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Project Overview

Workspace configurations in which professionals are anchored to singular ‘neighbourhoods’ constrain and silo interactions to the detriment of overall business performance. AIS’ provision of a Project Based Working (PBW) environment that allows employees to migrate between spaces subject to project phases, promotes multiple engagement opportunities, amplifies interactions, unifies team objectives, fosters shared project connections and improves organisational cohesion and productivity.
Through the application of AI and design modelling technology, we produced mathematical data that supports our hypothesis that the introduction of a ‘Project Based Working’ model has the potential to increase the average daily interactions of each employee from 12 interactions to 18.5 – an increase of 54%.
The addition of a social thread, comprised of diverse social nodes, that runs the length of the floorplate according to our simulations, increases the probability of chance encounters between individuals even further, while simultaneously providing a platform upon which the social bonds between colleagues can be strengthened through the discovery of shared interests, values and experiences. The mathematical data that drove our design approach for Tide, based on the incorporation of social nodes, projected a 75% increase in chance interactions beyond that suggested by our PBW concept alone, to 32.5 per person, per day.
Complex though it may at first seem, this data driven and AI modelled design solution is underpins spatial use and supports workplace culture at Tide’s new London HQ at the Featherstone Building, just south of Old Street in London.

Project Commissioner

Tide

Project Creator

AIS Interiors Ltd

Team

Fraser Hogg - Project Director
Simon Hart - Creative Lead
Susie Harrison - Concept Designer
Jessica Lee-Mather - Interior Designer
Victoria Shepherd - Design Manager
Neil Connell - Construction

Project Brief

The project brief, based on client team surveys, requested a space that is welcoming, easily navigable, comfortable, spacious, and bright with plenty of natural light. An open-plan space was an explicit deliverable for the project, far from out of the ordinary nowadays.
Our response emphasized the importance of incorporating intelligent design to achieve increased footfall, talent attraction, and retention, as well as the varied design objectives of the brief. Both academic research and mathematical modeling supported us in compiling a winning solution.
Studies conducted by academics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology into ‘Social Physics’ (the idea that getting people to spend time together in a business setting increases productivity) have highlighted the irony of open-plan workplace environments. While designed to optimize collaboration and interaction, they very often result in the opposite.
Too much noise and distraction actively encourage individuals to self-isolate (using, for example, noise-canceling headphones), reducing overall interaction between individuals and teams. Isolation, cliques, and silos can very often result.
The same study revealed that increased collaboration and interaction actively increase overall organizational productivity. One of the major design challenges for us on this project was compiling a spatial solution that delivered an open-plan environment as requested by the brief, while also encouraging the social interaction and connection that draws people to the workspace.
Far from delivering an aesthetic design alone, we understood that this space would need to offer users lifestyle appeal to gradually increase daily footfall.

Project Innovation/Need

In response to the primary objective of creating a space that is social, connected, and appealing to Tideans (Tide employees), our process incorporated AI modeling to establish a ‘Social Thread’; a trajectory of physical infrastructure across the core of the floorplate that prompts users of the space to engage with the interior architecture and connect with teammates.
Prior to creating the social thread, however, we had to first understand the social fabric of Tide’s Workplace Culture. To achieve this, we undertook a phase of workplace strategy consisting primarily of workshops and surveys, to establish everything we needed to know. Our engagements enabled us to define the social fabric by way of three types of workplace interaction: Personal, Project, and Professional.
The position of the social thread across the floorplate was determined through the identification of the points at which each type of interaction intersects across the floorplate. This was facilitated by creating three distinct user journeys for three imaginary user categories and running a simulation, powered by AI and Design Technology, across the floorplan.
Incorporating technology enabled us to identify the most opportune location for the social thread, and also to calculate the number of chance daily interactions per person per day.
Once established, we then set about dissecting the thread into ‘Social Nodes’; points of shared interest (insights gained from workplace strategy engagements) across the floorplate at which team members can interact, socialize and collaborate to the benefit of overall productivity, well-being, and overall workplace appeal.

Design Challenge

While open-plan working environments were designed to encourage social collaboration, the opposite has been proven to be true in practice. There is simply too much noise and too many distractions. Individuals self-isolate, significantly diminishing the frequency of opportunity for chance interactions with colleagues across the business to the detriment of productivity and well-being.
The primary design challenge of this project was conceiving a design that would actively encourage teams and individuals to frequently move across the floorplate, rather than confining them to designated team neighborhoods. Our solution was the project-based Working theory, whereby the floorplate is broken up into zones that lend themselves to distinct project phases rather than to occupation by designated teams. Under these spatial principles, the concept of occupation is turned on its head, and movement across the space is motivated by the spatial arrangement.
As such, Tideans journey across the floorplate is subject to need as dictated by daily activity, which in theory, ought to break down silos and encourage greater levels of interactivity between individuals at a much greater frequency. The design goes one step further, to optimize chance interactions, to the benefit of social connectivity and consequently, greater organizational productivity.

Sustainability

Achieving sustainability on this project involved several key strategies:
Sustainable Investment: Our primary goal was to create an inviting workspace for Tideans and their members, encouraging them to spend time in the office. By prioritizing social interactions over traditional desks, the Social Nodes concept was developed to offer lifestyle appeal, creating a workspace to which people want to return.
Business Sustainability: Recognising the importance of Tide's clients (members), we created a designated Tide Members’ club. This area allows clients to meet with account managers, work, and relax, seamlessly weaving Tide members into the overall fabric of the workspace.
Material Sustainability: In collaboration with The Poured Project, a Tide account holder, we incorporated concrete products made from a unique mix that diverts waste from landfills. The kitchen and breakout area work surfaces consist of at least 75% recycled materials, reducing the project's overall carbon footprint.
Cultural Cohesion: Food plays a central role in Tide’s culture, with initiatives like Tasty Tuesdays enhancing team bonds. The kitchen area symbolizes and celebrates the company’s appreciation for clients such as The Poured Project.
Furniture Sustainability: We sourced a mix of second-hand and sustainably manufactured furniture. This approach posed challenges due to the time needed to find suitable pieces, but it significantly reduced the carbon footprint and added character to the space. The eclectic mix of upcycled, recycled and new sustainable pieces supports the homey, laid-back atmosphere.
Overall, our sustainability efforts focused on reducing environmental impact and creating a culturally cohesive, and engaging, workspace.

Interior Design - Corporate & Commercial

This award celebrates innovative and creative building interiors, with consideration given to space creation and planning, furnishings, finishes, aesthetic presentation and functionality. Consideration also given to space allocation, traffic flow, building services, lighting, fixtures, flooring, colours, furnishings and surface finishes.
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