case study on coworking space

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• Mixed Use Architecture

S NINE Multifunctional Co-working Space / PMA madhushala

• Curated by Hana Abdel
• Architects: PMA madhushala
• Area Area of this architecture project Area:  1596 m²
• Year Completion year of this architecture project Year:  2022
• Photographs Photographs: Hemant Patil
• Manufacturers Brands with products used in this architecture project Manufacturers:   Saint-Gobain , Schindler , Tata Steel , Toto , qubn
• Structural Designers : G.A.Bhilare Consultants
• Builders : Siddhashila Developer
• Design Team:  Aishwarya Dayama,Divya Jyoti, Prasanna Morey
• Plumbing Consultants:  Aqua Consultant
• City:  Pune
• Country:  India

S NINE is a multifunctional co-working space in the heart of Pune , in a context where developers are on the prowl to exploit the commercial viability of development by adopting a conformist structure enveloped in a glass box that fails to address the aspirations and dynamic requirements of the user.

The project aims to develop:

• Sensitive and multifunctional design which is responsive to its surrounding and the end user.
• An architectural vocabulary that is timeless and evolved from the ethos of the place and is rooted in the loci physically and culturally.

The architecture is abstracted as an active organism that can breathe, mutate, and transform through seasons and also at the will of the end user, by both its use and expression.

Regional observation, Design adaptation, and Innovation - In the present context buildings with glass envelop result in a nature deficit dull environment for the surrounding and the user. In earlier times, most of the buildings in Pune had planters protruding on the streets. It depicted a unique celebration of life with nature in transitional spaces like balconies and windows. This aspiration has been adopted in the design to create a nostalgia of having plants by the window that can be touched, felt, and watered from the inside to create a distinct bond with users. These planters bring life to the internal environment and create a sense of belonging for the user of the space. The external neighborhood turns lively with the natural planter fenestration. The semi-permeable natural skin serves the dual purpose of planters and a shading device for the building.

Design and strategies for construction - In response to the worldwide spread of air-tight, fully glazed buildings, that in countries like India can largely fail to meet occupant’s expectations and comfort requirements, the S-Nine suggests an efficient and environmentally conscious envelope for hot semi-arid climates. The envelope uses 25mm thick slabs of natural red sandstone, assembled so as to create a grid of planters and fenestrations. In this way, the vegetation becomes a distinctive part of the building's skin. The vertical space of the outer envelope is divided into smaller concrete modules. Vertical stone fins with planters are organically arranged on each of these concrete modules. The modular division makes the construction easier since the stone fins are locally crafted by hand on-site. The modular division also creates an illusion of scale in the elevation.

A unique type of structural innovation is evolved through combining structure and services. The stone fins stand only on two vertical metal members that also have a water supply and discharge system through them. The façade grid is independent of the main building structure, allowing for wide flexibility in terms of pattern and composition. A peripheral column system is adopted for flexible and multifunctional use of the interior space. Additionally, each floor has a special service corridor to facilitate services.

Modularity and Mutation - The asymmetric design and arrangement of planters make a visual pattern that is complete in itself further, it gets enhanced with plants. The organic arrangement of red sandstone and foliage colors weave together to form a composition that is soothing to the eyes of the viewer. The outer envelope acts like skin that changes naturally over time. In the longer run the stone fenestration is changeable. Here the concrete frames are permanent members and the stone fins with planters can be removed. Maintaining the stone fins' independence from the main structure gives the building the freedom to modify its overall architectural expression.

Natural material, zero wastage, and environmental performance - Instead of creating huge glass envelopes, Indian natural red sandstone was selected for the outer skin, for its key features like water absorption, durability, tough build, and quality to outlast artificial materials. Stone sizing has been designed to minimize the wastage of stone. The wastage of stone is utilized in parking floors and compound walls. The water and liquid fertilizer are supplied to each planter with a drip system by gravity. The modular design has made the planters easily accessible for maintenance from individual floors. The fins create a semi-permeable envelope around the building in a way to obtain diffused light in the interior for the most part of the day. Diffused rays through planters also reduce the overall heat gain inside the building.

Circularity with Inclusion of Locals - The stone envelope, railing, and partition walls are crafted on-site with the local stone worker team by avoiding high-tech imported systems, fostering a circular economy. Along with the outer stone envelope, the railing at S Nine is also designed in stone, which is a sandwich of two stones with stainless steel support in the middle. For the partitions of toilets and store rooms, 20mm thick slabs of basalt stone were used. A finished surface can be achieved once the stone has been installed, saving space and cost. Further, the Sculpture at the entrance lobby “Deepstambh”, is an exploration of traditional craft forms into the new era, offering growth and opportunities for the local artisans. The Deepstambh is made out of interlocking modules which decrease in size along with the height. Modules make it easier to handcraft, transport, and assemble it on the site. 

Architecture as a living entity - The site sits amidst a rapid sprawl of glass boxes, a result of the misinterpreted definition of urbanization. The inclusion of structures that incorporate nature is a way to connect people to their surroundings while creating a visually pleasing built environment. S Nine is a small step toward creating a green urban neighborhood.

Project gallery

Project location

Address: jag soc, grmh+52c, behind jw marriott hotel pune, shivaji co operative housing society, bhageerath, shivajinagar, pune, maharashtra 411016, india.

Materials and Tags

• Sustainability

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S NINE 多功能联合办公空间 / PMA madhushala

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The reaction of coworking spaces to the COVID-19 pandemic. A dynamic capabilities perspective

• Published: 25 March 2022
• Volume 16 , pages 257–281, ( 2022 )

Cite this article

• Victor Cabral   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-0147-5879 1 &
• Willem van Winden 1  

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The COVID-19 pandemic has led to many firms reassessing how to deal with their communities. In this study, we focus on a coworking space and examine how the management staff and its coworking community reacted to the pandemic. The uniqueness of coworking spaces is that the community is both the paying customer and it is an integral part of the coworking value proposition. For this paper, a case study in Amsterdam was analyzed and the symbiotic relationship between the coworking space and one of its key resources (the community) was examined. We build on dynamic capabilities theory to identify the processes of how a firm and its community maneuver through the pandemic. We propose that in vibrant times, firms and communities should work in close alignment in order to sense, seize, and transform resources and opportunities.

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1 Introduction

The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented global crisis situation with severe impact on many organizations. Recent research finds that in the services sector, many industries face enormous challenges and that the negative effects of the outbreak might last for years (Cameron and Morath 2021 ; Gia Hoang et al. 2021 ). Moreover, the pandemic has led to dramatic changes in how businesses act and consumers behave (Donthu and Gustafsson 2020 ). This paper analyzes how the COVID-19 pandemic affects coworking spaces, a relatively recent social workplace concept that has proliferated in the last two decades.

The unique service of coworking spaces lays in the opportunities they provide for self-employed people and businesses to have access to flexible office space and simultaneously benefit from being embedded in coworking space communities (e.g., Moriset 2013 ; Gandini 2015 ). Whereas coworking spaces and embedded communities used to be location-bound in physical spaces, COVID-19 has forced their clientele to move into new hybrid (digital/physical) arenas. This paper examines how coworking spaces have reacted to the COVID-19 pandemic. For this, we apply dynamic capabilities (DC) theory, which is a frequently used lens in management research (Schilke et al. 2018 ). Helfat et al. ( 2009 ) describe DC as “the capacity of an organization to purposefully create, extend, or modify its resource base.” Dynamic capabilities enable firms to address changing external and internal environments (Teece et al. 1997 ). The COVID-19 pandemic is an example of a sudden and radical change in the environment that has forced a rapid change in the conditions in which coworking spaces and communities were used to maneuver.

A coworking space presents an interesting case because, due to COVID-19, the nature of the services that coworking spaces offer is changing. Around the world, their physical layout is being altered to accommodate fewer people, and the communities are partly shifted to digital realms. We are specifically interested in the response of the coworking community, i.e., the members/clients of the coworking space.

Despite the plethora of insights produced by DC research, there have not been studies that highlight the mechanisms of how firms that encounter themselves in vibrant environmental situations manage key resources of which they only have partial control. In the case of coworking spaces, the community is a key resource and part of its value proposition (which, to some extent, can be controlled and can be called upon as a source of ideas and information) but also at the same time, it is the coworking spaces’ market and client (with uncontrolled market-based behavior that is influenced by many external factors). Even though there have been various studies that have looked at clients as a market-based source of information or innovation for firms (e.g., Payne et al. 2008 ; Kurtmollaiev et al. 2020 ), there have not been studies that examined how firms deal with their resources (in this case, the community) in situations of drastic change, and when there is only limited control. Thus, it is not obvious from prior research how DCs in newly emerged business contexts enable firms to identify opportunities, integrate and build resources, and reconfigure them when there are hybrid (firm-client) resources. To address this gap, we take a DC lens to explore how coworking spaces and communities reacted to COVID-19 and subsequently, how DCs evolve when they are not only situated in a firm but also in a community at large.

Our main research question is: How did the dynamic capabilities of coworking spaces evolve in reacting to the COVID-19 pandemic?

The nature of this research is exploratory. We adopted a case study approach to make an in-depth analysis of one coworking space in Amsterdam, the Netherlands: StartDock. We conducted expert interviews with the managers of StartDock and with users/tenants. Moreover, we performed a content analysis of conversations among the coworkers, retrieved from a mobile chat application used by the tenants.

This paper provides an empirical and theoretical contribution to the literature. Empirically, it offers an analysis of how a specific type of organization, coworking spaces, has reacted to the COVID-19 crisis, from the lens of DC theory. Theoretically, this paper contributes to DC theory by further exploring the role of the user community in the firm’s capacity to renew competencies so as to achieve congruence with the changing business environment. We explore in detail how the community, in an intricate interplay with the coworking space management staff, contributes to the three main process components of the DCs: sensing, seizing, and transforming (Teece 2007 ).

The paper is structured as follows. First, we discuss what coworking is. Second, we present a contextual situation of the coworking space industry in relationship to COVID-19. Third, we discuss dynamic capabilities. Next, we introduce our frame of analysis. Next, the StartDock case is analyzed through the DC lens of sensing, seizing, and transforming. Finally, a discussion is held and future lines of study are proposed.

2 Literature review

2.1 what are coworking spaces.

In recent years, there has been a rise in the number of coworking spaces (e.g., Gandini 2015 ). Coworking spaces can be defined as “collaboration-enhancing office environments where workers work next to other unaffiliated professionals for a fee” (Spinuzzi 2012 ). Coworking spaces are becoming ubiquitous in many cities, especially in “creative cities” (Florida 2004 ). Coworking responds to changes in the labor market where many firms take more flexible approaches to where work can be performed (e.g., Felstead et al. 2003 ; Spinuzzi 2012 ). In parallel, there are more and more ‘digital workers’ who are not bounded by constraints of the traditional office. For many of such workers, there is the need for office space while having access to social networks, since this can enhance their business performance (Burt 2004 , 2008 ). Coworking spaces are work environments that respond to such trends (Leclercq-Vandelannoitte and Isaac 2016 ). The opportunity to exchange knowledge, contacts, ideas, insights, and industry information is the lure that attracts increasing numbers of people to coworking spaces. Spinuzzi ( 2012 ) examined coworking spaces in Austin, Texas, and detailed the following groups of coworking customers: owners of small businesses (often self-employed), business consultants, and people working on contract for larger companies. According to Salovaara ( 2015 ), the main benefits of working in a coworking space are as follows: efficiency (productivity), communication, inventiveness, and being part of a community.

2.2 Coworking spaces and COVID-19

COVID-19 has been an abrupt exogenous shock for societies and economies worldwide. Most actors central to shaping the economy would admit that the COVID-19 pandemic has been an unpredictable event of great significance and severe consequences that dramatically changes the political, social, and economic environment (Winston 2020 ; Cameron and Morath 2021 ). Likewise, coworking space managers experience COVID-19 as a disruptive, unexpected shock that has been impacting their business heavily. A survey among 14,000 coworking spaces in 172 countries revealed that shortly after the outbreak 72% of spaces had witnessed a significant drop in the number of people working from their space (Konya 2020 ). Also, 41% of coworking spaces experienced a negative impact on membership and contract renewals since the outbreak.

Events as COVID-19 evidently impact the competitive edge of firms and the service that they were used to provide (e.g., McKinsey 2021 ; Wang et al. 2021 ). Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, governments have forced many social spaces to rapidly adjust their spaces in line with regulations that stimulate social distancing, implying less people being physically present. Also, governments prohibit or dissuade the organization of social physical events where large groups of people gather together. Coworking spaces had to adjust to such imposed regulations, altering their model that always revolved around building communities based on physical proximity and interaction (e.g., Parrino 2015 ; Cabral and van Winden 2016 ; Spinuzzi et al. 2019 ). A clever adaptation of the coworking space business model and associated strategic choices (e.g., redefining the physical and digital realms) is fundamental to sustain and guarantee a coworking space success, both during and after COVID-19. In this process, coworking space managers need to make judgments concerning current and future coworking space demand and responses associated with hybrid coworking space trajectories (hybrid forms of network infrastructure that includes both a physical environment and a virtual component (Sechi et al. 2012 )), and also around the pay-offs from investments in new physical and digital assets and its effect on perceived coworking space communities. Adjusting the coworking space to an ecosystem that produces the necessary social services which are needed by coworkers is crucial to overcome the detrimental effects of Covid-19 (Belso-Martínez et al. 2020 )

The COVID-19 pandemic also presents opportunities for coworking spaces. Firstly, COVID-19 has instigated shifts in workplace arrangements, accelerating organizational developments toward short-time working, and flexibilization in work location and hours (e.g., Spurk and Straub 2020 ). Many firms see the crisis as an opportunity to economize on real estate, and in order to provide workplace solutions for employees who seek social work environments, some firms provide subscriptions at coworking spaces (Amsellem 2021 ), a concept that has been coined ‘corpoworking’ (Golonka 2021 ). Second, the pandemic happened in a moment when there is ample technical infrastructure available; a variety of video conferencing tools already existed and were rapidly improved to provide worldwide solutions for individuals and firms, e.g., platforms such as Skype, Whatsapp, MS Teams, Google Meets, and Zoom. Considering that many activities (had to be) moved to the digital realm, the availability of such platforms provides opportunities to seek for its applicability to the coworking space model.

Recent industry reports and studies foresee growth opportunities for coworking spaces (e.g., Ceinar and Mariotti 2021 ). Coworking Resources ( 2020 ) estimate that the number of coworking spaces worldwide will pass 40,000 by 2024, up from 20,000 in 2020. Worktech academy ( 2020 ) expects that approximately five million people will be working from coworking spaces by 2024. Against this background, the dynamic capabilities of coworking spaces (which we describe in the next section) lay in the ability to sense and recognize opportunities and threats and make informed decisions about the path ahead. Over time, a successful coworking space will deploy new (hybrid) structures, assets, rules, and routines that are both profitable and provide sustainable community aspects to coworking space users.

2.3 Dynamic capabilities

Dynamic capabilities (DC) refer to the ability of firms to sense, pursue, and reconfigure opportunities and resources in response to quickly shifting environmental situations (Teece et al. 1997 ). DC has been defined as “the capacity to renew competencies so as to achieve congruence with the changing business environment…” by “…adapting, integrating, and reconfiguring internal and external organizational skills, resources, and functional competencies.” (Teece et al. 1997 ). DC allow firms to create new products and processes and respond to changing market circumstances (Teece and Pisano 2003 ). In essence, a dynamic capability can be described as a systematic means that entails the capacity to carry out activities in a practiced and patterned manner in order to deal with change (Schilke et al. 2018 ).

According to the DC literature, successful firms are the ones that have the dynamic capabilities to adapt current routines (Ludwig and Pemberton 2011 ). Successful organizations are able to purposefully adapt a resource base in order to better deal with external challenges. Even though there are different views on whether DC directly affects the success of firms or whether it is how a firm ‘uses’ dynamic capabilities, there is wide agreement that improving DC of firms in order better deal with changes coming from both inside and outside a firm, positively influences firm performance (Drnevich and Kriauciunas 2011 ).

Eisenhardt and Martin ( 2000 ) discuss that even if firms have appropriate resources, competitive advantage will not be sustainable if firms do not have the processes necessary to identify and reconfigure resources to pursue new opportunities and adapt to shifting environments. From the point of view of DC, these processes comprise three main components: sensing, seizing, and transforming (Teece 2007 ). These capabilities enable firms to identify (sense) opportunities, integrate and build (seize) resources, and reconfigure (transform) resources in order to deal with external threats or exploit market opportunities (Winter 2003 ).

The DC literature recognizes that capabilities related to such processes do not only derive from a firm’s own asset base (Eisenhardt and Martin 2000 ; Augier and Teece 2009 ), but also from external actors such as clients or stakeholders (Kurtmollaiev 2020 ). This resonates with concepts from strategic marketing and innovation literature such as crowdsourcing (Schenk and Guittard 2011 ), service co-creation (e.g., Grönroos and Voima 2013 ), and open innovation (Chesbrough 2003 ), that all acknowledge that resources, ideas, and innovation often emerge in the interplay between firm-internal resources and communities of users.

