British Telecom has recently consolidated its real estate in Singapore and relocated to Changi Business Park, where M Moser designed its new 47,300 sqft office. The driver behind this project was to create a unified and cohesive work culture and project BT as a world-class global technology company. The new open plan workspace on a single floor features a variety of agile and activity-based work settings. This has fostered a 'One BT' sense of identity and has increased interaction and collaboration amongst staff, whilst reducing overall real estate requirements.

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#65 | December | January | 2013/14
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2. Case Study | Office
Te x t
Photogr aphy
Creating
» R achel Lee-Leong
» Owen R aggett
BT instills
a stronger
corporate
culture with its
consolidated
office designed
by M Moser
Associates.
A striking entrance defined
by dynamic lines provides an
impressive welcome
Culture
117 | cubes 65
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3. Case Study | Office
A cohesive and identifiable
work culture is perhaps one of the most important
pillars of a great organisation. It is what anchors
employees to a company, instills confidence and
fosters a sense of ownership. Without it, work
becomes an empty end in itself. For this reason, BT
(British Telecom) embarked on a major exercise in
creating “One BT”, and it was an endeavour that
hinged largely on the design of its new premises at
Changi Business Park.
Previously in two different buildings in Chai
Chee housing two business units respectively, BT
was suffering from a case of split personality. “The
main business was very mobile, used to touching
down and flexible working arrangements. The other
engineering business was [more traditional] and
had right-angled desks and really high panels.
So it was almost like two different companies,”
says Nicholas Schifferle, Associate Director at
M Moser Associates.
Uniting the two business units on one floor
at UE Bizhub East building provided a chance
to not only create a more efficient and engaging
work environment, but also offered an opportunity
to present the company as a world-class global
technology company. “With a challenging
programme in place, an integrated delivery solution
was key in ensuring the project was completed
on time and to a quality that exceeded the client’s
expectations,” adds Richard Warburton, Area
Leader (South East Asia) of EC Harris, the project
management firm involved in the project.
“When we decided to move, we did a study of
work patterns: how many people are typically in
the office on any given day? We came to a number
of between 60 to 70 per cent of the staff,” says Za
Moctar, Senior Facilities and Service Assurance
Manager.
It was clear that the one-to-one desk-to-worker
ratio was highly inefficient, and an agile workspace
model seemed to be the way to go.
“I think there are two important defining
factors that are encouraging agile workspaces – the
economy and socio-cultural aspects. It’s about
reducing real-estate footprint, but also building a
sense of team [spirit] in the office,” notes Schifferle.
The new premises boasts only 470 desks, where
the original offices had over 600 desks. Apart from
three offices for senior managers, all other physical
evidence of hierarchy has been abolished. The office
is loosely divided up among different departments
(or “communities” as they are called), while staff
have the liberty of choosing where they would
like to sit on a day-to-day basis. This flexibility
encourages interaction, not just within, but also
between departments.
Top: Pristine white surfaces
provide the reception area with
the impression of clarity
Bottom: A variety of furniture
encourage different discussion
methods
“It’s about reducing real-estate
footprint, but also building a sense
of team [Spirit] in the office”
» Nicholas Schifferle
Above: Colour, manifested in
different ways, helps staff with
wayfinding
119 | cubes 65
indesignlive.sg

4. Case Study | Office
“People start interacting more,” observes
Moctar. “For example, today, if I feel I need to
work with HR (Human Resource), I’ll sit
closer to them. Tomorrow, if I need to work
with procurement, I sit closer to them. So
you get to know more people and it fosters
better relationships.”
Furthering the cause for interaction,
collaboration spaces have been inserted between the
community clusters. “We wanted to ensure the sea
of workstations was broken up. We didn’t want it to
look like a call-centre,” says Moctar. Shared among
different communities, these collaboration spaces
are hubs for informal meetings. And should the
company expand in the future and require more
desks, these freestanding collaboration spaces can
be easily removed to make space.
Without clearly demarcated departments,
wayfinding proved to be a crucial consideration
given the large, 4,396sqm floor plate. As such,
high level markers in the form of colourful,
organic bands help staff locate themselves in the
office. Underfoot, subtle shifts in colour also help
aid wayfinding.
