Technical and organizational innovations in the service sector are among the dominant factors that influence office building design today. A too direct or specific architectural response to rapid developments of this kind is pointless, however. After only a decade or so, office layouts often have to be revised spatially and technically. Architecture itself, on the other hand, changes more slowly. It lasts longer, and ultimately the decisive factor is its quality. For that reason, architectural and urban-planning attributes are coming to play an ever greater role again. The fine mesh of information technology and the immaterial nature of communication will assert themselves anyway, regardless of the architecture. Every day we experience how information technologies emerge and change our world. Even if more basic, long-term qualities are attributed to office building in respect of its urban location than its suitability for short-lived technology, the form of construction remains a decisive factor. Sustainable technology has to be installed, even if its lifespan is shorter than that of the carcass structure. A constant process of upgrading would be too expensive. Considerations of this kind generally lead to a combination of architecture and technology. In their different rhythms, they have to be intelligently coordinated with each other. Architecture can be adapted layer by layer over a period of many years; technology can be more quickly incorporated. Office building design will undeniably be influenced and defined in the future by the major issues and developments facing society – issues like the state of the economy, sustainability and energy efficiency. These aspects can also make a contribution to social, cultural and economic stablity. A decisive factor will be to locate existing office developments and the few new structures that will be needed in a sustainable and spatially efficient form for working in cities. Working architecture Work plays a centrol role in society. Most working people are employed in administration and the service sector, including information technology. Office buildings, therefore, are the most common form of architecture for working situations. The office is the place where many people who provide services spend the bulk of their time. Some 55 per cent of employees today work in information processing; a further 20 per cent are engaged in service industries. An office floor area amounting to 400 million square metres with a value of €600 billion represents ten per cent of all property assets. Sustainability For a long time now, we have sought to achieve sustainable forms of development. This involves all types of urban structure, not just architecture. The enormous volume of office buildings makes these goals particularly relevant. The service sector accounts for the consumption of roughly 15 to 25 per cent of
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all energy, whereby renewable forms of energy belong to the economics of internalizing all system costs. In this light, there is an enormous economic and energy-saving potential in controlling the volume of office building. System efficiency Seen in the context of apportioning work and resources, we face new challenges; for an asymmetric distribution of burdens is unacceptable in a democratic society. Every euro spent on the unemployed has to be earned by working people. A sustainable organization of society reduces the conflicts in the distribution of energy and resources – an insight that assumes an ever greater significance. Questions relating to the size of workspaces, working efficiency, sustainability and quality are problematic, however, because one has to weigh up conflicting criteria and serve different interests. From the provision of services to ... Private and public administration and the service sector have expanded over the years. Although we do not know in which direction work will develop, we face the task of reducing the sum of services and making them more efficient. In this light, new forms of work will probably be necessary. The energy turnaround is likely to lead to many new forms of employment. In contrast, the proportion of jobs in the field of administration and services, which is very high in some countries, will have to be reduced. The big question is what other work these redundant employees can do.
37.5 hours is the agreed working week. In the 1980s, a sickness level of four per cent was registered in companies, Today, five per cent is the recommended figure for calculations. In central Europe, costs of roughly €1,000 per person are caused by modern sicknesses resulting from stress and harassment, even though it is undisputed that a good working climate has a positive effect on the wellbeing and commitment of employees and therefore pays off for employers. Long-lasting vs short-lived In the past, we believed that a building structure had a life of 20 – 40 years. Today, we think in terms of life cycles, judging the sustainability of property in terms of its viability – from its initial construction to its demolition after 40 – 80 years. Some economic systems, however, are quite inculcuable – from hype to crash. Every office building and the company that occupies it will experience an economic crisis at some point in its life, and this has to be taken into account in planning a development. A luxurious park may allow a nobler style of employment, but it will make a firm more susceptible to economic crises. Does it make sense, therefore, for a building like Foster’s “Gherkin”, with an office area of 40,000 m2, to cost €1 billion – i.e. €25,000 per square metre?
The office park How will the service sector organise itself in coming decades. Will working areas continue to be compacted? Will companies outsource part of the work to private homes? Today, some 27 million m2 – seven per cent – of the office space in Germany stands empty. In the bigger cities, the figure exceeds 10 per cent. Every new structure therefore leads to further empty space, which can scarcely be regarded as growth. A better exploitation of the existing facilities would be more appropriate, although observers of the property market view this with scepticism and celebrate an economic upturn with each new office building. In addition, rents differ enormously from region to region (see below).
The meaning of work What are “genuine” workplace qualities in an office building today? Are things like prestige, style, class and so on still relevant, or are quite different criteria important? How should an office block be designed to create a greater sense of identity, when such aspects are determined not by the architecture, but by quite different values, such as the meaning and purpose of the work itself? If one takes the town of Giessen in Hesse, Germany, as an example, it becomes clear just how interrelated and contradictory all these aspects are. In Giessen, office space with an average fitting out costs €5.50 – €6.50 per square metre. With a good or very good standard of finishings and with efficient transport access and nearby parking, the price rises to €6 – €8/m2. A top fitting out with modern facilities would cost €8.50 – €11/m2. In Munich and Frankfurt, on the other hand, one would pay between €25 and €50 per m2 for amenities of this kind.
The future of working cultures In what direction are new working cultures heading? Today, work is more communicative, collegial and relaxed than it used to be. On the other hand, the working performance of employees is subject to a process of optimization without regard for related factors. The boundaries between private and working life are also becoming blurred. Great importance is attached to teamwork and mutual responsibility. What’s more, people work more than 41 hours a week on average, although
On the previous pages, twelve lines of approach to office building have been considered. Each of them has certain disadvantages for some of the people involved, and they are not undisputed. What one is looking for, however, is a turnaround that would offer mainly advantages to the firms, the staff and society as a whole. The examples shown here could lead to an easing of the situation in the long run and to the attainment of important social goals such as economic stability and a reorientation in the energy situation.