Relatively few attempts have been made in the DC literature to further elaborate and scrutinize how the three specific DCs processes (sensing, seizing, and transforming) play out in the interaction between the firms and their user community. Coworking spaces are a good setting to explore this, as the coworking community is a key element in their value proposition. When it comes to identifying opportunities, integrating them, and reconfiguring parts of the coworking model, DC literature has not yet delineated the role of a community as a resource in such newly emerged working contexts. In the next part, we revisit three process components (sensing, seizing, and transforming) as defined by Teece ( 2007 ) applied to the coworking context.

2.3.1 Sensing

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, consumer behavior, consumer needs, and consumer segments of coworking spaces showed drastic changes (Konya 2020 ). For coworking spaces to be aware of these changes, Teece ( 2007 ) describes the DC process of sensing as an activity related to identifying new opportunities and threats by scanning, creating, learning, and interpreting the environment. Therefore, to identify and shape opportunities, coworking spaces must constantly scan, search, and explore across technologies and markets. This activity not only involves investing in research activity by constantly examining customer needs and technological possibilities, but also understanding the evolution of industries and markets. In sum, the process of sensing involves identifying opportunities and threats and enabling the filtered information to flow to those capable of making sense of it.

2.3.2 Seizing

Teece ( 2007 ) states that once a new (technological or market) opportunity is sensed, it must be addressed through new products, processes, or services. The process of addressing such opportunities by investing, developing, and commercializing activities is defined as seizing . Seizing opportunities and investing in activities to address changes that resulted from the COVID-19 pandemic require strategic choices. And just as any other strategy, it encompasses uncertainties due to unsure market acceptance. Therefore, in this phase, it is important for coworking spaces to select or create a particular business model that defines its commercialization strategy and investment priorities. Investment often involves committing (financial) resources based on assumed (incomplete) information about the technological and marketplace future. The task for coworking space managers is to make judgments in uncertain circumstances around future demand and coworking community responses. In doing so, coworking space owners/managers need to take into account the pay-offs from making investments in (in) tangible assets.

2.3.3 Transforming

Teece ( 2007 ) describes that the successful identification of technological and market opportunities, the design of new business models, and the commitment of (financial) resources to investment opportunities can lead to firm growth and profitability. For coworking spaces, a key to sustained profitable growth is the ability to recombine and to reconfigure assets and structures as the enterprise grows, and as markets and technologies change. Transformation is needed to maintain evolutionary fitness (Wilden et al. 2013 ). To increase the likelihood of successful transformation, Teece ( 2007 ) suggests that firms should have decentralized structures for the purpose of flexibility and quick responsiveness toward consumers. Teece ( 1986 ) also introduces ‘cospecialization’ for successful firm transformation processes. Cospecialization relates to continuous realignment between strategy, structure, and processes within firms. The ability to integrate and combine assets including knowledge is a core capability (Grant 1996 ).

Table 1 synthesizes the Dynamic capabilities process components as defined by Teece ( 2007 ), as well as the descriptions, and examples of firm dynamic capabilities.

2.3.4 Frame of analysis

We focus on the question on how the dynamic capabilities of coworking spaces have played out and evolved in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. We build on the three processes components as described by Teece ( 2007 ): sensing, seizing, and transforming. Based on insights from DC literature, and recent studies on the impact of COVID-19, we identify potential threats, opportunities, and strategic issues that are relevant for coworking spaces. Figure 1 shows our frame of analysis.

adapted from Teece 2018 )

Frame of analysis (

2.3.5 Research methodology

2.4 setting.

Our research was conducted at StartDock, a coworking space in the center of Amsterdam, the Netherlands. StartDock embodies the typical aspects of coworking spaces, offering a flexible office concept including a variety of network-enhancing activities and facilities for entrepreneurs and independent workers. StartDock was launched in 2016 by 5 young entrepreneurs that looked for proper office space and were interested in being with other start-ups, to share physical resources, knowledge, and ideas. The founders started to run a 300m2 coworking space. The vision of StartDock is not only to provide workspaces, but also to facilitate co-creative communities based on the principles of “joint growth, friendship, and entrepreneurship” (Startdock.nl 2020). By 2020, StartDock had grown to two locations in Amsterdam, and one in Rotterdam. It now offers various types of office spaces, business and social events, and a coworking community. In 2018, StartDock was awarded “the best coworking space of Amsterdam” at the Coworker Members’ Choice Awards (CMCA) (a global coworking industry competition to recognize the top coworking spaces in each city). StartDock embodies the typical aspects of coworking spaces, offering a flexible office concept including a variety of network-enhancing activities and facilities for entrepreneurs and independent workers.

2.5 Methodology

Qualitative data were collected through semi-structured interviews. We conducted two in-depth semi-structured interviews with one of the owners and the community manager of StartDock. The choice was made to interview only one of the owners and not all five, since this would lead to data saturation. By interviewing both an owner and a community manager, we aimed at getting insights regarding 1) strategic choices made by the coworking space in dealing with COVID-19 and 2) StartDocks’ point of view as far as the reaction of the coworking community to the pandemic. In the interviews, we discussed how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the coworking space, and how attempts were made to rebalance the coworking space. In addition, to have the perspective of one of the key resources of the coworking space (i.e., the coworking community), we conducted interviews with 5 tenants (owners of start-ups, self-employed workers, employed workers). In these interviews, we examined how the users of the coworking space experience the impact of COVID-19 on coworking. At the time of selecting the respondents and planning the interviews, the researchers faced the situation of very few coworkers working at StartDock, mainly due to governmental advice to stay at home as much as possible. However, in order to include these data source and to assure diversity in views on the impact of COVID-19 on coworking, we interviewed coworkers who still decided to work at StartDock and were willing to cooperate, but also found a coworker who decided to work from home. All interviews lasted between 15 and 30 minutes.

Furthermore, we had access to unique and first-hand data from a mobile chat application used by the members that contain short conversations, mostly informal, in which about 125 members react to events (both external and internal to the coworking space), share experiences, and exchange ideas and suggestions. These data offer unmediated access to the reactions, emotions, and behaviors of the coworking space community regarding the pandemic. Table 2 displays the different data sources.

Data of the interviews and of the chat application were analyzed by using Atlas.ti. This analytical tool was selected since it allows for the uncovering and systematically analyzing phenomena hidden in text (Silver and Lewins 2014 ). This was particularly relevant when analyzing how the coworking space and users/tenants are dealing with and reacting to COVID-19. Codes were developed a priori involving the three DC process components and coworking themes that resulted from the literature review. During data analysis, the list of codes was expanded with posteriori codes. Examples of emerged codes include the following: ‘home delivery stations,’ ‘registration of users,’ ‘financial impact,’ ‘digital couponing service,’ and ‘need for community.’ The next step was analyzing quotations per DC component and examining the associated emerged codes.

Besides the different data sources, one of the authors gained additional knowledge about this coworking space: in the 12 months prior to the pandemic, for the purpose of another study, he worked at StartDock for 1 day per week, interacted with the member community and the owners/managers, and attended workshops and other common activities. Also during the first months of the pandemic, the researcher continued being a member at StartDock. This helped to understand and interpret how the coworking space changed after the pandemic broke out. Moreover, being a member facilitated getting access to respondents, as well as having access to internal websites (such as the event webpage and community webpage which were consulted on a continuous basis), and the chat application tool.

2.5.1 Results

This section describes how StartDock developed and used dynamic capabilities to create a responsive approach during the COVID-19 pandemic. The case study narrative is organized into three phases to describe the processes involved in the reaction to COVID-19: sensing, seizing, and transforming (Teece 2007 ). The analysis of our data analysis is summarized in Table 3 . Table 4 synthesizes and visualizes the most prominent changes in the configuration of the coworking space as a result of COVID-19.

2.6 Sensing opportunities and threats

The immediate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on StartDock was related to national governmental regulations that were aimed at social distancing and at dissuading social gatherings. StartDock’s staff had to consider how to reorganize the space layout. As far as the office configuration, before the pandemic, there were two types of workspaces: offices (mostly rented by SMEs) and flexible workspaces (mostly rented by individual entrepreneurs and self-employed people who enjoy the flexibility in workplace and time). In addition, there were communal spaces, i.e., places where people could gather, have lunch, or which could be hired for events by the coworking space community or by externals. In deciding how to reorganize the space, the most important implication of the regulations was to respect 1.5 meter social distancing. This meant that, mainly in the flexible work areas, StartDock could provide less work desks, which, in turn, meant that less tenants could be accommodated simultaneously.

Considering that social gatherings had always been a key pillar of StartDock, the community manager quickly started to consider alternatives of how to provide viable substitutes and evaluate those among the community. Close contact with the community and the possibility to run pilots allowed for detecting alternative means to continue providing formal and informal events.

An observed effect of COVID-19 was that it instigated a shift in consumer work patterns. The StartDock management noticed that more and more tenants started to work from home, mostly to avoid social contacts. In parallel, workers moved to the digital realm to sustain their social contacts,. In order to remain in touch with the community that was not physically present anymore, the community manager played an important role in assessing community needs. On the one hand, she held many talks with the community in order to collect opinions, and to examine the well-being among the community. On the other hand, the availability of a mobile chat application, on which most community members are present, provided valuable information and enabled getting indications on current issues among the community.

One of the consequences of the pandemic was that various tenants wanted to discontinue renting a desk because they were not (able or willing to) using it anymore. To address this threat, StartDock started assessing how to extend the coworking space into the homes of the tenants. The next step for StartDock was the development of a viable solution that continued providing basic office amenities to the tenants and, by doing so, continued delivering a core StartDock promise (office amenities).

The COVID-19 crisis also had a harsh financial impact on (many) tenants. For them, company survival was a key priority, which for some entailed that it became harder (and sometimes not equitable) to continue renting a desk. Considering the fact that, in the past, StartDock had always aimed at having diverse community (including having tenants from financial and legal backgrounds), the StartDock staff and the community started assessing if and how such community members could be helped in times of crisis. The variety of financial and legal knowledge available in the community in combination with the availability of digital platforms to convey support generated opportunities to provide aid, guidance, support, and sustain such tenants.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the staff of StartDock also sensed that on the long run, an increasing need from corporates stared arising to hire desks at coworking spaces. One of the ways that this was sensed resulted from the variety of established contacts of staff members with external parties (who often hire event spaces, or provide workshops to the community). From a corporate firm perspective, one of the arguments to rent a workspace at StartDock is that employees can be close to sources of innovation, which are embedded in the many start-ups that are available. For firms, an additional argument that emerged during COVID-19 was that coworking spaces provide a good alternative for workers who (partly) reduced on commuting but still desired a social working space close their homes.

“We increasingly see that people working for large firms want to work closer to home. As a result, there are firms that provide a type of pass that allows employees to work from a coworking space near home. This provides benefits for both the employees, such as, less travel time and more effective working hours, while firms can reduce on office space. At StartDock we will have to see how to deal with this.” Co-founder.

Even though the flexibility in organizing the space for such cases in combination with the financial attractiveness, a next step for StartDock is to consider whether this fits the StartDock principle that was always aimed at independent workers or small-sized companies.

In sum, sensing opportunities and threats was a process in which there was close alignment between StartDock and the StartDock community. In this process, the community functioned as an important ‘sensing device’ for the management of StartDock.

2.7 Seizing opportunities

In adjusting the physical space, a key issue for StartDock was to ensure that current clients have a place to work while taking into account the social distancing measures and the physical boundaries of the coworking space. In order to deal with this, StartDock organized talks and surveys among its user community to assess the ‘modifiability’ (i.e., the flexibility of the space to support a versatile range of activities and collaborative ways of working) of the coworking space. In close collaboration with the community, it learned how to transform the available communal and event spaces into workspaces (which were hardly being used as a result of the pandemic), in order to continue delivering the required work spaces to tenants. Also, in order to have a systematic overview of available spaces, StartDock put a technological reservation system in place (showing which desks are available and which ones are occupied by whom).

To further service the tenants during COVID-19, StartDock started a home delivery service of workstations. This ensured that tenants who were not willing or able to go to StartDock could continue their business while having basic office amenities. In a period where many tenants were considering canceling their contracts, this service aimed retaining such clients.

“Tomorrow the StartDock team will help you to create a temporary ergonomic workplace at home, with your StartDock furniture! We can come and bring your StartDock-desk, StartDock-chair and/or StartDock-screen to your house. Obviously we also foresee that we can keep working from the StartDock-buildings, but with a lower frequency and high level of caution. The StartDock team is working on a process to further lower the risks of contamination within our premises. Would you like to get your inventory delivered at home by the StartDock team? Please complete this link: X. Team StartDock.” Announcement by StartDock in the mobile chat application.

A condition to receive the workstations was to remain a member of the coworking space during the period of working from home. Around seven percent of the tenants made use of this service.

Regarding the events, StartDock adjusted the organizational approach during the pandemic. In the physical realm, StartDock still continued organizing a limited number of events under the condition that social distancing rules were met, i.e., only a limited amount of people attending the events, and 1.5m distance between people should be guaranteed. To organize this, StartDock implemented a registration platform with a ‘first-come-first-serve’ principle. In the digital realm, in the early days of the pandemic, StartDock organized a few informal events, but these efforts were unsuccessful: participation was limited. By contrast, formal events turned out to be better transferable to the digital realm. Throughout the entire pandemic, StartDock maintained a weekly offering of online formal events on business- and non-business related themes. The COVID-19 situation stimulated and accelerated this new means to be perfectioned and professionalized, and StartDock also managed to reach bigger audiences. Most events used to be offered only to the StartDock community, but increasingly such events were also streamed through publicly accessible platforms to non-community segments.

In all decisions, a key concern for StartDock was how to sustain or develop a new sense of community in a situation when people are not physically present at the coworking space. For this, StartDock took various decisions. First, it included the community in the building of the online coupon marketplace: ‘CollabNow,’ an online marketplace where every member of the StartDock community has the opportunity to offer services with a discount. A main objective of this platform is to financially support the tenants. However, it also had as a by-product the emergence of a community feeling among all people involved in building it.

“Although we were working from home more, I did get to know the StartDock team and some other people a lot better because I helped them with CollabNow. Through CollabNow everybody was doing a lot of positive things. This enhanced the StartDock experience and brought a lot of good energy into the group. Something that is really needed in these unusual times.” Tenant 5

Second, StartDock started making communities tangible through increased physical and digital visualization of the community (pictures, testimonials, and the like) to endorse a sense of community. Third, StartDock optimized the event platforms to enhance a community feeling and to increase the possibility of online interaction between tenants.

On top of the above-mentioned decisions to promote community, the mobile chat application also was a platform that enabled the enhancement of a community feeling. On the platform, a variety of initiatives emerged by the community itself. These were mostly voluntary initiatives related to the offering of skill-based services (e.g., marketing, finance, or legal advice in dealing with COVID-19). In general, in the chat application, it seemed that an empathetic stance within the community was recognized based on a “ we are in this together”- feeling.

“Fellow Dockers, In the last few days I have been setting up an initiative to help entrepreneurs like you. For this reason we founded hulpisonderweg.com (helpisonitsway.com) completely selflessly and without a commercial agenda. Marketers with a good heart who want to help, can post an offer to help entrepreneurs in need. Companies with an issue can place a call or make use of an offer on this platform. In addition, StartDock is an ambassador of #hulpisonderweg for both Flanders and the Netherlands because helping each other knows no boundaries.” Post by a community member in the mobile chat application.

To sum up, the activities that were executed by StartDock in this phase happened in close involvement and coordination with the community, which helped StartDock making informed strategic decisions.

2.8 Transforming practices over time

To sustain profitable growth, transformation is needed to maintain evolutionary fitness. For StartDock, a key to sustained profitable growth is the ability to recombine and to reconfigure assets and structures as the coworking market evolves. Even though it is too soon to assess this, we observed a number of developments.

During COVID-19, the labor market showed many changes in working behavior (e.g., increased remote working, increased usage of video conferencing platforms etc.). There are various indications that post-Covid-19 many of these changes will remain. It is likely that also StartDocks’ clients will continue working in hybrid forms (partly from the coworking space/partly somewhere else/partly in the digital realm). This means that StartDock can examine more flexible approaches toward a (hybrid) offering of the coworking promise as a whole.

StartDock gained vast experience in the management of the workspace by implementing a workplace reservation system. For StartDock, the system gave market insights regarding which tenants used the coworking space and when. For tenants such insights might be valuable since it provides an overview of which knowledge at which moments is available at the coworking space. Also, by adopting the home delivery service, StartDock experienced the effect of expanding the coworking space into the homes of tenants. The result was sustaining clients and providing flexibility in workplace location for the tenants. On the long run, StartDock might investigate cospecializing, i.e., investigating both the reservation system and the home delivery system; the complementary value of these assets in conjunction might be value enhancing for StartDock and the tenants.

When it comes to offering online events, the production and organization thereof were lifted to a new level during COVID-19. Compared to the period before COVID-19, StartDock had little experience with online events (yet, vast experience in organizing offline events). Now, StartDock developed skills and experience in delivering off- and online events in parallel. The participants responsible for delivering such events (event manager, community manager, interns) gained experience in using new methods and ways of organizing the events and service provision. A next step for StartDock might be developing further integration capabilities to sustain such offering and evaluate control and performance systems to increase effectiveness on the long run.

