The headquarters of ATS, a ground-breaking IT company known for its creative mindset, is located on two floors of an office building in the center of Shenyang, a city in the north of China. The fourth floor houses the main office area and the third floor the employee’s canteen to separate quieter workspaces from the noise created during mealtimes.

Young H Design, the architectural firm behind the project, took as its inspiration the client’s day-to-day business operations, which involve integrating digital and physical data on transportation into one online platform. The idea was to create a design language which is a balance between rigid faceted surfaces, representing the abstract network of coordinates connecting the virtual world of data, teamed with more gentle lines, which symbolize physical landscapes found within the natural world.

The blending of these two contrasting styles defines this user-centric workplace, which combines different functional areas for working, holding meetings, and relaxing. By using contrasting materials and textures the design aims to express the values and strengths of the company, and employs colors specifically selected to directly help enhance the morale and productivity of employees.

The lift lobby, and in particular the reception area, embrace and strengthen this abstract message. On the floor, the elegant shapes of marble recall ripples on the surface of water, forming a lake with the sculptured reception desk appearing suspended at its center. The smooth curved lines applied on the back wall portray mountains and are reminiscent of a traditional Chinese painting. By contrast, the digital cloud on the ceiling engenders the high-tech feeling and evokes the company’s work concerning transportation data, providing a strong statement about the company’s DNA, whilst providing guests with a warm welcome within this futuristic atmosphere.

The Leadership area and its meeting rooms includes special design elements to showcase the company’s DNA, such us different city maps on the ceilings. It provides a formal work setting with private offices and clear boundaries between employees, while the corridor serves as special work hub for informal gathering of the leadership team.

In contrast to this, the main operative areas feature a contemporary open-plan layout with panoramic windows and a selection of highly flexible transparent meeting rooms of differing sizes, which serve to engender an atmosphere aimed at fostering creativity. By making extensive use of modular furniture and flexible setups in the operative area, the newly designed office provides ample scope for increasing the number of employees. The architects have designed different spaces spread throughout the operative areas where employees can explore alternative approaches to holding informal meetings. These provide flexible, multifunctional areas that can be used for a range of different purposes. The strong use of themed graphics depicting different methods of transport to be found throughout the bar areas, together with the map of Shenyang along the corridor, aim to reinforce employees’ sense of belonging toward different departments within the company.

These semi-open multifunctional spaces enable people to take on multiple roles in a constantly evolving environment, thus giving employees more control and the opportunity to carry out their tasks in the way that suits them best.

The Showroom, with its gently curving white walls, stands in marked contrast to the surrounding environment. It serves as a company display area which can be shown to visiting clients and also to provide users with an insight into ATS technology. Purity, precision, and the integration of recessed programmable light sources all create an artistic atmosphere designed to explore the limits of the imagination.

Well balanced spaces and non-standard solutions are the key features of this project’s design process. It aspires to be not merely a “Workplace of the Future”, but also a functional and striking environment that showcases the company’s culture. It emphasizes freedom and mobility, as well as providing ample settings for different collaborative styles, which ensure all staff can find the right environment to conduct their business tasks to the best of their ability.