Feature - Business centres: a new trend in the age of roaming

"A compromise between comfort and versatility": Jean-Jérôme Tricoire, Tricoire Architectes

Jean-Jérôme Tricoire is the founding director of Tricoire Architectes.
By The Editor -

What advice would you give about setting up a business centre?

Jean-Jérôme Tricoire - Most often located in a dense urban environment, renovating or building a business centre requires - careful consideration of the operational feasibility of the facility. As with the hotel industry, the choice of site must take into account inter-natio nal or inter-city transport links, the presence of other companies and the convenience of access to the business district.

What are the basic rules to follow when designing a building?

J.J. T. - By analysing the different ways in which workplaces and meeting rooms are used, it is possible to give a deeper meaning to the design of the spaces. Decoration, colours, acoustics and lighting must discreetly underline this coherence of intent. On the basis of this analysis, we can respond to differences in user behaviour depending on their origins, the range of their needs, their objectives and even their cultures.
 

How should the meeting rooms be configured?

J.J. T. - They require sufficiently high ceilings, without columns, and plenty of light. For halls of 150 m² or more, retractable bleachers are an excellent compromise between comfort and versatility. The speed with which these spaces can be transformed and adapted to all possible configurations means they can be used for a wide variety of purposes, from the smallest meetings to the largest conferences.
 

Can you think of anything else that would be interesting to find in a business centre?

J.J. T. - An open bar with a cosy ambience is always a good place to meet people. If this is not enviable, at least a small, personalised lounge similar to the VIP lounges will allow greater diversity in the way users are welcomed. The idea is to enable occasional customers to be received in an informal, confidential and rewarding way, with comfortable sofas, a minibar, high-speed connections and top-of-the-range decoration. These facilities can be shared near the reception area to serve all users. The management system is the same as for a meeting room.

Feature - Business centres: a new trend in the age of roaming

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