Well, we definitely want to keep offering the online events. This way we can appeal to a larger target group than just the people who are physically present here (at StartDock). Community Manager

A key topic for StartDock in the coming period is restoring a sense of community. During COVID-19, it was identified that it was challenging for StartDock to deliver community aspects. Social encountering was more difficult, while from the tenants side, there continued to be a vivid desire for community, fed by both social and economic needs. When looking at the future design of the physical space, StartDock has to await what governments will allow in terms of social distancing.

As far as desk layout, StartDock has solutions to accommodate more tenants in one space (and thereby increasing chances of social interaction), by having f.i. see-through screens between the desks. However, according to StartDock, this is at odds with the concept of ‘coworking.’ As far as the communal areas, StartDock got confirmed during the pandemic how important such spaces are in promoting serendipitous encounters between tenants. When allowed, StartDock will restore the communal spaces from work areas to social areas. Key capabilities in this lay in both the learning of how space impacts community feeling as well as the knowledge transfer thereof to current and future StartDock staff members.

Well we are back to the cubicle principle now. It is feels very isolated, yet, for me that works right now because I need to call a lot so that gives me more privacy. So in the future you could dedicate a floor for those people needing more privacy and one floor just open-plan. That’s where I see it going.” Tenant 5

As far as the digital space, it became clear that it provides a relevant and sufficient alternative to physical settings. However, StartDock realized that a downside of online events is that in online environments, interpersonal engagement and informal interaction are not promoted, which is important to sustain a community feeling. During online events, it has been a challenge to organize smooth transitions between formal events and informal social ‘after-events.’ In offline settings, this used to be easily organized by StartDock, which commonly stimulated social bonding. StartDock also realized that in the online sphere, there are still undefined social norms on how to behave during online events (e.g., how to use a camera and/or microphone; how to behave once an event has ended). This often leads to decreased levels of social engagement compared to offline events. When the objective is building (online) communities and promoting online interaction, coworking spaces might examine ways to improve levels of social presence, which can be fostered by, for instance, considering characteristics of the coworkers. This implies that organizing digital events should come with new underexplored mechanisms that are preferred by users and also promote community building.

3 Discussion, conclusion, and limitations

COVID-19 is having a deep (and probably lasting) impact on work practices and office locations. In this paper, we examined how the pandemic affected a coworking space, a flexible office concept that is often associated with ‘coworking communities’ and which has become ubiquitous in the last decade. A unique aspect of coworking spaces is that the paying customer (the person hiring a desk at the coworking space) is also a key resource of the coworking space; coworking communities are an integral part of the value propositions of coworking spaces. We analyzed the reaction of coworking spaces to the pandemic from the lens of DC theory, studying how the three key process components (sensing, seizing, and transformation) shaped the response of coworking spaces to the crisis.

Our case study convincingly shows that sensing, seizing, and transforming capabilities are not only situated within the management of the organization, but also play out in close alignment with the user community, that acted as key resource notably in the sensing and seizing processes.

With regard to sensing , the coworking community acted as a crucial sensing device for the management to understand what the emerging threats of the crisis were, and how they would play out. This seems to be in line with the concept of crowdsourcing or service co-creation (Schenk and Guittard 2011 ; Grönroos and Voima 2013 ), where the management staff can obtain ideas from an evolving group of customers. The community played a crucial role for the coworking space to rapidly discover, test, and validate new opportunities. More specifically, the community provided continuous input regarding alternative uses of the spaces and the development of new virtual concepts that could partially substitute for physical interaction. Through surveying and provoking community feedback, StartDock sensed how the physical space could best be used in dealing with safety regulations. Based on iterative feedback loops and close alignment with the community, it became clear that by using communal and event spaces as workplaces, there was a trade-off between being able to deliver the promised workplaces to clients versus an associated negative impact on community feeling and a possible miss of revenue streams.

When it comes to seizing opportunities, again there was a dense interplay between management and community; in fact, many of the new investments that sustained the coworking space were initiated and implemented by the user community rather than by the management. It was the close reciprocal relationship between the management staff and the community, and in parallel, the openness for community ideas that facilitated such processes. In this, a key stance for StartDock was to permanently have a tenant-centric orientation, which proved critical in garnering loyalty and commitment toward the community (Spinuzzi et al. 2019 ). Evidently, StartDock had a strong business interest in investing in new structures and architectures that would keep clients on board and feed the community. The coupon service, for example, helped to address the threat of losing clients who were at the verge of going bankrupt (because for many start-ups during the crisis, there was a reduced need for their services). However, the collective and inclusive approach to dealing with the pandemic led to various investments that contained mutual benefits.

Other parts of the trial-by-doing activities were more directed to the transformation of StartDocks’ capabilities across settings and time. The tools for the delivering and evaluation of online events were continuously developed for both formal and informal settings, gradually increasing the knowledge needed to successfully develop this service across time. Event after event, the event- and community managers learned more about a number of important barriers and enablers that require attention, as well as about the social norms needed to stimulate social interaction. Indeed, this is still a relatively understudied phenomenon, but this is not to say that StartDock hasn’t developed basic skills and knowledge in order to improve this over time. The continuous trial-and-error of events and continuous interaction with the community, both physically and through the mobile chat application, have turned out to be important providers of information, while at the same time it has been a way to include the community in all the transformative steps during the pandemic. This seems to indicate that including the community in transformation processes may lead to customer loyalty and engagement as important by-products (De Vreede et al. 2013 ).

From the outset, the StartDock management staff is aware that the community are not only paying clients but also constitute a fundamental component of the product/service that they offer. As such, part of StartDock’s dynamic competence is situated within the community. A key concern of both the management and the coworking space members in reacting to the pandemic was “How to sustain a sense of community?”

On top of the many efforts by StartDock to enhance a community feeling during the pandemic (e.g., by organizing formal and informal digital events), the community itself started to unveil a strong desire for community. In the mobile chat application, a cornucopia of community-enhancing initiatives was revealed, especially in the first months of the pandemic. Remarkably, in a period of a few weeks, the organization of community-enhancing initiatives expanded from StartDock staff assisting tenants, to tenants helping other tenants, and to tenants helping the coworking space staff in return. In general, it seemed that at StartDock, such reciprocal behavior is recognized, and as a result, different forms of community involvement are expressed. The mobile chat application has been a key facilitator during the pandemic for establishing quick effective social interaction among community members. Also, the role of the community manager has been paramount (in line with Cabral and Van Winden 2016 ). The community manager acts as a bridge between StartDock and the tenant and provides value by finding solutions that meet common interests (e.g., providing platforms for entrepreneurs who are in need of business solutions and linking them with an audience. In turn, for StartDock this enhances the value of the coworking promise). The bridging role is executed by the community manager in both the physical and online spheres. This boundary spanning activity proved crucial in the sensing and seizing processes (Burt 2008 ). Notably, it are the interpersonal relationships between the coworking space management staff members and the community members which are conducive to productive dialogue during which opportunities may be indentified (see also Salvato and Vassolo, 2018 ). Our study thus underlines the strategic importance of dealing with the community as a dynamic capability that can inform and shape the offering of coworking services.

A strategic concern for StartDock is the decision to be made regarding ‘corpoworking’ (Golonka 2021 ) and what the impact will be on community. It is likely that in the coming periods, post-COVID-19, there will be an increasing need of corporations and employees/teams to work remotely at a coworking space. In this, an important capability relates to incentive alignment (Teece 2007 ). When corporations are embedded in coworking communities, it is likely that this might lead to mutual benefits, mainly due to the physical proximity between corporations and startups/self-employed people. At the same time, the question arises if and how corporate workers might contribute to the community, a key resource, as we have seen in this paper. In scenarios in which corporations have multiple workers at one specific coworking space, it likely that there is some form of emotional connection between those workers based on shared history, and as such, this might manifest itself in social networks displaying bonding social capital with exclusive characteristics (Putnam 2000 ) which would consequently impede integration with the coworking space community. For coworking space owners/managers, it is important to consider what this would imply for eventual (pre) selection and number of new corporate members. Earlier studies show that effective selection/admission mechanisms increase the chance of fruitful interaction and community building (Van Winden et al. 2012 ).

Our study modestly contributes to the dynamic capabilities literature by showing that dynamic capabilities go beyond the ability of managers to create, extend, and modify the ways in which firms can cope with dynamic environments (e.g., Salge and Vera 2013 ). In fact, our study showed that in the case of coworking spaces, clients are a key source of information that can provide ideas to the coworking space management staff (as in, e.g., Grönroos and Voima 2013 ; Schilke et al. 2018 ; Kurtmollaiev 2020 ). But they are not only a key resource; they are also part and parcel of the dynamic capability of the coworking space itself. One which, during the pandemic, shaped the coworking service that is both offered, created, and consumed by the coworking community. Therefore, the case revealed that when communities play a crucial role in influencing and shaping the product, a symbiotic relationship between firm and communities is paramount in order to sense and seize opportunities and/or to create competitive advantage. We conclude that the community must be considered as a hybrid resource (both internal and external) into the concept. Managerially, the study highlighted how the curation and interventions of coworking spaces can help coworking space owners/managers to deal with drastic external influences, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, and create better services for people using or considering using coworking spaces. In addition, it provides insights for the design and use of coworking networks to overcome the pandemic (in line with Belso-Martínez et al 2020 ). By elucidating the StartDock case, we contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of coworking space dynamic capabilities and to a broader view of resource characteristics (as in Barney 1991 ).

If we make an attempt at looking at post-pandemic coworking, there are a number of indications that follow from this study that are relevant for both coworking owners/managers and for people working in coworking spaces. First, when looking at the physical space of coworking spaces, the flexibility of space came to the forth as a crucial element (as indicated by Oksanen and Stahle, 2013 ), because it increases the possibility to be adaptive to change. As we have seen, changes can be instigated in the internal coworking environment (e.g., the needs of the coworking community regarding space for engagement/disengagement appears not to be static) and/or in the external environment (e.g., governmental regulations imposed by governments during the pandemic). For coworking space owners/managers, it is paramount to investigate if flexibility of space can be in line with coworking business models that are both economically and socially sustainable. Second, the future will most likely entail more hybrid ways of working. As a result, people might spend less time in coworking spaces because technological advancements might present alternative solutions. If this will be the case, it is worth considering whether there are types of proximity (as in Boschma 2005 ) that can substitute or compensate for the decreased level of geographical proximity of coworkers in order to sustain similar levels of community as before the pandemic (e.g., investigate how to enhance social proximity). Third, in terms of offering events (a key pilar of coworking spaces), the digital realm proved to be a useful alternative space for physical events. Now that the value and possibilities of this underexplored space have been touched upon, this will undoubtedly be a coworking facet that will be further investigated by coworking spaces.

Several investigative limitations of this study set directions for future research. First, because of the pandemic, the Dutch government strongly demoted traveling and people going to work. This had an impact on the number of people going to StartDock and, as a result, there were fewer people present than normal. This means that the StartDock population was not entirely represented in the research which limits generalization and inference making. Second, this study analyzed one coworking space in Amsterdam that was dealing with local regulations and symptoms related to COVID-19. Future studies could consider expanding the number of coworking spaces and contrast different characteristics and approaches in order to enrich and/or generalize the results. Third, the findings confirmed the evolution of ‘corpoworking’ by both firms and coworking spaces. We encourage to further investigate how coworking space owners/managers deal with the curation in terms of the type of firms, the size of firms, and where such firms are situated inside the coworking space. In this line, we also favor researching profiles and professional circumstances of corporate workers and it’s link with coworking community development. Fourth, future research could also explore whether coworkers adopt ‘hybrid’ approach of coworking (i.e., partly physical at the coworking space and partly from home with online participation at events). In particular, this may yield insights into alternative effects on coworking community dynamics, usage of space, and coworking revenue models. Lastly, future studies could consider validating the conceptual model or introducing other DC models in order to improve the empirical reliability and validity of our findings.

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Cabral, V., van Winden, W. The reaction of coworking spaces to the COVID-19 pandemic. A dynamic capabilities perspective. Serv Bus 16 , 257–281 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11628-022-00489-6

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Morning Coworking opens and operates successful Parisian coworking spaces with Asana

This is no small feat, as Morning Coworking’s head of operations, Tania Boros, already knows. Tania works with her team of four to coordinate all 20 locations, as well as the employees based there. They have worked hard to build the perfect process to open new locations and make sure they’re thriving.

Charged with moving fast while still being mindful of people, process, and purpose, they rely on Asana to ensure that all three are working in harmony so that anyone from around the city (or world) can count on the collaborative, productive space Morning Coworking creates.

The keys to successful spaces

Fostering spaces where great people (and their ideas) interact and work takes plenty of coordination and trust. The Morning Coworking team needs to stay on the same page when securing, staffing, and successfully operating their spaces—all while moving as fast as possible. Tania has her hands full, but luckily Asana helps keep her mind at ease.

Move fast with templates

Most companies need to move quickly to stay ahead of the competition and achieve their ambitious goals, but for Morning Coworking, speed is especially important, impacting their bottom line. “Some spaces are only leased to us for two to three years, so we need to get them up and running as soon as we can to start generating income,” says Tania.

To open a space, Tania and her team need to secure permits, sign leases, coordinate construction, select furnishings, install technical configurations, and so much more. “With Asana, we’ve got the whole process of opening a new space down to one to three months. Now we can open various spaces at once, thanks to Asana and our building partners and suppliers (who have even shortened their delivery times!). Instead of opening one space at a time, we can now open four spaces at once.”

With so many distinct and important pieces to keep track of, how does Morning Coworking manage to do it in a mere matter of weeks? It’s all about templates.

Tania’s team uses the same template for each new location to make sure that nothing gets forgotten, and so they can quickly get started on a new project by just copying the template. Each project section groups related tasks for admin, IT, architecture, logistics, and more. This makes it easier to find information once the project is underway—instead of trying to dig through email and documents.

The Morning Coworking team also uses custom fields to show which stage a task is in so Tania can quickly glance at the project without asking for status updates across dozens of tasks. Paired with task dependencies, it’s easy for everyone to know what to be working on, when. “Asana truly helps us feel confident that everybody is working on the right part of the plan at the right time.”

Buildings that Tania’s team works with are usually vacant for months or years before Morning Coworking takes them over. At times, properties are in poor condition before they get a makeover. Here’s a look at the before and after of a couple of their spaces:

Onboard and empower employees in every office

But once a space is opened, the pace doesn’t slow down. With only one employee staffed at each space, there are countless tasks to ensure everything from IT needs to community engagement are handled properly. Morning Coworking also wants to ensure that each employee feels prepared to handle any situation and empowered to own their role to improve the spaces—both things that Asana helps them achieve.

One of the key components of Morning Coworking’s success once a space is launched is the onboarding process for “Morning managers.” Morning managers are responsible for taking care of any needs and issues that arise in a given workspace. “Our Morning managers are the glue that holds the spaces together and help grow the community,” says Tania. Once again, templates come to the rescue.

“Asana is really helpful with onboarding because we can create a template to ensure that we’ve trained them on everything, and the managers can reference the project again if they have questions.”

The template makes processes and best practices clear—and they’re easy to find because they’re all in Asana. The template also helps Morning Coworking move fast, so they don’t have to reinvent the wheel for each new manager or risk forgetting something. Managers are better equipped to respond to any situation and know they’re doing it right, which helps them take on more responsibilities with less stress.

When issues and questions do arise, managers can turn to Asana for solutions. For example, managers might wonder what the process is to purchase equipment or who to get budget information from. The Morning Coworking team has projects for each unique coworking space to keep track of action items, the process for checking in new clients, and upcoming events.

They also track and manage budgets and invoices with Asana for a smoother closing each month. This helps Tania focus on key priorities to quickly answer questions and find solutions, which just wasn’t possible via email and chat.

“Asana makes it so easy to keep track of every detail without adding complexity. We use it to manage invoices and make sure there aren’t inconsistencies. We can submit reports and expenses on time every month knowing there aren’t mistakes.”

Keep track of top goals

With new problems to tackle at any given workspace, it can be easy to get caught up in the day-to-day details and lose sight of bigger goals. That can mean running the risk of losing the comfort and consistency Morning Coworking is known for, or eventually leading to Morning managers feeling disengaged if they don’t see how their work contributes to the bigger picture.

Morning Coworking is here to create a sensational community and ensure people are having great experiences in the coworking space. That’s true for our clients, as well as our own employees. Asana helps us make sure we’re serving both.”

Luckily Tania and her team are one step ahead with their objectives and key results (OKR) goal tracking project in Asana . The project tracks the company’s larger goals like certifying spaces as one hundred percent green (due to energy use, recycling, and more) and opening one coworking space per month in 2019, as well as individuals’ big goals.

Every month or so, the team reviews the OKRs to see how they’re pacing against them and to come up with solutions if anything is off track or needs updating. They also review employees’ goals and surface upcoming projects that might be relevant to their growth.

Fast and meaningful success

In just a few short years, Morning Coworking has set a new standard for workspaces by providing comfortable spaces with caring employees and a clientele that believes in their community. With even more locations opening, Tania’s team is ready to move quickly, while still being thoughtful about each step of the process, with their eye on big goals.