The office is privy to daylight – a precious
commodity that was previously missing in the
old offices – with the majority of the windows
left unobstructed. Supporting spaces also play a
large role in engendering a sense of pride in the
employees. The reception area is designed around a
dynamic confluence of sharp angles, sleek finishes
and controlled lines. The generous pantry provides
ample room for staff to relax, have meetings, or
even work independently. Supported by projector
screens, it was also designed to accommodate 600
people (standing room) for the occasional town
hall meeting.
Despite the reduced footprint of the new
office, Schifferle emphasises that it was important
that “people needed to feel like they were going to
a better place, not that they were going to a
reduced footprint.”
“There were a lot of skeptics before we moved,”
says Moctar. “But the marketing department did
a lot of briefing sessions with senior managers and
line managers, to let them know what to expect.”
All updates were then systematically and regularly
cascaded down to the rest of the staff. And when
the move finally happened, the response was
undeniably encouraging. Moctar says, “The design
really made them feel like they are going into a
world class office environment.”
«
BT Office
Design Firm M Moser Associates
Builder Ngai Chin Construction Pte Ltd
Project Manager EC Harris
Quantity Surveyor EC Harris
ME Engineer JRP
“The design really made them feel like
they are going into a world class office
environment.”
» Za Moctar
Time to Complete 6 months
Total Floor Area 4,396sqm
M Moser Associates (65) 6438 4088
mmoser.com
Finishes
In Reception, ‘CS 6020’ White Gloss Tiles from
Hup Kiong, Interface Flor Red Carpet from
Contrac Image Trading, Instyle ‘Sense Paradise’
upholstery from Infinity Group Asia. Generally
Throughout, Tandus Carpet Tiles from BA
Furnishing. Paint from Dulux. In Pantry, Fast
Track Woodworx Timber Flooring from Weily
Carpet.
2
2
2
9
17
8
9
13
Fixed and Fitted
Ironmongery from Link and Dorma. Phifer Blinds
from Sunscreen.
7
Lighting
In Breakout Areas, ‘Prolicht’ Suspended Lights
from Flair Illume.
6
8
12
11
Furniture
In Work Areas, ‘T59’ Workchairs from Vanguard
Interiors, Workstations from Interimage and
Datumstruct. In Breakout Areas, Custom
Armchairs by Sofa + Others, Custom Coffee
Tables by Lifestorey. In Pantry, Dining Chairs
Reused, Custom Armchairs and Dining Tables by
Sofa Others.
10
9
2
9
4
2
8
2
13
5
2
2
14
8
2
14
13
3
BA Furnishings Pte Ltd (65) 6853 3918
Contrac Image Trading Pte Ltd (65) 6332 3055
interfaceflor.com Datumstruct (S) Pte Ltd
(65) 6749 0206 datumstruct.com Dorma Far
East Pte Ltd (65) 6268 7633 dorma.com/sg/
Flair Illume Pte Ltd (65) 6458 9903 flairillume.
com.sg Hup Kiong Pte Ltd (65) 6382 2626
hupkiong.com Infinity Group Asia (65) 6738
4482 infinitygroup-asia.com Lifestorey (65)
6732 7362 lifestorey.com Sofa + Others (65)
6584 9529 sofaandothers.com Sunscreen
(Singapore) Pte Ltd (65) 6284 0033 sunscreen.
com.sg Vanguard Interiors Pte Ltd (65) 6732
7362 vanguard.com.sg Weily Carpet (65) 6261
3383 weily.com.sg
2
2
2
12
1
15
2
2
2
9 9
2
14
2
8
16
14
13
2
8
2
2
2
_
Legend
1 Reception Area | 2 Meeting Room | 3 VCR
Room | 4 Telepresence Suite | 5 Boardroom | 6
Showcase Room | 7 The Hub | 8 Collaboration
Area | 9 Phone Room | 10 Greenside Comms
Room | 11 Redside Comms Room | 12 Lift Lobby
| 13 AHU | 14 Toilets | 15 Document Room | 16
PKL Staff Room and Storage | 17 Store and
Staging Room
Top: Interesting flooring
patterns create relief in usually
sterile office environments
Bottom: Hot-desking frees up
tables as well as encourages
dynamic collaboration between
departments
_
floor Plan
121 | cubes 65
indesignlive.sg