space Matrix are a young, energetic, and dynamic
company led by strong management with diverse
expertise.
At the heart of the Space Matrix operation is
a complete range of services for the planning,
design and delivery of interior environments. They
offer services including strategy, optional design
plans and costing, along with 3D visualisation and
animation. Careful material selection ensures an
innovative interior environment that accurately
reflects the requirements, image, values and
budget in order to represent each clients’business
and brand.
By combining design, project management,
construction and technology teams in one place,
Space Matrix ensures clients benefit from a single
point of contact. This delivers coordinated high
qualityconstructionprojectsfaster,atacompetitive
cost. They offer pre-construction services through
to turnkey design and construction management.
Their aim is to exceed expectations, with a focus
on delivering quality within the planned budget,
improving cost performance and accelerating
project delivery.
THE
INTERNATIONAL
FAMILY
For more than a decade, Space Matrix International
has established themselves as one of the fastest-
growing, multi-disciplinary architectural and
interior design firms in the Asia-Pacific region.
Since 2001, they have partnered with clients from
around the world to create environments which
inspire the audience, engage the user and have
long-term value for all.
A core philosophy of “One team, One community”
assigns Space Matrix’s members where their
specific expertise is required, providing each
client with the most appropriately resourced
team. Keeping members focused on their growth
and expertise brings a competitive edge to the
marketplace while promoting the firm’s passion for
excellence, invention and innovation.
The company has strategically advanced from
their beginnings as a Singapore-based boutique
design organisation to their current multi-
national network of 12 offices. Along the way they
have expanded their services to include master
planning, sustainable design, architecture and
interior design across a range of project types
52 53
28. 54
Technology is an essential part of everyday
life. Space Matrix believes that technology
should effectively enhance communication and
operations, while integrating seamlessly with
the build environment. Their dedicated team of
professionals will put their expertise to good use,
ensuring clients’venues and systems are functional
and effective through the successful integration
of technology.
Space Matrix operates Design Excellence Centers
in Bangkok and Singapore, tapping into the talents
of their finest award-winning designers. Here they
take the process of design from inspiration to
reality, through sketching, material selection, and
furniture selection in tune with their client’s needs.
This is a co-coordinated process facilitated with the
help of digital 3D and animations.
Bangkok is also home to the firm’s Animation
Excellence Centre, an in-house resource of
talented visualisers and 3D animators who work
concurrently with the team of interior designers
and architects. Master Planning at Space Matrix is
another collaborative effort with clients, partners
andthecommunity.Thecompanycreatesplanning
and urban design visions for today’s development
challenges, while also keeping future possibilities
in mind.
Their strategic planning service assists clients to
evaluate and reorganise space. By aligning space
requirements to business objectives, they can help
you achieve client goals. Space Matrix undertakes
a detailed study of existing spaces, business
requirements and the current market conditions
before making a recommendation founded on
solid understanding. Thorough analysis will take
into account staff and management requirements,
move versus stay options, costing analysis and
inventory studies.
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30. 8180
Styling Spaces to a T/
Shagufta Anurag
S
hagufta Anurag is among a new breed
of interior designer - young, energetic,
enterprising – who is not only hold-
ing her own, but getting ahead in the highly
competitive Architect Design game. Taking
her belief that a workspace design should be
a bold reflection of a company’s corporate
culture and brand identity, Shagufta founded
the Singapore-based Space Matrix in 2001
with the main mission of creating workspaces
that “inspire an audience, engage the user and
have long-term value.” Since then, the interior
design firm has completed a long list of exem-
plary corporate, hospitality, building design and
retail projects, and earned industry recognition,
garnering awards for “Best Office Interior in
India” and “Most Outstanding Project in the
Commercial Sector.”
Q: Given the trend towards eco-conscious office
designs, describe the underlying philosophy of the
design work of Space Matrix as it relates to the
environment.
A: At Space Matrix we believe less is more – in our approach to
sustainability as well as aesthetics. Designs that conserve energy
begin at the conceptual stage when we look to optimize the natural
elements of daylight, air movement and materiality. We create
visual and tactile connections between the flow of interior and
exterior spaces, and between people and the environment around
them. Site lines between workstations and the outdoors and
access to operable windows give people a sense of the office as a
place of openness and connectivity. It has been proven that people’s
control over their working environments in terms of adjusting
daylight and thermal comfort levels reduces stress and fatigue.
We take an integrated approach to designing passive daylight by
harvesting elements and controlling active lighting, which reduces
overall energy requirements. We seek to use natural and local
materials, which have low embodied energy, as well as recycled
and low-emitting products that are better for people and the
planet.
Q: What was your favourite project in the commer-
cial sector to work on? Why?