Thanks to Asana, Morning Coworking can focus on the right details, with a mind for the big picture, to ensure they’re the fastest growing and most loved coworking space in Paris.

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Research: How Coworking Spaces Impact Employee Well-Being

• Constance Noonan Hadley,
• Sarah Wright

People find them to be more socially fulfilling than the office or home, according to a new survey.

Debates over hybrid work policies continue to revolve around two primary work locations: the office or the home. The authors argue this is a limited viewpoint, especially when it comes to addressing the significant problem of employee loneliness. There is a third space to consider: coworking sites. In the authors’ research, knowledge workers rated such spaces as more interpersonally satisfying than working from the office or from home. One big reason is that coworking sites offer better opportunities for employees to relationally craft their jobs — that is, pick which other professionals they engage with during the workday, and how. Social autonomy is a basic need of employees, one that will continue to drive their employment decisions in the years to come. The authors offer five pieces of advice for how employers can leverage the unique assets of coworking sites in designing their hybrid work policies.

“I feel very lonely in my job. I feel fed up with working from my home and not having anyone to talk to but feel equally disconnected when I have to go to the office for in-person team meetings.” — Research interviewee, a project manager in the U.K.

Employees and employers face a challenge: how to optimize hybrid work policies to maximize benefits for both sides, including reducing the debilitating effects of employee loneliness. Lonely employees like the one above tend to suffer from poorer well-being and lower performance — both issues that impact a company’s bottom line .

• Constance Noonan Hadley is an organizational psychologist and founder of the Institute for Life at Work as well as a lecturer at Boston University’s Questrom School of Business. She conducts research on employee well-being, relationships, psychological safety, teams, and the future of work. Her goal is to help organizations identify and address pain points so that work life can be improved for all employees.
• Ben Marks is the founder and executive director of the #WorkAnywhere Campaign, the global advocacy movement representing remote and hybrid workers. He is also the co-creator of the upcoming Future Workforce Alliance, a bipartisan initiative bringing together politicians and sector leaders to drive an ambitious policy agenda for a more fair, healthy, and inclusive future of work.
• Sarah Wright is an associate professor at the University of Canterbury Business School in New Zealand. Her research focuses on employee loneliness and relationship quality in organizations, which complements her teaching on management skills, team leadership, and organizational behavior.

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Master's Thesis: Co-Working HUB

C o - Wo r k i n g H U B INVESTIGATION ON HOW SPATIAL QUALITIES OF CO-WORKING SPACES CAN ENHANCE WORK EFFICIENCY AND SOCIAL NETWORKS, IN A CITY CENTRE THAT IS DRAINED OUT OF URBAN LIFE, FOR A RESILIENT SOCIO-ECONOMIC GROWTH OF UDDEVALLA CITY.

ility d Sustainab 018 n o y e B g in pring 2 d Plann Björling | S itecture an s h il rc N A r: f o o is e gramm | Superv , Master Pro ílio da Cruz Brandão re tu c e it h r: Em esis in Arc | Examine n a s Master’s Th s a H n zja Author: Ra

Co-Working HUB Investigation on how Spatial Qualities of Co-Working Spaces can enhance Work Efficiency and Social Networks, in a City Centre that is Drained Out of Urban Life, for a Resilient Socio-Economic Growth of Uddevalla City.

Razjan Hassan Master’s Thesis at Chalmers School of Architecture Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering This is a Master’s thesis written during spring 2018 within the Master’s Programme: Architecture and Planning Beyond Sustainability (MPDSD) Chalmers University of Technology 412 96 Gothenburg, Sweden Tel : +46 (0) 31 - 772 10 00 Examiner: Emílio da Cruz Brandão Supervisors: Nils Björling External Critics: Giambattista Zaccariotto & David Leite Viana

© Razjan Hassan, 2018 [email protected] Göteborg, Sweden 2018-08-30 2

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Razjan Hassan was born in Sulaimani, Kurdistan, and raised in Den Haag, The Netherlands. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Architecture from University of Sulamani and completed her Master’s programme in Architecture and Planning Beyond Sustainability. Her projects were often based on dialogue and participatory design methods, co-design, co-creation, citizen participation, social sustainability, circular economy, shared living/spaces, waste management (recycle, reuse, repair, redesign), social integration, sustainable building and community building.

STUDENT BACKGROUND Bachelor studies | 2010-2016 1 Year BSc of Architecture at TU Delft BSc Architectural Engineering at University of Sulaimani Master studies | 2016-2018 Master’s Programme Architecture and Planning Beyond Sustainability at Chalmers University of Technology Selection of courses within the master studies: • Sustainable Development and the Design Professions • Design and Planning for Social Inclusion • Design Systems • Sustainable Architectural Design • Building Information Modelling • Masters thesis preparation course 1 & 2 • Planning and design for sustainable development in a local context

(Author’s picture) 3

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS A special thanks to my supervisors and examiner Nils BjĂśrling and EmĂ­lio da Cruz BrandĂŁo, for their guidance, trust, constructive advices, involvement and time. For pushing and inspiring me during this process, this project would not have been possible without your knowledge, support and inspiration. My family and my friends, for your encouragement and for always believing in me. My fellow students in the master thesis studio, for your encouragement and good inputs. For always taking the time to share ideas.

My Mother for helping me out with everything all the time. Without you I would not be able to finish this Master's Thesis. Bana J. Ahmed, Lana M. Ali and Trifa Hassan for all your fantastic support and for always taking the time to give good advices along the way. Bahez Aso Rahim, for being by my side during this process, for your constant support and for never complaining. For always taking the time to cheer up and give good advises. And thank you for always believing in me. I dedicate this work to you all.

Thanks to everyone who lent me their time through meeting me, answering emails and telephone calls.

TABLE OF CONTENT Co-Working HUB About the Author Acknowledgment Table of Content Reading instructions Abstract 1 . I NT R O DU C TI ON Manifesto Aim & Purpose Methods & Process Delimitations 2 . R ES E A R C H Thesis Discourse Sustainability Discourse Co-Working Open Plan Offices Propinquity Effect Hub and Spoke Eudamonia Machine Transition HUB Conclusion 3 . LO C A L C O N TEXT Brief Background Uddevalla

Site Context 3 The Site 4 Site Surrounding 5 Accessibility 6 Climate Study 7 Interview and survey conclusions Municipal facts & Statistics SWOT Analysis 10 Local Objectives and Strategies 11 Conclusion 12 13 4. CONCEPT & PR OGR AM The Concept Design Approach 16 Target Groups 17 Location 18 Design Strategies 19 20 21 22 23

Spatial Program

5. THE PR OPOSAL The Concept Building Form 26 Gradual Privacy Transition Flexibility Site Plan 31 Ground Floor Plan 32 1st & 2nd Floor Plan

33 34 35 36 37 38 40 41 42 43

46 47 48 49 52 53

3rd & 4th Floor Plan Section b-b Section a-a Section c-c Bird Eye View

69 70 71 72 73

6. CON CL U S ION & RE F L E CT ION S Conclusion Reflection Next Step

7. RE F E RE N CE S

8. IN S PIRA T ION Tech-Farm Architectural Elements Inspiration Hospice

9. A PPE N D IX Posters

62 63 64 65 66 67 68 5

READING INSTRUCTIONS This Master’s Thesis is preferably read from cover to cover, but for those who want to read something specific, this is facilitated by having a number of chapters dedicated to each part in the project process. Important is to mention that the process has not been linear but rather in loops. This thesis report is divided into three parts. Part 1: Introduction, Research, Local Context. Part 2: Concept & Program, the Proposal, and Conclusion. Part 3: References, Inspiration and Appendix The design proposal is a result of the first part.

1. Introduction

2. Research

3. Local Context

Part one introduces the thesis and argues for the problems and questions raised within it. It gives a background to put the thesis in a broader context and shows methods of working as well as limitations of the work. The research is displayed first and the site is introduced later together with analysis of the local context which this project is based upon.

4. Concept & Program

5. The Proposal

6. Conclusion & Reflections

Part two consists of the design proposal. This part shows how the research and analysis are turned into conclusions providing a base for the design criteria and program. These criteria guided me in the creation of the design.

7. References

8. Inspiration

9. Appendix

Part three is for more information on the references that I have used during this Master’s Thesis, inspirational reference projects and additional material from the process as well as the posters produced for the exhibition. 6

ABSTRACT The new modern community consists of more freelancers, startups and solo-entrepreneurs, and will constitute a large amount of the total workforce in the future. Nowadays younger generations prefer to work in places where they can find a community of like-minded people as well as a “fun and social� workplace. This place can be a co-working facility, which has become a part of the current sharing economy revolution. Uddevalla, a mid-sized city on the Swedish west-coast, has become a trade centre for small businesses, yet the city centre is struggling to survive due to a lack of social networks and activities. There is an increased need for shared working spaces in order to enhance social interaction and connect existing and emerging networks. The aim of this master thesis is to investigate a solution for achieving an extroverted and inclusive working environment that can encourage its users to interact, thereby creating a social platform where they quickly bounce ideas back and forth. The intention is to combine people at different ages and background with a common interest for sustainability and create a comfortable, homelike environment in the workspaces to enhance work efficiency and productivity.

The result is a design proposal for a Co-Working HUB with flexible shared spaces for activities such as co-working and cocreating. The aim is to provide the users with an environment that encourages social interaction and enhance networking and collaboration opportunities for businesses by working in close proximity to people in other fields that share similar values. This will contribute to a city centre that will be attractive to visit, work and live in. Research by design is mainly implemented, and problems have been tested through digital model studies and sketching. The proposal should be seen as an example of how to demonstrate, educate, and inspire people to share, care, and collaborate, in order to generate new sustainable and innovative business ideas. Finally, the concept, strategies and design proposal could inspire other cities that are struggling with the same urban challenge.

KEY WORDS Co-Working, Co-Creating, Sharing, Collaboration, Social Interaction, Start-Ups & Small Businesses

“a place you join as an individual, ‘me,’ but where you become part of a greater ‘we.’” WeWork (2010)

1. INTRODUCTION

MANIFESTO THE CO-WOR KING HUB Imagine a place where you can enjoy work and socialize without feeling alone. A place that opens up the opportunity for spontaneous conversations, with like minded people, about anything you can imagine without feeling out of context. Being inspired by each other and being an inspiration for the next generation. This place is a co-working HUB, that consists of shared spaces for recovering, learning, earning and socializing. We believe that with the proper atmosphere around you will be inspired to start-up and manage different kinds of resource efficient businesses, and you will contribute in strengthening the local economy of your city, your place. We aim for togetherness where people, activities, and values are weaved together and supports each other. The social network will be open and flexible for new collaborations to happen between different entrepreneurs, industries, researchers, and inventors. This venue supports cooperative collaborations, and provides room for community events and local organizations. We are committed to offer you creative spaces and satisfying atmosphere that can encourage you to meet, interact, share and exchange resources, knowledge, experience, ideas, values and more. Together we can establish a strong and sustainable social network, that will help to generate new sustainable and innovative business ideas.

TH E S IS Q UE S TIO N How can we design for revitalization of a city centre that is drained out of urban life, by focusing on co-working spaces, for a resilient socio-economic growth of uddevalla city? INTRODUCTION / 10

AIM & PURPOSE AI M A N D R E S E A RCH F IELD

PU RPOS E & S U B- T H E S IS QU E S T ION

The aim of this master thesis is to investigate a solution for achieving an extroverted and inclusive working environment that can encourage its users to interact, thereby creating a social platform where they quickly bounce ideas back and forth.

The final result will consist of a building with activities such as, working, and cocreating. The co-working HUB will serve as a venue for social interaction through cooperative collaborations, community events and room for local organizations.

• A social platform where you quickly bounce ideas back and forth • An environment that encourages social interaction and enhances networking and collaboration opportunities for businesses by working in close proximity to people in other fields that share similar values • A new and high-quality way of working • Strengthen the circular economy. • A “fun and social” workplace with like minded people • Comfortable, homelike environments in the workspaces • Affordable working space for start-ups and small businesses • Providing necessary tools for diverse professions

The intention is to combine people at different ages and background with a common interest for sustainability and create a comfortable, homelike environment in the workspaces to enhance work efficiency and productivity. The strategies and design proposal could inspire other cities that are struggling with the same urban challenge.

The design proposal is limited to an architectural scale where the most important indoor and outdoor spaces are investigated on a higher detail level. The main focus is on the spatial qualities in the building, its immediate surroundings and the working environment and interactions within it. The thesis does not focus on the structural details, technical aspects of the building and its systems.

How can spatial qualities enhance social interaction and work efficiency in working spaces?

How can we demonstrate, educate, and inspire people to co-work and co-create?

How can sharing resources stimulate cooperative collaborations and increase social interaction between diverse target groups?

How can a co-working HUB revive the city centre of Uddevalla and regain the urban life?

INTRODUCTION / 11

METHODS & PROCESS M ET HO D O L O G Y Research for design has been used to investigate the socio-economic structure of the city. This method has also been implemented for the site analysis. The knowledge gained from the theory part has been translated into design concept and design strategies. In the design phase, research by design has been implemented, and problems have been tested through digital model studies and sketching. The design proposal is further a result of the theory part together with findings in the design phase. The proposal should be seen as an example of how to create successful synergies that can promote co-working, and co-creating on its best, as well as creating creative spaces and a social network, which can encourage diverse users to meet, interact, share and exchange several resources like materials, tools, skills, knowledge, experience, ideas and values.

INTRODUCTION / 12

USED METHOD S

Research for design Research by design Exploratory research: Literature studies Mapping and statistics to define the programme. Reference projects Empirical research: Site analysis and observations Dialogue with representatives of Uddevalla Kommun and Locals. Sketching and diagramming to start the design process

This project brings the local networks, local organisations and the locals with networking needs together to promote the concept of collaborating, sharing & caring thereby becoming a resilient urban community with socio-economic benefits.

DELIMITATIONS DEL I M I TA TI O N DIA GRA M

CO-LIVING HUB IN UDDEVALLA

r io er rior t In te Ex rants g mi Im ents Stud Adults n Childre General Public Start-Up Entrep reneurs Comm uters Y Eld oung Pr ofes erl y sion als

s ct pe cts pe As As al al ic c lit mi Po ono cts e p s Ec ial A cts Soc al Aspe nment Enviro & Permits Land Ownership Regulations an d Laws

l ra n ctu ba ite Ur Arch tail De cial mer Com g Studyin Entertainment Crea t Wo ing rkin g Le Re isure cr e a tio n

Glo Eu bal N rope Re atio an gi na o na l l

Fig 1. Delimitation chart

logy Construction & Techno Atmosphere Soc ia Flex l Susta inab i b En ility vir ility o Sp nme nta at ia lS lT ust yp ain olo ab ility gy

er nt e C ge r d nte le e ow y C UB gH Kn tivit n i Ac Work ark Co cycle P Re ral House Cultu

This diagrams shows the aspects that I will investigate more in detail in this Master’s Thesis, while some other subjects are not investigated thoroughly or left out.

INTRODUCTION / 13

has invaded home, and there’s something nice about

the fact that we’re making home invade work.” Vermeulen, D. (2016)

2. RESEARCH

THESIS DISCOURSE H O M E , W O R K & LEISURE

L EV EL S OF PR IV ACY

According to urban sociologist Ray Oldenburg, people need three types of places to live fulfilled, connected lives: Their “first place” (home) for private relief; their “second place” (work) for economic engagement; and their “third place,” a more formless arena used for reaffirming social bonds and community identities.

Even-though the building consists of these different functions, you still have that separation between living, work, and social common spaces. Therefore transition from Private-to-public spaces needs to be nuanced and carefully articulated when it comes to how close these zones are inside a single building, so it becomes a fluid transition so to say.

Because of the limited time set for this master thesis, I will have to limit the proposal and research to investigate a part of the co-living HUB, which will result in a co-working HUB. But the idea of having all three types of spaces in the same building or close to each other can still be achieved as part of a development program or expansion of the co-working HUB in the future.

L E IS UR E

n io t ra Collabo

Fig 2. Thesis discourse diagram

RESEARCH / 16

TING REA -C O

U S TA I N A B I L I T

This third place can be a hairdresser, cafeteria, community center, or even a public square. The need for these three separate spheres defines how human environments are designed at a base level, but increasing urbanism and mobility is combining these different spaces into one. The result is a new hybrid building type that consists of spaces for living, working, and entertaining/socializing. These type of building can result in a co-living HUB.

Mortice, Z. (2016)

The potential living areas and additional common spaces can be added any time in order to enhance a vivid multicultural HUB belonging to the local community. Yet the idea behind co-living will be explained since it has a strong relationship with the final proposal and topic of this master’s thesis.

SUSTAINABILITY DISCOURSE This project should fulfil sustainable development in a broad and comprehensive perspective, by acting on the following sustainable branches. However due to a limited time given for this master’s thesis, the main focus will be on the social aspects. EN VIRO N METNAL ASPECTS The building should be adapted to the local climate and be in harmony with existing build structures.

SOCIAL ASPECTS This project should promote authentic social interaction, co-working, co-creation, sharing, a sustainable lifestyle, value of sharing of all kinds, circular economy and local participation and collaboration.

E CON OM IC A S PE CT S Circular economy, cradle-to-cradle thinking, engaging not only individuals, but also local and global entrepreneurs.

THETICS S AE

A E S THE TIC A S PE CTS Design concept that demonstrates the potential of sharing and collaboration, but also attracts and encourages people to engage and interact with this new facility.

Fig 3. Sustainability discourse diagram

RESEARCH / 17

CO-WORKING BACKGROUND

The first co-working space was founded in 2005 in San Francisco. It has become a part of the current sharing economy revolution. Today co-working facilities are wide spread across the world and keeps expanding rapidly in big and small cities.

The concept of co-working appeared first in 2005, when the American computer scientist Brad Neuberg shared the opening of a new kind of space:

Nowadays younger generations prefer to work in places where they can find a community of like-minded people. But also a “fun and social” workplace with flexible work hours. Not everyone can afford to buy or rent a property in the city centre with a close connection to main social networks and customers. Increased mobility and the rise of the sharing economy has changed the way we live, work and travel but also transformed our physical environment.

The new modern communities consists of more freelancers, independent contractors and solo-entrepreneurs, and will constitute a large amount of the total workforce in the future.

RESEARCH / 18

“Do you work for yourself from home? Do you miss community and structure? Join Spiral Muse and Brad Neuberg in creating a new kind of work environment for free spirits!” Pasquier M. (2013) When ambitious people meet in the same room/space, new ideas and experiences can be exchanged, created, rejected and discussed. They can go back to their desk after a useful conversation and reconsider their work. This is the main idea behind co-working facilities. Co-working spaces are meant to promote casual encounters between employees of different fields, creating a social platform where they quickly bounce ideas back and forth. This turns the office into a collective brainstorming session helping to create quicker, more resource efficient solutions.

OPEN PLAN OFFICES BACKGROUND

AL TER NATIV ES

“Open plan offices do not work” Singh A.

"It was very difficult to get into flow states and incredibly easy to be broken from them. When I’m in a crowded space my thoughts also get crowded. I feel overwhelmed by stimuli and the inability to escape them. In contrast, when I have space (mental & physical), I’m able to challenge and understand both my thoughts and assumptions. The quality of my thinking goes up significantly." Singh A. (2018)

More than 80 percent of all offices have an open floor plan nowadays. Traditional offices spaces have moved towards open plans in order to stimulate creativity and serendipity. Open plan offices are more likely to experience uncontrolled interactions, lower level of concentration and motivation, and higher levels of stress. Ironic enough research has shown that open offices often lead to anti-social behaviours, while prior researchers have claimed the exact opposite. The problem with open plan offices is mainly the addition of noise, which reduces productive focus. To boost job performance it is better to provide a sense of privacy through physical barriers.

Economical concerns have usually led to wrong design decisions for centuries. We have been destroying everything that is good for our environment in order to make money or save on investment. It’s time to change that. There are many alternatives to traditional and open plan offices, the most interesting concepts in this case are the Hub and Spoke, and the Eudamonia Machine theories.

RESEARCH / 19

PROPINQUITY EFFECT TH EO R Y

IM PL E M E N T A T ION

The propinquity effect is a 1950’s social psychology theory that assumes that strangers who encounter one another with some frequency tend to develop friendships. This idea has been implemented by for example Steve Jobs at Pixar. It has resulted in a fairly commonplace in many contemporary workplaces. However I would like to create the proper environment for the users willing to experiment.

After observing friendships in a small two-floor apartment building, they came to the conclusion that neighbours often friends, whilst people on separate floors were not, and those on ground-floor level near staircases and mailboxes had friends on both floors.

During proposing the layout of the spaces, I will try to implement this propinquity effect. The starting point will be wellappointed meeting spaces and a diversity of lounge areas, this is to stimulate social interactions.

According to several other research that has been done in the 50’s, we can assume that the more we meet and interact with people, the more likely we are to become friends with them. When we meet others regularly we become familiar with each other more easily and find things we like about each other.

Fig 4. Propinquity effect abstract diagram

RESEARCH / 20

Friendships are usually established between neighbourhoods, at workplaces, with class mates and other places where people get together. This means that it is crucial for us to meet up regularly in order to make friends and build social trust, and to ensure this casual To ensure you meet up, arrange your life so you repeatedly ‘bump into’ them. Festinger (1954), Schachter and Back (1950) & Zajonc (1968)

In order to stimulate and enhance social interaction we have to improve the more public and common spaces , by increasing the number of casual interactions one has in this space. This phenomenon is according to Jane Jacobs research and theories on how design can affect community and creativity. Jacobs J. (1961)

HUB AND SPOKE HU B A N D S P O K E

POSSIB L E D EV EL OPMENT

Hub and Spoke spaces feature a singular entryway into common spaces and hallways that spoke out to different individual offices.

The Hub and Spoke concept can be developed in order to enhance social interaction. This will be through different connections with the central space, with different sequence of spaces linked with each other.

People have the ability to choose to collaborate or to ensconce themselves in their offices. The more public/central spaces and hallways in the Hub and Spoke approach needs to be navigated and therefore, encourages conversation and social interaction. A famous sample where this design concept is applied is the M.I.T.’s building 20.

Applying one of these connections (web, chain, or group) with the central space (Hub), in an architectural design can lead to different approaches in terms of the transition between public and private spaces, and will eventually result in different qualities of space.

Fig 5. Hub and Spoke

Fig 6. Hub and Spoke development CHA I N

RESEARCH / 21

EUDAMONIA MACHINE E UDA M O N I A M A C HIN E Eudamonia is the Greek concept for “a state in which you’re achieving your full human potential.” This theory, by David Dewane's, has been investigated and adopted in Cal Newport’s book "Deep Work". Mathison, J. (2016) Achieving true mastery is the only way to create something genuinely innovative, something truly new that moves the world forwards in that specific field. For achieving mastery you need to “force your way into its secrets”, and that requires deep, extended periods of focus. “Don’t only practice your art, but force your way into its secrets for it, and knowledge can raise men to the divine.” Mathison, J. (2016)

We literally never experience hunger unless we starve ourselves. So it should not be too expensive to experiment with our workplaces and find a method that makes the most of human potential.

In the Eudamonia Machine, there are five spaces that get progressively more focused on concentrated, focused work. This way we can establish a productive shared space as well ass deep work. Employees will produce more value and quality work while working there, and that this value/quality is significantly above the cost of maintaining the facility.

• First room when you enter • Contains examples of deep work produced in the building • Meant to inspire users of the machine, creating a ‘culture of healthy stress and peer pressure

• Contains a standard conference room with a whiteboard and some cubicles with desks, for low-intensity activity

• Creates a mood that ‘hovers between intense curiosity and argumentation.’ • A place to debate, and work through the ideas that you’ll develop deeper in the machine

CH A M BE R

• Each chamber is conceived to be six by ten feet and protected by thick soundproof walls • Allows for total focus and uninterrupted work flow ‘deep work chambers’

L IB R AR Y

• Stores a permanent record of all work produced in the machine • Contains books and other resources used in previous works

Gallery - Salon - Library - Office - Chamber Fig 7. Eudamonia machine theory diagram

RESEARCH / 22

The aim is to design a physical place that increases the chances of spontaneous meetings, supporting positive friction, being alive at different times of the day, encouraging co-creation, learning and reflecting upon sustainable development.

The concept of this Transition Hub is; "To attract a broad spectrum of actors, working with sustainable development and to generate meetings that accelerate the transition to a sustainable future."

A theoretical model named "Quadruple Helix", is used for understanding the actors; civil society, business, education and public sector. I will use this system analysis and place my master's thesis topic within the system, to understand the potentials of the networking and how to connect existing networks.

Transition HUB is a master's thesis reference that has developed a concept for a physical meeting place, of transdisciplinary character, that will accelerate the transition to a sustainable future. Findings from this reference will be an important tool in developing a design framework for the final design proposal.

C O NC E P T

TRANSITION HUB

Fig 9. The Quadruple Helix with the four actors groups.

Stehn, A. (2014)

A LEGEND Weak Links Strong Links Non-Existing Links A, B, C & D are possible actors

Fig 8. Different links defining different connections between actors, and how this can be in a bigger scale, creating a small world network.

RESEARCH / 23

TRANSITION HUB C

SelfEmployed

IL Sustainable business model

Small & Medium sized businesses

Big companies Durable product / service

Environment/ Sustainability efforts

Social entrepreneurs Companies owned by public sector

The transition hub, a physical meeting place enables contact with actors which otherwise are hard to reach. Neutral ownership of the building is crucial for this kind of place to work, as well as activities that fill a need will help to attract people to this place and not to forget that the public sector is an important enabler, however rarely participant. In order to establish or strengthen the existing networks we need Hub-persons whom know people from different contexts and has a habit/ability of connecting them.

Start-up businesses

Incubators linked to educational institute

ED UC AT IO N

Fig 10. Business sector in the Quadruple Helix

RESEARCH / 24

TRANSITION HUB SU ST A I N A B L E D EVELO PMEN T IN B USI N E S S The economic system in which the business sector operates is primarily directed at maintaining profitability. Yet, in business, there has been an increased focus on sustainability issues, primarily through higher demands from customers and consumers. The driving forces behind this change is because companies want to collaborate with other stakeholders, whom are of great potential, as well as a willingness to be active in the local community in which they operate. According to the transition hub thesis we can define the main actors, activities they can take care of, the challenges they will face and the potentials that they bring with them in the Sytem of Quadruple helix. These point can be applied later during the design phase, in order to define potential target groups and a program for the building.

ACTOR S - Small, medium and large companies - Municipally owned companies - Start-up's - Self-employed ACTIONS Taking care of Environmental Sustainability - Becoming a pioneer in Sustainability, and waking up awareness - Designing or producing durable product and/or services CHAL L ENGE - Must find a link to profitability in order to be feasible POTENTIAL S Increased demand from co-workers and customers (civil society) can drive more sustainable actions. Fig 11. The system answers the question: What actors and activities in the business community contribute to sustainable development?

RESEARCH / 25

CONCLUSION R ESEA R C H & THEO RIES Findings from the research part will be valuable input for the design proposal. Main findings that can be translated into design strategies or needs to be considered during the design process are: • Quadruple Helix • The propinquity effect • Eudamonia machine - Levels of Privacy Furthermore, a connection between the potentials of co-working as an activity and quality of working spaces will be made.

RESEARCH / 26

Some of the potentials are: • Testing new ideas • Saving money on rent • Creating a social network • Creating a business network • Growing a creative and innovative community • Getting advice and sharing knowledge and experience • Generating new sustainable and innovative business ideas. • Business, research, customers and organisations can come together and be one • Enhancing cooperation and collaboration between researchers, startup entrepreneurs and small businesses

Main qualities that needs to be addressed are: • An environment that encourages social interaction and enhances networking and collaboration opportunities for businesses by working in close proximity to people in other fields that share similar values • A new and high-quality way of working • A “fun and social” workplace with like minded people • Comfortable, homelike environments in the workspaces • Affordable working space for start-ups and small businesses • Providing necessary tools for diverse professions included in the cost of the rent • A social platform where you quickly bounce ideas back and forth • Improve social support, communication, and cooperation

CONCLUSION T H ESI S D I S C O U RSE

LIVING S TA I N A B I L I T

DE S IG N F RAM EWORK

& TING REA -C O C

T A RGET GR OUPS

n tio ra o b Colla

D ESIGN S T RA T E GIE S

S PA T IA L PROGRA M

AI D I N G TH E O R IES QUADRUPLE HELI X

BUSI Self-employed

HUB AND SPOKE

EUDAMONIA MACHINE

Sustainable

PROPINQUITY EFFECT

business model

Big companies

Durable product / service Environment/ Sustainability efforts

5 Gallery - Salon - Library - Office - Chamber

QUADRUPLE HELIX d

RESEARCH / 27

“Collaboration

is the software, co-working is the hardware.� Fabb, W. (2018)

3. LOCAL CONTEXT

Picture 1. Uddevalla City bird eye view

BRIEF BACKGROUND Oslo 140 min

Uddevalla is a mid-sized city, located in the province Bohuslän (swedish West coast) 8 miles North of Gothenburg, and is a central node in Västra Götaland. The city is connected to Göteborg and Oslo, both through the highway E6 and the railway. The city centre is located along the fjord Byfjorden and surrounded by green nature areas (Uddevalla kommun, 2018). The city is strategically located by the sea with a coastline of 27 mile. The population in the municipality has increased since 2000 and has currently 55,615 inhabitants. Renal Land: 638 sq/km Population per sq/km: 84

Strömstad 60 min

Mellerud 60 min

Lidköping 70 min

Kungshamn 50 min Lysekil 30 min

Trollhättan 30 min

Vänersborg 30 min

Ljungskile 20 min Stenungsund 30 min

Kungälv 40 min

Göteborg 50 min

City Centre

LEGEND Highway Railway

Fig 12. Commuting distance from Uddevalla to cities within Västra Götaland.

Sweden and Västra Götaland.

LOCAL CONTEXT / 31

UDDEVALLA T H E C I TY Uddevalla, was founded in 1498 and is now as a hub for regional trade and travel as well as an international tourist destination. The municipality today has more than 55 000 inhabitants, and is a fast growing municipality, therefore they have decided to expand the city centre. The city centre of Uddevalla is struggling to survive due to a lack of activities and social networks. The municipality has now planned to expand the city centre with a wish for it to regain the urban life and again become the main social arena. (Andersson, 2016 Uddevalla Kommun). To make the expansion feasible, a resilient socio-economic growth of the city centre is required. It is also known that Sweden has become an immigrating country, which contributed in making it a multicultural country. Refugees from active war zones continue to immigrate to Sweden. This leads to an increased need for social integration and inclusion. Which will be the main issue addressed in this Master’s Thesis.

Picture 2. City centre

LOCAL CONTEXT / 32

Picture 3. Strand promenade

SITE CONTEXT Byfjord

Uddevalla is embedded by hills and is known for its great green nature. Their are a some very valuable green areas from which Skansberget is close to the city centre, but yet disconnected from the city network. A beautiful green walk along the water, called strand promenade, connects the city centre with the green areas. Uddevalla has more than 300 local organizations of different kind. There are also lots of small theatre associations whom unfortunately has no place to perform. There is also need for an art gallery.

LĂśvĂĽsberget

Skansberget

Picture 4. Uddevalla

Picture 5. Areal view of the site.

LOCAL CONTEXT / 33

THE SITE FA C T S Width: 85 m Depth: 67 m Area: 5695 Current use: Bus station & Parking lot with space for 25 cars. KAMPENHOF The site is currently surrounded by parking lots on two sides with walking paths behind them. The site will be an empty space in the dense city centre and has a very nice view towards the Byfjord. Building a central working & meeting place here will benefit the area in many ways as well as enclosing the hole in the city. The aim is that this project will perform as a pioneer and show that belonging to a social community, rather than to live alone, is necessary for us to be more resilient and behave more sustainable. Eventually, this project should be adapted to, and integrated in the local climate and context.

Fig 13. The site

LOCAL CONTEXT / 34

SITE SURROUNDING The area is in strong need of a revitalizing strategy. In fact, commercial activities and tourism create a vacuum of everyday life and a progressive exclusion of community interests. Therefore there is need for a coherent architectural strategy for the city centre, to be able to mature a more sustainable and integrated development.

Second hand shop

9 Kulturskolan

6 Folketshus

10 Gymnasieskola Östrabo

7 Sankt Mikaelsgården

11 Kunsgatan

8 Agneberg Skolan

12 Kampenhof

The city centre consist mainly of cultural activities, shops, lots of cafetaria’s, restaurants and hair dressers. These are clustered around the main street (Kungsgatan).

Wa ter View

Fig 14. Existing meeting places.

LOCAL CONTEXT / 35

ACCESSIBILITY

LEGEND Car Road Pedestrian Main Road Kampenhof Bus stop Byfjorden

Fig 15. Movement map. Accessibility to/from Kampenhof.

LOCAL CONTEXT / 36

The site is easy accessibly by car, public transport and even by walk. This will allow for a more flexible program for the new facility (Co-Living HUB).