A: I would rate the Suzlon One Earth as a favorite for its sheer
challenge of size, complexity and ambition, set at the outset of
the project and culminating in achieving all those goals in the face
of various adversities.
The Suzlon One Earth is the unique corporate headquarters for
one of Asia’s largest energy providers. The campus is spread over
10 acres of land in Pune, India. The idea for an office campus was
conceived with the client’s need to bring all of its business sectors
and corporate services under one roof. Although linked to each
other, they are independent enough to operate in distinct office
spaces that meet their respective needs and requirements. The
campus is named “One Earth” as Suzlon’s business believes in
caring for the Earth. It further highlights the earth’s unique exist-
ence as an eco system, signifies a unified view of the planet and
reinforces the company’s belief that coexistence and responsible
usage of natural resources is the only way to achieve sustainability.
Q: How would you describe your design style?
A: I could relate my style as being timeless and functional: A mini-
malistic and honest approach to design where scale, proportion
and rhythm find a place in each of my creative pursuits.
The core value is to integrate this approach while designing for
a particular client or project, where their distinct taste is always
being reflected through conscious effort and a thorough under-
standing of the design brief.
Office Interior Design Consultant
Founder, MD and Chief Design Officer of Space Matrix
Q: Which designer has been your biggest influence
and inspiration?
A: There is no simple answer for this one. Throughout my career
and early design school days, I’ve been influenced by my travels
and daily experiences. These could have been through works of
professionals as well as individual users, living and using spaces for
day-to-day activities. A series of arches, a flight of rugged steps, the
texture of a mossy wall are all clues stored away towards a bigger
creative inspiration for me.
I’d like to believe that a single individual cannot encompass all the
aspects of a great designer. For me, great designers are intuitive,
inspirational, and practical yet poetic in their approach. They have
a quality which leaves little to be said. They create experiences --
visual, spatial or tactile -- for us to enjoy. I have strived to imbibe
these aspects in my work, and the quest continues.
“I am happy to say that we
have very good design
talent within the firm who
are women and have seen
the same with the interns
who choose to work with
us. The challenges that
they have experienced
elsewhere only make them
stronger.”
31. 8382
Q: What are the biggest challenges facing designers
today?
A: Design is often considered a luxury and “designer” products are
deemed unnecessary in a tight economy. Designers still struggle
with convincing users of the “cost versus value proposition” for
their solutions. However, a well-designed product doesn’t mean
it is expensive.
A well-designed space or piece of furniture is worth investing in,
as it recovers its cost in the long run by being efficient and effec-
tive. Today sustainability and durability are synonymous with good
design. We can no longer afford apathy towards our working and
living environments. Rather than pandering to the older norm, it
is the duty of today’s designers and architects to be responsible
citizens and help educate and inculcate their learning to the up-
coming generation of creatives and stakeholders.
Q: As a female designer, what specific challenges, if
any,have you encountered throughout your career?
A: I have come to believe that capability gets its due eventually, be
it for a male or female designer. To go by personal experience, it’s
been the contrary: I have only had support and encouragement
from family and friends including the professional circles, be they
partners or clients. Their encouragement has definitely fuelled my
desire to succeed against all odds.
Q: Do you feel there is enough encouragement for
women to enter a career in professional design?
A: Today, any industry allows its patriots the same milieu of circum-
stances. Individuals with an opportunistic outlook to take encour-
agement from the most unexpected of quarters and turn it into a
positive impact to their professional growth.
I am happy to say that we have very good design talent within the
firm who are women and have seen the same with the interns who
choose to work with us. The challenges that they have experienced
elsewhere only make them stronger.
Q: What do you consider to be your motto or design
philosophy?
A: Any designer has to take their philosophical lessons from nature.
Designs in nature are true to their intent; they are enduring; and
they capture all the requirements for their reason ‘to be’. There is
no place for personal ego in nature’s design. If the being is not justi-
fied, then it loses its virility and disappears.
My design philosophy is to be true to the Intent of the user rather
than being fed by personal ego alone.
Q: What do you like best about being a designer?
A: I value the capability to create and impact life’s experiences
as well as the environment in a positive and constructive way. I
approach any task at hand with the intent of making a contribution
to the life and work experience of every user who comes in conver-
sation with the space I design.
Q: What trends are most prevalent in office design
today?
A: One of the most significant trends is that of determining the
clients, requirement for their workspace. Clients now are ever
aware that their offices have to be a dynamic as well as custom-
made for work processes to achieve efficiency and effectiveness.
We are beginning to see the narrowing divide between formal
and informal work, a development which is directly impacting the
quality of the built workspace.
A second equally significant trend seen is the importance of work-
space adaptability to suit the user’s requirements, rather than
where physical space dictating the work behaviour of the user.