CLIMATE STUDY

Fig 17. Sun Penetration

SU N & W I N D The buildings surrounding the site are too far to have any impact on the sunlight penetrating the building that will be built. This is an optimal location for the project in terms of daylight penetration, yet we have to consider the prevailing wind coming from South-West during the design phase. 1 ST O F JA N U A RY (Shadows from 12.00)

1ST OF APR IL (Shadows from 12.00)

Fig 18. Prevailing Wind

1 ST O F JU L Y (Shadows from 12.00)

1ST OF OCTOB ER (Shadows from 12.00)

Fig 16. Sunstudy SSW

LOCAL CONTEXT / 37 SSE S

INTERVIEW & SURVEY CONCLUSIONS “ Public transport becomes more expensive year after year, therefore I prefer the car. Activities for children and youth should be affordable, to hang out daily.” 40 Year old man

“ Lots of empty spaces, because the municipality has neglected the city centre, and has concentrated on Torp, because there is more profit there. ” 65 year old man

“ Lack of social interaction, we need a place that connects the different backgrounds, especially since Uddevalla has become multi cultural. ” 60 year old woman

D IV ER SE NATUR E Uddevalla is known for its great nature and diverse landscape, which creates a calm environment for its inhabitants. Residents value this the most. This is the main reason for a large number of tourists visiting Uddevalla each summer to enjoy the west coast, forest and green areas. TR AD E CENTR E Uddevalla has become a trade centre for many small businesses that are increasing each year. Some of these small businesses have started to work at the same place to save on money(rent costs), yet they have not started collaborating. L OCAL OR GANIZATIONS Another interesting fact is that Uddevalla has more than 300 local organizations, which means active citizens who can help with creating an united community where diverse people, activities, and values are weaved together and supports each other. L ACK OF PER FOR MANCE AND EXHIB ITION SPACE There are many small theatre associations, but no place for them to perform. There is also need for an art gallery.

LOCAL CONTEXT / 38

“ We have only a cinema, no other place to hang out for youth and especially adults and elderly people, during their free time. ” 25 year old man

“ Lack of bike lanes. They are not separated from the car road. We have a bad swimming pool, we go to Vänersborg to swim. ” 31 Year old man

“ We treasure our harbour and great nature, it’s also very nice to see a large number of tourists each summer.” 38 Year old woman

INTERVIEW & SURVEY CONCLUSIONS “ We need more frequent flea markets, game space for children so they can socialize, and a place for elderly and unemployed people to socialize. A green corridor where we can have a walk and enjoy closeness to nature. A collective greenhouse, growing food locally and sell it. ” 25 year old man

“ After 14:00 there is no one in the city centre, except elderly people, who also do not have a place to go. There should be some activities to pimp up the city centre, like a magician or facial paint events for children etc. ” 40 Year old man

L ACK OF SOCIAL INTER ACTION From the interviews it has become clear that there is an interest in sharing living and working spaces with local residents. People who wants to live in some type of co-housing situation tend to do this because of social reasons. There is a big interest in socializing and meeting new people.

L ACK OF D IV ER SITY Many people mention that they have no options to choose from, there are lots of the same kind activities, which are mainly hairdressers, pizzerias and cafeterias. The restaurants are clustered around the main street(Kungsgatan), and does not stretch out to meet the water(Byfjord).

OUT CR OWD ED CITY CENTR E The main noticeable problem with the city centre is the fact that it is out crowded and drained from commerce and urban life. There are no activities that attract people and if someone want to do shopping they prefer to go to Torp (external shopping mall, 7 km outside the city centre).

“ It was very crowded in the city till 2010, nowadays there are only pizzerias and hairdressers in the city centre. ” 52 Year old woman

“ We want the shops to be open till 21:00 and have the opportunity to grow and cook food together in the city centre. ” 60 year old man

“ Food is not everything, we need more than only restaurants and cafeterias. ” 31 year old man

LOCAL CONTEXT / 39

MUNICIPAL FACTS & STATISTICS INC R E A S E D P O PULA T ION

HOUSING & JOB OPPOR TUNITIES

Uddevalla is a growing city. The population has increased during the 2000’s and is expected to continue growing. In 2016 increase was 985 inhabitants, which is the largest population increase ever. The increase consisted of positive migration and a positive net birth rate. (Uddevalla kommun, 2018)

Statistics of people immigrating to Uddevalla today shows that Uddevalla is appealing to young families and startup entrepreneurs, not necessarily with a connection to the city from before (Länström, 2010). The commuting distance makes Uddevalla attractive for people moving from Gothenburg, looking for cheaper housing or a more calm environment, as well as for people coming from Ljunskile, Munkedal, Orust and other surrounding small cities and villages to work in Uddevalla.

Fig 19. Population growth 2000-2016 Number of Inhabitants 55500 55000 54500 54000 53500

Fig 21. The five most valued reasons why new residents choose Uddevalla (Länström, 2010):

Beautiful nature Good Healthcare

Private car

Outdoor life

Fig 22. Who chooses to move to Uddevalla today? (Länström, 2010)

Fig 20. Immigration & emigration

52500 52000

51500 51000

have not lived in Uddevalla before

50500 50000

61% are moving from Västra Götaland

45% are in the age between 18-29

Within Västra Götaland

49000 48500 2011

Within rest of the world Immigration

Immigration

2003 2004 2005 2006 2007

Within rest of Sweden

Fig 23. Why do they choose to move to Uddevalla?

Housing prices in Uddevalla compared to Göteborg (Svensk mäklarstatistik, 2017):

Göteborg city centre 58 232 kr/kvm 1200

Uddevalla 19 360 kr/kvm LOCAL CONTEXT / 40

SWOT ANALYSIS Weaknesses Threats

Lack of meeting places, public facilities and public space Lack of apartments and affordable housing City centre is drained from commerce and urban life Centralization to Torp Aging population Unsustainable transportation / Car dependency Inadequate communication/collaboration between the municipality and the inhabitants Lack of higher education possibilities Few jobs for highly educated people

Individualization Cultural and generational segregation/gaps Aging population Rising sea level and flooding Urbanization Automatization (Less demand for blue-collar jobs) Tourism

SWOT Migrants and cultural diversity Eco tourism Circular economy in local networks Increased environmental awareness Digitalization and connectivity

Opportunities

Closeness to a diverse landscape and rich biodiversity (in terms of both leisure and resource qualities) A large local engagement and many local associations in active local networks (more than 300) Many local small businesses A municipality engaged in sustainability Easy to commute outside Uddevalla for work or study Suitable land and sea for local food and energy production (An asset for both local economy and self sufficiency) Attractive school facilities

Strengths Fig 24. SWOT Analysis

LOCAL CONTEXT / 41

LOCAL OBJECTIVES AND STRATEGIES L O C A L O B JE C TIVES

Social Strategies

1. Uddevalla is an interesting and active place to live in for people in all different stages in life. 2. Local residents are sharing resources which stimulates cooperative collaborations and increases social interaction between diverse target groups. 3. Spatial qualities and the social dimensions are considered in the design of collective/common spaces in order to demonstrate, educate, and inspire people to co-live, co-work and co-create.

Promote an open and flexible social network for new collaborations to happen between different entrepreneurs, industries, researchers, inventors, start-up businesses, unemployed local inhabitants, educational organizations and even people living in the building.

S T R A TE G I E S

Create a venue for social interaction through cooperative collaborations, community events and room for local organizations.

The strategies are responding to the objectives by taking advantage of the previously identified strengths and opportunities as well as aiming to mitigate weaknesses and threats.

LOCAL CONTEXT / 42

Demonstrate an interesting and active place to live in for people in all different stages in life.

Economical Strategies Inspire new entrepreneurs to start-up and manage different kinds of resource efficient businesses, which strengthens the local economy. Provide a creative, productive and satisfying atmosphere combined with a social network for collaboration to help generate new sustainable and innovative business ideas.

Provide creative spaces that can encourage diverse users to meet, interact, share and exchange several resources like space, materials, tools, skills, knowledge, experience, ideas and values.

Create an affordable living space.

Provide an extroverted and inclusive typology that consists of co-housing and public facilities for recovering, learning, earning and socializing.

Environmental Strategies

Create togetherness where diverse people, activities, and values are weaved together and supports each other, to create a sense of belonging to the place as well as a strong community feeling.

Fig 25. Urban Planning Strategies for Uddevalla

Promote a sustainable lifestyle and wake up awareness around environmental and local issues, so that all actors contribute to a sustainable local economy.

CONCLUSION C O NC L U S I O N The research and analysis leaded to the final SWOT, objectives and strategies which will result in a concept and program for the design proposal. They are based on the interviews and a survey made with the Representatives of Uddevalla Kommun (the municipality), the locals (residents) and information found on the local newspaper, brochures, information from the info boards around the Area and Internet.

Picture 6. Uddevalla city

LOCAL CONTEXT / 43

“Work

spaces that provide the freedom of working

for yourself with the community and creativity of a traditional job.� Neuberg, B. (2005)

4. CONCEPT & PROGRAM

THE CONCEPT W H A T? The concept of a physical meeting place which focuses on start-up businesses, the public sector and activities regarding sustainable development, in particular sharing space and resources has resulted in a Co-Working HUB. Therefore, this building will facilitate co-working, and co-creating spaces for the potential stakeholders and actors whom work there.

Gentrification

Individualization & Anonymity

Segregation

HOW? The concept of the Co-Working HUB is based on the investigation around co-working, and co-creating facilities. Knowledge from how others have done before in similar projects have contributed to the development of the concept. The aim is to establish a transition from the current situation to a desired situation.

Define Potentials & Obstacles

Find a Place

Start a Community For modern lifestyles

Exchange of knowledge

Showcasing & Branding

Creative and innovative community

D ESI R ED SI T U A T I ON : M U LT I C U LT U R A L & V I V I D C OM M U N I T Y V

Accessibl e bl e isi ableBorder s rme Pe

LOC A L N EEDS & A SSET S

Open & Invit ing ble / Adaptabl i x e Fle

CONCEPT & PROGRAM / 46

Commuters/Freelancers, Start-up entrepreneurs, locals

C U R R EN T S I TUA TI O N : GA T E D C OM M U N I T I E S

Fig 26. Design Concept

As the Project has the strategy of meeting community needs by focusing on available resources as assets, this can also be an example to other neighbouring municipalities.

EXC HA N GE, SHA R E, C OLLA B OR A T E, C OOP ER A T E, C A R E

RE C O V E RI N G , L E A RN I N G , E A RN I N G , SOCIALIZING

DESIGN APPROACH For achieving the concept of the CoWorking HUB it will be necessary to define the target groups, a location, design strategies, and a spatial program.

TAR GET GR OUPS

Target groups have been decided on earlier according to research and local context part.

L OCATION 2 The placement of the building is decided according to a number of criteria. These criteria define the most suitable location for this building and optimal solutions for several design problems related to the location that should be considered during the design phase.

DE S I GN FRAME WO RK

T A RG E T G R O UPS

LO C A T IO N

D ESIGN STR ATEGIES

D E S IGN S T RA T E GIE S

The design strategies will help with defining physical aspects of the building in order to integrate the building within the built environment and to reach the objectives and aim of the project.

The spatial program describes the spaces that should be included in the building in order to support the idea of the Co-working HUB. These are defined according to previous exploratory and empirical research during this Thesis. The aim is to meet the needs of the community and try to work from a bottom-up design approach.

SPATIAL PR OGRA M

Fig 27. Design framework

CONCEPT & PROGRAM / 47

TARGET GROUPS

Y O UN G P R O FE S SION A LS The programme offers a meaningful, creative and innovative atmosphere, in order to start up resource effective businesses. Social network, meeting point , and a test ground for new resource efficient strategies, are additional advantages.

COM M U T E RS Residents of Uddevalla are willing to commute for work or study, to get the desired living conditions. Now they can work or study in the Co-Working HUB in order to save on time and money. The desired social environment and calm atmosphere are perfect to get rid of the isolation when working from home.

S T AR T-U P E N TR E PREN EURS Uddevalla is recently known as a trade centre for the many small businesses and start-up entrepreneurs. Unfortunately they can not afford to work close to the community and customers. This will be a good opportunity expand their social network and collaborate with each other in order to strengthen existing local networks.

DESIGN FRAMEWORK

CONCEPT & PROGRAM / 48

DESIGN STRATEGIES

SPATIAL PROGRAM

LOCATION CRITERIA A number of criteria has been used in order to define the most suitable place for the Co-Working HUB and to investigate how the building will impact its surrounding and vice versa. These criteria has been extracted from previous knowledge throughout the master programme and influenced by the master's thesis Transition HUB. The final decision of the site is also partly influenced by thoughts of locals and the municipality.

INTERSECTION (OF EVERY DAY LIFE)

VISIBILITY (IN THE CITY)

SUPPORT LOCAL ACTORS

HIGH ACCESSIBILITY

Fig 28. Location criteria

CONCEPT & PROGRAM / 49

1 INT ERS E C TI O N ( O F EVERY DA Y LIF E) • Places where most people circulate/ move around. • Central location, easy to engage with.

Fig 29. Intersection of every day life

2 S UP P O R T L O C A L A C T ORS • Offer a neutral place ownership • Should invite diverse potential target groups • Place should feel and give the impression that it is yours and you belong there

Fig 30. Support local actors

CONCEPT & PROGRAM / 50

3 V I SI BI L I TY ( I N T HE CIT Y) • Easy to find by having clear entrances. • Visible activities from the outside and spilled out into the urban space. Fig 31. Visibility in the city

4 HI G H A C C E S S I B ILIT Y • Easy to reach by public transportation. • Activities go on during different times of the day and week.

Fig 32. High accessibility

CONCEPT & PROGRAM / 51

DESIGN STRATEGIES PER M E A B L E B O RDERS Open and inviting Have clear entrances Intensify the flow of people Invite public life/outdoor environment Activities can spill outside

SPATIAL D IV ER SITY Provide private, common and public spaces Relax, read, play

F L E X IBL E & A D A PT A BL E S PA CE Open plan, diverse use of space Mobility.

Fig 33. Permeable borders

Fig 34. Spatial diversity

Fig 35. Flexible & adaptable space

IND O O R / O U TD OO R T RA N SIT ION Be transparent Inhabitable windows and/or edge Showcase - Make people curious & Display sustainable lifestyles

OR IENTATION & V IEW Optimize incoming sunlight Optimize view to the water

Fig 36. Indoor/outdoor transition

CONCEPT & PROGRAM / 52

Fig 37. Orientation & view

SPATIAL PROGRAM WHAT DO E S TH IS PROG RA M OF F ER ? • Meaningful, creative and innovative atmosphere. • Social network, meeting point. • Test ground for new resource efficient strategies before used in bigger scale. • Shared spaces • Strengthens the existing local actors and networks.

HOW TO ACHIEV E THESE ASPECTS ? • Demonstrate the benefits of re-design, repair, reuse and recycling. • Attract diverse target groups with diverse work opportunities and activities. • Promote innovative sharing models and Eco-friendly lifestyles. • Support/inspire entrepreneurs/Eco-designers to start up resource effective businesses. • Platform to interact/exchange skills, knowledge, tools, materials, perspectives, values, and ideas. • Inspire passive visitors to be active participants. • Support collaborations + co-existence (alone is not strong)

THE PROGRAMME COLLABORATION

ACTIVITIES THE FACILITY Kampenhof

PUBLIC FACILITIES

NEW SUSTAINABLE AND INNOVATIVE BUSINESS IDEAS. CREATIVE SPACES

EXCHANGE RESOURCES

+ Replacing for a Co-Working HUB

SOCIAL NETWORK EXTROVERTED

Resource efficient businesses

$ CIRCULAR ECONOMY

Fig 38. Project overview

CO-CREATING

CONCEPT & PROGRAM / 53

SPATIAL PROGRAM FUN C TI O N S A N D T H E SPA CES A C C O R DI N G TO T Y POLOG Y The spatial plan consists of four room typologies that together make up the components of the co-working Hub.

MA I N A C TI V I TI E S M UL T I P UR P O S E HAL L ( M P H)

MU S IC, DANC E & O TH E RS

C O - W O R K I NG

CO -CRE ATING WO RKS H O P

E C O L O G I C AL S T O R E , C AF E & R E S T A UR A N T

OPEN LE CTU RE

G R E E N HO U S E S / R O O F G AR DEN

RE CYCLING / U P CYCLING

R E L A XAT I O N

JO Y & F U N

Fig 39. Main activities in the building

CONCEPT & PROGRAM / 54

R OOM TYPOL OGIES FOR MING THE CO- W ORKIN G H U B GAL L ER Y

• Creates a mood that ‘hovers between intense curiosity and argumentation.’ • A place to debate, and work through the ideas that you’ll develop deeper in the machine • Stores a permanent record of all work produced in the machine • Contains books and other resources used in previous works

Fig 40. Gallery

Fig 41. Salon

• Contains a standard conference room and shared working desks with a whiteboard and some cubicles with desks, for low-intensity activity

Fig 42. Office

Fig 43. Chamber

SPATIAL PROGRAM F UN C TI O N S A N D T HE SPA CES AC C O R D I N G TO PRIVA CY LEVEL GALLERY

• • • • • • •

• Conference room / meeting rooms • Co-working desks with flex option • Workshop spaces -- atelier, soft lab, machinery (3D printer/plotter/wood)

Lobby / Foyer Interactive board Exhibition corner Ecological store Restaurant with kitchen Event Space (MPH) First aid

• Common space/living room (lounge and long community tables) • Lecture room /Film screening • Shared kitchen • Assembly room • Roof terrace

• Private rooms (study or work) / small offices • Private quite corners (open individual work places)

SA L ON ( RE S T , E A T IN G, L IV IN G)

GA L L ER Y ( L E IS U RE / CU L T U RE )

1 Gallery - Salon - Office - Chamber

OF F I C E & C HA MB E R ( W ORK / S T U DY )

4 E X CH A N GE OF ID E A S

Fig 44. Eudamonia machine development -- Transition levels of common

CONCEPT & PROGRAM / 55

SPATIAL PROGRAM TH E GA LLERY

CHAR ACTER (PUB L IC)

Proposed Functions and Activities This space will consist of a lobby with and interactive board and exhibition corner as well as diverse resting. An ecological store and restaurant with a kitchen. Event Space (MPH) for users and local organizations and associations. First aid is also provided for emergencies. Description The gallery is the first space you enter. An open space that clears the boundary between the outside and inside, thus forming the entrance to the co-working Hub. This space will be an important place to establish contact between members and visitors and will therefore have multiple and diverse sitting areas that encourage spontaneous conversations. Here we have examples of work produced in the building. It’s meant to inspire users, and create a culture of healthy stress and peer pressure.

Picture 11 Picture 7

Additionally to the exhibition corner we have a Multi Purpose Hall for different types of performances and events, that needs a big space and high ceiling, which is lacking in the city (art gallery, theatre). CONCEPT & PROGRAM / 56

SPATIAL PROGRAM TH E SA LO N

CHAR ACTER (COMMON) Picture 18

Proposed Functions and Activities This will be mainly common spaces with different types of sitting areas, lecture room, Film screening room, shared kitchen, assembly room and the roof terrace which will provide an additional sense of common space focused on greenery and urban farming. Description The salon is a space that creates a mood that ‘hovers between intense curiosity and argumentation.’ Here you will have the ability to debate, and work through the ideas that you will develop deeper in the private work spaces. Breakfast, lunch and dinner can be shared and become an interesting daily activity that will enhance social interaction and create new social networks. This space contains a library with permanent record of all work produced in the building to form an inspirational environment with a big range of diverse resources used in previous works that will inspire the employees to develop their work. This space can be seen as a transitional space from the public 'meeting' space to the private 'work' space, and a catalyst for inspiration.

CONCEPT & PROGRAM / 57

SPATIAL PROGRAM TH E OF F ICE Proposed Functions and Activities This space will consist of meeting rooms and shared working desks/tables with a variety of working areas, creating different moods and atmospheres for lowintensity activity/work. A workshop space and atelier is also provided including machinery (3D printer/plotter/wood) for model making and other practical activities. Description The office is the place where you can perform high quality work, especially for employees who prefer to have people around while working, the ability to start spontaneous conversations with team mates (or employees from other fields) and constructive noise, enhancing the working flow. You can easily ask for help and get social support. Some shared desks have flex options and workshop spaces are provided for the more practical works or work that needs bigger space and high technology. This space will enhance creativity, especially when you see what other people are working on you get motivated to work more and better.

CHAR ACTER (PR IV ATE)

Picture 25 Picture 26

Picture 28 Picture 29

CONCEPT & PROGRAM / 58

SPATIAL PROGRAM TH E CH A MBER

Proposed Functions and Activities This space will consist of private rooms protected by thick soundproof walls for total focus and uninterrupted work flow. Description The chamber can be seen as a vital addition to the shared offices, a place where you can do serious, uninterrupted work with total focus, a space in which you get work done. The chamber and the office are both meant for producing high quality work and increased productivity and efficiency in work. The only difference is that the office is for people who prefer a noisy surrounding and team work, while the chamber is for people who prefer to have their own private space for total focus and uninterrupted work. This space can be a private room or a quite corner within an open space.

Picture 31 Picture 35

Picture 36 Picture 32

CONCEPT & PROGRAM / 59

“In

this space we are passionate, we trust and treat

others with honesty and respect, we work hard and stand for creativity and innovation, we believe in community, we are dedicated and love what we do, we are inspired by each other, we are not afraid to be great.

�

Leyden, K. (2018)

5. THE PROPOSAL

CONCEPT TH E C O N C E P T

CON CE PT S

The concept is responding to the design strategies. The main strategies are embodied in the following concepts, in order to achieve the main objectives and aims of this Master's Thesis.

1. Permeable Borders

1. Connecting

E X T ROVE RT

2. Spatial Diversity

2. Gradual Privacy Transition

INT ROVE RT

3. Flexible & Adaptable Space

C H A M B E R

O F F I C E

G A L L E R Y

3. Flexibility T E R R AC E / BA LCONY OF F IC E OR C HA M BE R / WOR KING S PAC E G A LLE RY S PAC E SA LON / COMMON S PAC E / COR R IDOR F LEXIBLE WA LL COURT YA R D F IXED S PAC E

VE RT ICA L C IR C ULAT ION

THE PROPOSAL / 62

1. CONNECTING Spaces, Functions and People 1

PERMEABLE BORDERS

Inspired by student project named Hospice; "A home providing care for the sick or terminally ill" within the course studio: Future visions for healthcare, housing and work 1: Residential healthcare - housing for seniors, autumn 2017, by the students Cornelia Franzen and Ca jsa Tingdal.

Introvert Courtyard The corners creates interesting quality spaces in between that can embody different activities as well as being used for entry points.

The courtyard is introverted, embracing common activities and the curtain walls creates visual connections/indirect interaction

X Extrovert Gallery The balconies will add the benefit of extra space that can be private and at the same time a transition from inside to outside.

Y CONNECTING SPACES, FUNCTIONS AND PEOPLE Courtyard becomes a natural meeting space with an overview over the different spaces, Spontanous meetings outside around outdoor activities also during weekends and evenings, Passing by people can see activities happening in the courtyard and become active participants, activities spill out to the city centre

I N F I NI T E SI GHT L I NE S

I NTROVE RT

By opening up the courtyard activities can spill out, and passers by can become active participants

Gallery for additional quality space with nice view and connecting with surrounding

4 E XT ROVE RT Creating a dialogue with the surrounding built environment, Giving directions, Showcasing activities happening inside the building, Inviting people to experience the internal athmosphere

3 F AC I NG S O U TH

Direct interaction Indirect Interaction E X TROVE RT

Internally or externally

Extroverted conection Introverted connection

P LAYING WITH VO LU M E S / PR I VAC Y TR ANS I TI O N Gradually/spirally adding floors, gaining sunlight into the courtyard and terraces, facing building towards south

THE PROPOSAL / 63

SPATIAL DIVERSITY

2. GRADUAL PRIVACY TRANSITION

Diverse L ayers of Exchanging Knowledge 4

RE L A XA TION

PRIVATE WORK & STUDY

C O-W ORKIN G

GRE E N HOUS E / ROOF GA RDE N

O F F I C E COMMON REST, LIVING, EATING, LIBRARY, SHOWCASING

OP E N L E C TURE

M US IC , DA N C E & OTHE RS

J OY & F UN

PUBLIC C O-W ORKIN G

C O-C RE A TIN G W ORKS HOP

M UL TI P URP OS E HA L L (M P H) E C OL OGIC A L S TORE , C A F E & RE S TA URA N T

THE PROPOSAL / 64

PUBLIC LEISURE, CULTURE, ENTERTAINMENT

3. FLEXIBILITY Flexible Barriers And Overlapping Of Spaces 3

FLEXIBLE & ADAPTABLE SPACE

TYPICAL PLAN SAMPLE

SOME SAMPLES OF UNITS USED IN THE PLANS

PLAN LAYOUT OPTIONS

SHOWING ALL THE ATTRIBUTES/ELEMENTS IN ONE PLAN

FROM CLOSED - TO OPEN PLAN

C LOSE D ROOM S 8.7 m

T E R R AC E / BA LCONY

O F F I C E O R C HA MB E R / WO RKING S PAC E

G A L L E RY S PAC E SA LON / COMMON S PAC E / CO RRIDO R F L E XI B L E WA L L COURT YA R D

TY P I CA L P L A N USI NG ON LY UNI T A

8.4 m 6.6 m

TY P I CA L P L A N USI NG ON LY UNI T B

5.6 m 5.9 m

F L E XI B L E WA L L

F I XE D S PAC E

VE RT I CA L C I R C UL AT ION

Flexibility is embedded throughout the space. The interiors accommodate events of all sizes, from small meeting rooms to large entrepreneurship conference. Offices/Closed Rooms are made with glass walls to create a sense of openness. The internal wall, which is the main architectural element defines how the space will be used, through for example placing the wall or going without.

ROOM S F LEXIB L E WAL L

The b a l co n i e s i n type /U n i t A, a d d s m ore va l u e to th e b uil d i n g , a s we ad d a n ew t y pe of sp ace wi th s pe c i fi c q ua l i t i e s w h i c h co ntr i b u te s to a sm o oth i nd o or/ outd o or tran s i t i o n

8.4 m 7.0 m

SK 5.6 m 5.6 m 5.9 m

Unit A is 44 m2 and unit B is 58 m2, this give the building space to be transformed in any other function beside office spaces, for example dwelling units. Type B is mainly used for the fixed spaces which consist mainly of vertical circulation elements as staircases, but also the Multi Purpose Hall is fixed, since the size needs to be big compared to all the other spaces, but also because of construction related issues. The stairwells are meant to be a focal point in the building for enhancing social interaction between the users, it needs to be big and efficient and is therefore more spacious.

UNIT A O PEN S PAC E F I XED S PACE F F K SK

F F K SK SK

THE PROPOSAL / 65

recreational park

L EI SU R E

L E I S UR E

Potential Residential CO-L IVIN G

Centrally located entrance

TING REA -C O C

HI GH ACCESSI BI LI TY Access to public transportation

AC TIV ITIE S SPI

LL OU T Courtyard ope ns up towards the main street of Kun gsgatan

KU N G SG A TA

0 Scale 1:1000

THE PROPOSAL / 66

GROUND FLOOR PLAN

17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

PUBL I C STA I R CAS E

20 DRAWI NG ROOM

34 STO RAGE

RECEPT I ON

A RT GA L L E RY

21 WO RKSHO P

INTE RAC T I VE B OA R D

AT E L I E R

22 TOOL WALL

35 BI KE PARKI NG 36 GRE E N HOUSE

LOUNGE / MA IN L I VING ROOM

MPH ( MULT I PUR POS E HA L L )

COMMON A R E A /ROOM

MAC HI NE RY: WOOD/ ME TA L /3 D

25 ST UDY ROOM 26 CHANGI NG ROOM

ADM INIST R AT I ON

WO R KSTAT I ON S / WO R K A R E A

27 P RI NT E R ARE A

S HA R E D K I TC H E N / CA FE TA R I A

31 GARBAGE & SO RT I NG

EXHIBIT ION COR NE R

K I TC H E NE T T E / BA R

32 F I RE P OLE

FILM SC R E E NING /L E C T UR E

ME E T I NG ROOM

33 HOUSE KE E P I NG

0 Scale 1:500

THE PROPOSAL / 67

1 st AND 2nd FLOOR PLAN

8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

LOUNGE / MA I N L IVI NG ROOM

18 K I TC H E NE T T E / BA R

19 ME E T I NG ROOM

31 GARBAGE & SO RT I NG 32 F I RE P OLE

FILM SC R E E NI NG /L E C T UR E PUBL IC STA IR CASE

20 DR AWI NG ROOM 23 CO -WO R K I NG O FFI C E

MUSIC ROOM / T HE ME D ROOM

24 PHONE BOOT H CA BI N S

29 T E RRACE

WORKSTAT I ON S / WOR K A R E A

25 ST UDY ROOM

SHARED K ITC HE N / CA F E TA R I A

27 PR I NT E R A R E A

THE PROPOSAL / 68

3rd and 4th FLOOR PLAN

36 GRE E N HOUSE

FILM S C R E E NING /L E C T UR E

37 BARB E Q UE 38 F I RE P I T

SHARE D K I TC HE N / CA F E TA R I A

29 T E R R AC E

K ITCH E NE T T E / BA R

MEETI NG ROOM

33 HOUS E K E E PI NG

23 CO-WOR K I NG OF F I C E

GA R BAGE & S O RT I NG

34 STO R AGE

THE PROPOSAL / 69

COURTYARD ACTIVITIES CAN SPILL OUT

GRE E N HOUS E

INHABITABLE WINDOW GALLE RY

KUNG S G ATAN

MA I N STR E E T

COURT YA R D

I N S I DE - OUTS I DE T RAN S I T I ON

S I DE ST RE E T

Ground floor open between Kungsgatan, courtyard and side street.

SECTION B-B

SA LON G A L L E RY

THE PROPOSAL / 70

C HA M B E R

DI S PLAY The most exposed corner in the southwest is very visible from Kungsgatan. It is meant to be a display window for what is going on inside the building.

HA NG I NG NE T

F IR E P OL E G E NE ROU S L IVING ROOM WE AVE S TO G E T H E R A L L PA RTS , AC TS AS A S OCIA L ROOM T HAT IS NE VE R CLOS E D W H E R E YOU CA N HAVE A CO F F E E , S OCIA L IZ E , WO R K , ACCE SS INFO R MAT ION, E TC . T HIS WIL L A DD VA LUE TO A L L INHA BITA NTS IN T H E CITY NOT E : C o m mo n

s pa c e s c o n ne c t i ng b e t w e e n

w o r k s pa c e s to e n ha n c e s o c i a l i n t e r a c t i o n , a nd at t h e s a me t i me c r e at i ng a g r a d ua l ly t r a n s i t i o n f r o m p u b l i c to p r i vat e .

P L AT FO R M S A ND INT E R FACE S A R E CONNE C T E D BY S OCIA L PAT H S IN T E R M S O F STAI RS , FI RE P OL E S , HA NG ING NE TS A ND SL I DE S

C HA M BE R OFFICE

SECTION A-A

THE PROPOSAL / 71

SECTION C-C

I NDIRECT INTE RACTION (VIS UAL LY) Roof terraces and roof garden connected to the courtyard visually

DIRECT INTE RACTION DIR E CT I NTE RAC TI ON Neighbourly greating when passing by

EXTROVE RTED FACADE

Courtyard is appropriate for common activities, it is a natural meeting place with an overview of the different spaces inside the building and intimate in between spaces.

INTROVE RTED COURTYARD EXTROVE RTED FACADE

0 Scale 1:400

THE PROPOSAL / 72

I NDI R E C T I NT E R ACTI ON (VI SUALLY) Circular corridor creating infinite sight-lines and different perspectives/ transparency by using glass partion walls and exterior curtain walls

I NDI R ECT I NTE R ACTI ON ( VI S UALLY ) From terraces to courtyard/Hide away but can overlook and have visual connection

DI R E C T I NTE R ACTI ON MAIN ROAD

DI R E C T I NT E R ACTI ON Big and open courtyard, opening up for spontaneous interaction outside

BIRD EYE VIEW

CO- L I VI NG

Common activity Growing food together G RE E N HOU S E

CAR PARK I NG

THE PROPOSAL / 73

“We can not solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.� Albert Einstein

6. CONCLUSION & REFLECTION

CONCLUSION Closing the hole in the city centre with buildings and spaces that are highly demanded from the local community, municipality and personal investigation of area. There is need for more and diverse activities in the city centre for it to regain the social life. Revitalization of the city centre is not something we can solve by a particular building or space but rather a process that takes time and should be seen as a chain of interventions in a long term perspective, where in the co-working HUB is one of the necessary interventions in my opinion. I hope this conceptual proposal will inspire people who have the authority to make a change in the city planning of Uddevalla. The co-working HUB can be a starting point to revitalize the city centre and contribute to a more resilient and sustainable future for the city. Possible positive effects of the proposal on the city centre might be that more people want to visit, live and work in Uddevalla. The co-working HUB will become an important node for the local community and is an exciting and dynamic centre which will contribute to a strong social and business network in the city. REFLECTION & CONCLUSION / 76

Possible positive effects and qualities from the proposal: • A city centre that encourages social interaction and enhances networking and collaboration opportunities for businesses by working in close proximity to people in other fields that share similar values • A new and high-quality way of working, a “fun and social” workplace with like minded people • Comfortable, homelike environments in the workspaces • Affordable working space for start-ups and small businesses • Improve social support, communication, and cooperation • Providing a meeting place as well as a place to test new ideas • Saving money on rent • Creating a strong social and business network • Growing a creative and innovative community • Getting advice and sharing knowledge and experience • Generating new sustainable and innovative business ideas • Business, research, customers and organisations can come together and be one • Enhancing cooperation and collaboration between researchers, start-up entrepreneurs and small businesses, creating synergy effects Finally, I would like to mention that since this thesis does not discuss economic aspect, construction, and organizational aspects, there is a possibility for this thesis to be further developed so it will be more convincing and realistic, especially to the municipality of Uddevalla. Yet, the concept, strategies and design proposal could inspire other cities that are struggling with the same urban challenge.

CONCLUSION G O I N G B A C K T O MA IN QUEST IO N How can we design for revitalization of a city centre that is drained out of urban life, by focussing on co-working spaces, for a resilient socio-economic growth of uddevalla City? The city centre is becoming too much introverted and social networks are becoming weak and disconnected. The big challenge is to make people settle down (live &work) in Uddevalla, to create a city centre that is full of live and activities that attracts the ma jority.

Continuation of block structure from the existing city centre and enclosing yards for a private oasis.

Proposal (Co-Working HUB)

Kungsg atan

By introducing a method that encourages people to share, collaborate and connect we might be able to change the existing situation towards a more sustainable future. The city has great potential for new start-up businesses and needs coworking offices to facilitate inhabitants with a place that encourages sharing and collaboration.