Thirdly, technology is being integrated into the workspace as an
active participant rather than a passive tool. Technology in the
office is now as agile and intelligently intuitive as its user. It is trans-
forming into a major contributor to workplace productivity and is
seen in its next-gen phase on mobile hand-held devises within the
office. The divide between technology being restrictive for work
and its use for social aspects is a line that is almost obliterated. This,
to be sure, has had a liberating impact on space design.
In my opinion these trends are here to stay.
Q: How do you define “good” design?
A: A good design is one that delivers its objective intent most
efficiently and effectively while still being aesthetically uplifting.
Good design is not only about colours, but whether the space
aesthetic contributes to its intent. ‘Good design’ has moved into
the realm of ‘responsible design’. For instance: To what extent can
a designer exert his/her influence on a range or spectrum of human
behaviour and emotion? The more panoramic the approach, the
‘better’ the design.
Q: Talk about a recent project you completed. What
was the concept, solution, location, highlights?
A: Vestas, a leading Danish firm, is a manufacturer, seller, installer,
and service provider for wind turbines. In Singapore, Vestas’ brief
to Space Matrix Design Consultants was clear. They wanted a sus-
tainable workplace that is in line with their corporate objectives:
green, clutter-free, innovative, collaborative, fun, and tech savvy.
This new office has recently been awarded the LEED Corporate
Interior (CI) Platinum certification, the highest credentials issued
by the US Green Building Council (USGBC) to facilities that meet
rigorous sustainability guidelines.
Until now, no other office in Singapore had previously received
LEED CI Platinum status, thus making the Vestas office the greenest
corporate interior in Singapore and, with an overall score of 93
points, the third most sustainable facility in the world.
Q:You’veseentheArchitectDesignindustryinAsia
change and evolve throughout your career. What
has been the greatest change you’ve witnessed?
A: Asia’s embrace of green design in the past 5 years has seen
a very conscious change toward environmentally responsible
design practices. This growth has been a tremendous leap, and I
am looking forward to Asia being the leader in this movement.
Another change is the trend towards understanding the value of
workplace strategy, where the requirement for spatial design is
user derived. It is for and by the user, and is customised to the way
these users work. User work culture, workflow and location define
the values of consulting in the workplace – the value of who, what
and why the design project is commissioned. Asia has consciously
moved from a period where aesthetics was the driving parameter
to the present, where a balance of various performance criteria is
goal oriented.
Space Matrix International Awards
• Ranked #28 In Interior Design Magazine’s 2013 Top 100
Giants Survey
• Ranked #36 In Interior Design Magazine’s 2012 Hospital-
ity Giants Survey
• Ranked #88 in the WA100 2013, the World’s Largest
Architecture Practices
• 2012 Asia Pacific Interior Design Awards (APIDA) Silver
Award in Hotel Space for Jumeirah Dhevanafushi, Mal-
dives
• 2012 International Property Award Winner for Best Office
Interior in India for Suzlon One Earth, Pune, India
• 2012 Hospitality Design Award for Conrad, Sanya, China
• 2011 International Property Award Winner for Best Office
Interior in India for Suzlon One Earth, Pune, India
• 2010 Acetech Award For The Most Outstanding Project
in the Commercial Sector for Suzlon One Earth, Pune,
India
• 2010 CoreNet Global Innovators for T-Zed, Bangalore,
India
• 2010 CoreNet Global Sustainable Leadership Award in
Design and Development for T-Zed, Bangalore, India
“The divide between
technology being restric-
tive for work and its use
for social aspects is a line
that is almost obliterated.
This, to be sure, has had
a liberating impact on
space design.”
32. 58
Space Matrix’s commitment to being a Great
Place to Work is reflected through the day-to-
day relationships their members experience.
they strive to achieve their ideals of trust, pride
and enjoyment through the company’s value of
teamwork, integrity, and excellence.
Their members are part of a unique global team of
design, technical and management professionals
collaborating on diverse and complex projects
that integrate architecture, cost consultancy,
hospitality, sustainable design and workplace
services. But life at Space Matrix is not all work.
Space Matrix members play some of the hottest
sports in India, Singapore and Bangkok while art,
architecture, cooking, photography keep them
connected and part of a global multi-cultural
family.
GP2W
GREAT PLACE
TO WORK
SPACE MATRIX
SPACE MATRIX CORE VALUES:
TEAMWORK, INTEGRITY, EXCELLENCE
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1. Bangkok office Halloween Party
2. Singapore Dragon Boat Team
3. Singapore Cultural Day Celebration
4. Singapore Running Team
5. New Delhi Cricket Team
6. Singapore Chinese New Year
celebration
7. Singapore members at Cultural
Day Celebration
8. Members from Singapore
Bangkok office at design event
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www.spacematrix.com