Existing Building

Lövåsberget

Proposed new structure Proposal Co-Working HUB Main Road

Credits to Master’s Thesis “Converge Uddevalla”, © Stina Gjertsen

Fig 45. Proposal in the urban context

REFLECTION & CONCLUSION / 77

Fig 46. Urban development strategies

Connect the city centre and the train station.

N EC ES S A R Y I N TERVEN T ION S Directing the streets towards one central square.

The proplems with the city centre are interconnected and needs several interventions an actions to be solved. We will have to bring people together and create a strong identity for Uddevalla in the first place, by focussing on existing qualities. Some potentials of the area are; - Green Areas, Byfjorden (Water), Cultural Activities (Cinema, Folkets Hus, the Library and Böhuslan Museum) and High Accessibility (public transport) The author thinks that this Master's Thesis might not have ended into the best design proposal for the co-working HUB and the surrounding, because of the limited time dedicated for the design phase, but it is important to see the proposal as a first trial and go back to the concept and strategies and redesign the proposal accordingly. The process should be seen as a loop, in which we go from the strategies and concept to a design proposal and then go back to the main ideas and be critical on the proposal and see if this proposal responds to the strategies defined earlier. Therefore the author sees a potential for further development of the proposal and a proposal for the urban layout, to see the whole picture. REFLECTION & CONCLUSION / 78

Existing Meeting plaza

Connecting the Green Areas Existing Building Proposed new structure Proposal Co-Working HUB Credits to Master’s Thesis “Converge Uddevalla”, © Stina Gjertsen

These qualities needs to be considered as a potential base for development and needs to be strengthens in one way or another. In order to do this we should consider:

Making a consolidated master plan development for the city centre and provide a central point for people to meet. Make people come together.

To bring in the green and blue environment into the city centre and try to make it visible by increasing accessibility to the surrounding nature.

Increasing the access to public transportation and provide facilities that makes it convenient to be a commuter in the city centre.

NEXT STEP C O NS I L O D A TE D C IT Y , ROBUST C IT Y C ENT R E

Fig 47. Next Step

The question is how to accelerate the transition to a consolidated city centre which is open for collaboration and sharing of all kinds and at the same time extroverted and open for the outside world, eventhough change in such a big scale is a slow longterm proccess. Nevertheless the Co-Working HUB might Courtyard with private oasis be a good starting point in showing the essential of sharing and collaborating, hopefully this ideas will inspire the close surrounding environment and boost a new trendof exchanging knowledge and how to regulate the transition from public to private on an urban scale too. The buildings, can be introverted as well as extroverted and

Chamber (Courtyard) Office (Buildings) Salon (Side Streets) Gallery (Main Streets)

Secondary and tertiary streets will preserve some of the privacy needed and at the same time connect with the main streets and roads to create a gradual transition from public to private. Main Roads/Streets

act as an edge between the private spaces(courtyards) and the common spaces(secondary streets)

- Community - Collaborate - Connect - Create - Share

REFLECTION & CONCLUSION / 79

“Co-working spaces can play a massive role in shifting our relationship with work to be one that is more intentional, collaborative, holistic, Bacigalupo, T. (2018)

and positive.�

7. REFERENCES

BOOKS 1. Keyson, David V; Guerra-Santin, Olivia; Lockton, Dan Lockton (2017) Living Labs: Design and Assessment of Sustainable Living © Springer International Publishing, Switzerland. 408 pp. Retrieved from: https://goo.gl/1G1qJ7 2. Jacobs J. (1961) The Death and Life of Great American Cities. New York. 48 pp. Retrieved from: https://www.buurtwijs.nl/sites/default/ files/buurtwijs/bestanden/jane_jacobs_the_death_and_life_of_great_american.pdf M A STE R ’ S TH E S IS (st u d en t a rb et en .chalm er s .s e) C H A L M ER S U N I VER SI T Y OF T EC H N OL OGY, 1. Larsson, H. 2016 RETURUM. Retrieved from: https://goo.gl/rm5ae4 2. Nilsson, M. 2017 AN ALTERNATIVE TO THE SMALL DWELLING. Retrieved from: https://goo.gl/5RKhd2 3. Hagy, S. & Balaÿ, P. 2014 Adaptable Design for the HSB Living Lab. Retrieved from: https://goo.gl/Y3cuZs 4. Davidsson, F. 2017 A-part-ment. Retrieved from: https://goo.gl/ZmbRyg 5. Sredanovic, E. 2016 IN SYNERGY. Retrieved from: https://goo.gl/Lfma jp 6. Stehn, A. 2014 Transition hub: En mötesplats för omställning till ett hållbart samhälle.

DE PA R TME N T OF A R CHITE CTUR E A N D CIVIL E N GIN E E R IN G

A RT I C L E S 1. Perry, Michelle. The Estates Gazette; Sutton (2016) Co-living in harmony. Retrieved from: https://goo.gl/b52513 2. Vestbro, D (2010) From Central kitchen to community co-operation - Development of Collective Housing in Sweden, (Royal Institute of Technology, Department of Infrastructure). Retrieved from: https://goo.gl/HNsDT3 3. The local (2011) Cohousing: it’s not just for hippies anymore, Stockholm. Retrieved from: https://www. thelocal.se/20110223/32214 4. The Community Social Planning Council of Greater Victoria (2013, June 3). Strengthening Neighbourhood Resilience - Opportunities for Communities & Local Government. Retrieved from https://goo.gl/TBVeht 5. Mortice, Z. (2016) “Live, Work, Play: WeLive’s Live-Work Spaces Reveal a ‘Third Place.’” Autodesk’s Redshift publication Retrieved From: https://www.autodesk.com/redshift/live-work-spaces/ 6. Pasquier M. (2013) Innovation Is Everywhere. Singapore Retrieved from: https://www.innovationiseverywhere.com/about-us/ REFERENCES / 82

7. Singh A. (2018) ArchDaily. Retrieved from: https://www.archdaily.com/884192/why-open-plan-offices-dont-work-and-somealternatives-that-do 8. Festinger (1954), Schachter and Back (1950) & Za jonc (1968) How we change what others think, feel, believe and do. Retrieved from: http://changingminds.org/explanations/theories/proprinquity_effect.htm 9. Mathison, J. (2016) I Can’t Stop Dreaming of Eudaimonia: Imagine a co-working space built for maximum flow, original invention, and empowering culture. Retrieved from: https://goo.gl/LehZ2K R EF ER E N C E P R OJ ECT S All photo's and pictures related to reference projects are retrieved from www.archdaily.com and otherwise the images are retrieved from Pinterest. WEB SI TE S 1. Statistics Sweden SCB (2015) This is how Sweden lives, Stockholm. https://goo.gl/uwv9xz Accessed September 12, 2017. 2. The Guardian, 2017 https://www.theguardian.com/international Accessed Januari 30, 2018. 3. Urban Dictionary, 2018 https://goo.gl/pfRuAy Accessed Januari 31, 2018. 4. The Collective, UK, 2017 https://goo.gl/8VAD4r Accessed Januari 31, 2018. 5. Areal view photos, 2018. https://www.bing.com/maps?q=udde&FORM=BYLH1 Accessed Februari 6, 2018. 6. Wind rose, 2018. https://goo.gl/Q1cYtP Accessed Februari 6, 2018. I C O N S , I M A G E S , MA PS https://www.flickr.com https://www.pinterest.se https://www.flaticon.com https://thenounproject.com https://www.iconfinder.com https://wego.here.com https://www.google.se/maps REFERENCES / 83

DI A L O G U E S , M E ET IN G S & SIT E VISITS 19-01-2018 Visiting Uddevalla city centre 26-01-2018 Dialogue with Martin Hellström, Head of planning department 01-02-2018 Meeting kultur och fritid (Culture & Leisure) Department Uddevalla municipality 21-02-2018 Visiting Bohuslän Museum 27-02-2018 Visiting Folketshus Uddevalla R EF ER E N C E P R OJ EC T S Hospice; "A home providing care for the sick or terminally ill" within the course studio: Future visions for healthcare, housing and work 1: Residential healthcare - housing for seniors, autumn 2017, by the students Cornelia Franzen and Ca jsa Tingdal As WeWork Acquires CASE, the Future of Office Design May Start Today https://goo.gl/tSk4FU How WeWork Experiments On Itself to Advance the Field of Office Design https://goo.gl/XPiKCR Guanghua Road SOHO2 3Q / AIM Architecture https://goo.gl/CjG9f5 This Kickstarter Campaign Hopes to Fund a Coworking Space Specifically for Architects https://goo.gl/1Bc5Yo Fosbury & Sons Co-Work / GOING EAST https://goo.gl/Axuemn Jingyuan No.22 Transformation / C+ Architects https://goo.gl/UK8ZfL Google Campus Dublin / Camenzind Evolution + Henry J. Lyons Architects https://goo.gl/SWdguw Google Offices in Milan / AMA – Albera Monti & Associati https://goo.gl/M6B1Ce Technology HUB / Had DV https://goo.gl/h9SFwJ Co-working utopic_US Conde de Casal / Izaskun Chinchilla Architects https://goo.gl/rLJXYo SimplyWork 6.0 Co-Working Space / 11architecture https://goo.gl/sVxG4w

QU O TE S WeWork - owner of a number of co-working spaces worldwide. (2010). Retrieved from: https://www.wework.com/mission Vermeulen, D. (2016). How WeWork Experiments On Itself to Advance the Field of Office Design. Retrieved from: https://goo.gl/DYkxiu Fabb, W. (2018). Berrins co-working space, Sydeney. Retrieved from: https://www.pinterest.se/pin/162762974005503046/?lp=true Albert Einstein Retrieved from: https://goo.gl/wL93Vi Leyden, K. (2018) Pinterest. Retrieved from: https://www.pinterest.se/pin/394135404864065778/ Neuberg, B. (2005) the creator of co-working, in an email interview. Retrieved from: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/299300 Ford, H. (2018) Retrieved from: https://goo.gl/T684K5 Prakash, R. (2011). Partner at Hatch Today Retrieved from: http://www.hatchtodaysf.com Bacigalupo, T. founder of the New Work Cities (2018). Retrieved from: https://catjohnson.co/coworking-wisdom-003/

REFERENCES / 84

REFERENCES / 85

“The word co-working wont be a word in the future, it will probably just be the way we work� Prakash, R. (2011)

8. INSPIRATION

TECH-FARM “CO-LIVING COMBINED WITH A GREEN HOUSE” “Imagine being in a community and an environment every single day that inspires you to live a more balanced and conscious life.” • Works with the combination of greenhouse and coliving • Help them to grow their Tech Farm community • For people in different phases of life • Entrepreneurship, Sustainability and Co-creation

Picture 38. Green house

Picture 40. Food production

Picture 41. Food production

Picture 42. Water treatment

Picture 43. Water treatment

The Flagship

Picture 39. Common space

INSPIRATION / 88

ARCHITECTURAL ELEMENTS INSPIRATION T H E SE A TTL E L I BRA RY BY O MA • Continuity/Inclusion of street/public life within building • Predicted functions into clusters of 5 platforms • Unpredicted activities in the interface between these platforms for work, play and interaction • Platforms and interfaces are connected by social paths in terms of stairs, escalators, and elevators • Climate shell defines the voids • Flexible spiral bookshelf floor

V ÄXJÖ CITY- AND STATION B UIL D ING B Y WHITE

M A N A V S A D H N A BY YA T IN PA N D YA

• Generous living room weave together all parts • Adds value to all inhabitants in the city • Social room that is never closed • Have a coffee, socialize, work, access information, shopping... • Combination of glass and solar cells emphasize the wooden structure • Tilting facade > more light into deep volumes + energy efficient shape

• Lanterns give daylight into spaces beneath and create inhabitable spaces above • Display of activity beneath the public “carpet” • Gathering seating outside with photovoltaic roof?

KLONG TOEY COMMUNITY LANTERN BY TYIN • Spill out activity • Inhabitable edge enclose a play area

THE PLAYING FIELD BY ASSEMBLE • Spill out activity • Inhabitable edge enclose a play area

SPATIAL CONTINUITY • Inhabitable windows • Inside outside transition

HANGING NET • Inhabit double height space • Relax, read, play • Symbol for the togetherness

INSPIRATION / 89

HOSPICE; "A HOME PROVIDING CARE FOR THE SICK OR TERMINALLY ILL" AUT164 COURSE: "FUTURE VISIONS FOR HEALTHCARE, HOUSING AND WORK." RESIDENTIAL HEALTHCARE - HOUSING FOR SENIORS, AUTUMN 2017, BY THE STUDENTS CORNELIA FRANZEN AND CAJSA TINGDAL • Gives the opportunity to be close to nature • Provides different indoor and outdoor spaces with different spatial qualities • Courtyard stimulates spontaneous interaction between people • Gathering in the courtyard (introverted) for common activities and having time for yourself in close connection with nature in your own room and balcony (extroverted)

INSPIRATION / 90

Entrance and courtyard perspective

Building form concept

INSPIRATION / 91

“Coming

together is a beginning, keeping together is

progress, working together is success.� Ford, H. (2018)

9. APPENDIX

POSTERS Ljusgården, Chalmers University of Technology May 30th, 2018

c o-worKing hub INVESTIGATION ON HOW SPATIAL QUALITIES OF CO-WORKING PLACES CAN ENHANCE WORK EFFICIENCY AND SOCIAL NETWORKS, IN A CITY CENTRE THAT IS DRAINED OUT OF URBAN LIFE, FOR A RESILIENT SOCIO-ECONOMIC GROWTH OF UDDEVALLA CITY.

RESEARCH & ANALYSIS

INTRO & BACKGROUND WHY?

Byfjord Lövåsberget

The city centre of Uddevalla is struggling to survive due to a lack of activities and social networks. The municipality has now planned to expand the city centre with a wish for it to regain the urban life and again become the main social arena. To make the expansion feasible, a resilient socio-economic growth of the city centre is required. Uddevalla has still big advantages for younger generations, whom prefer to work in places where they can find a community of like-minded people as well as a “fun and social” workplace, the city has a short commuting distance to Göteborg and is much cheaper in terms of housing.

DE L IMITATION CHART

Building a central meeting place here will benefit the area in many ways as well as enclosing the hole in the city. Eventually, this project should be adapted to, and integrated in the local climate and context.

Lysekil 30 min

Self-employed

PRIVACY TRANSITION diverSe l ayerS

There are different levels of interaction between individuals and it is important to provide alternatives and let people choose in what way they want to interact. Therefore the building will provide diverse spaces, from which you can have direct and indirect/visual interaction with other people, environment and activities.

exchanging Knowledge 0

Passing by people can see activities happening in the courtyard and become active participants, activities spill out to the city centre.

I NT ROVE RT

W OR K IN G

R ELA XA T ION

Direct interaction Indirect Interaction

C O- W OR K IN G

GR EEN HOUSE / R OOF GA R D EN

E XT ROVE RT

G RE E N H O U S E S / RO O F G ARD E N

RE L AX ATI O N

DESIG N F RA M EW O RK

!"#$"!

Flexible barrierS and overlapping oF SpaceS

THE CO-WORKING HUB ORIENTATION & VIEW

G ALLE RY SPACE

WORK & STUDY

FLEXIBLE WALL

SALON / COMMON SPACE / CORRIDOR

recreational Park

FIXED SPACE

TE RRACE / BALCONY OFFICE OR CHAMBE R / WORKING SPACE

Potential residential CO-L IVIN G

PLAN LAYOUT OPTIONS FROM CLOSED - TO OPEN PLAN

CLOSED ROOMS

HIGH A C C ESSIB ILIT Y Access to public transportation

8.7 m 8.2 m

BUILDING FORM

T Y P I CAL P L AN U S I NG ONLY UNI T A

T Y P I CAL P L AN U S I NG ONLY UNI T B

Open plan Diverse use of space Mobility

E C O L O G I C AL S TO RE , C AF E & RE S TAU RANT

Creating a dialogue with the surrounding built environment, Giving directions, Showcasing activities happening inside the building, Inviting people to experience the internal athmosphere

FLEXIBILITY

VE RTICAL CIRCULATION

INFINIT E S IGHT L INE S

Spontanous meetings outside around outdoor activities also during weekends and evenings,

MU S & O

C O -WO RK I NG

MU L TI P U RP O S E H AL L ( MP H )

DESIGN PROPOSAL 1

Courtyard becomes a natural meeting space with an overview over the different spaces,

Q U A DR U P LE H E LI X

Provide private, common and public spaces Relax, read, play

- Community - Sharing - Collaboration

SPATIAL DIVERSITYV

PUBLIC FACILITY Kampenhof Co-Working HUB

MAIN ACTIVITIES

Durable product /

Companies owned by public sector

E U DA M O N I A M A C H I N E

Social entrepreneurs

Commuting distance from Uddevalla to cities within Västra Götaland.

HOW CAN WE DESIGN FOR REVITALIZATION OF A CITY CENTRE THAT IS DRAINED OUT OF URBAN LIFE, BY FOCUSING ON CO-WORKING SPACES, FOR A RESILIENT SOCIO-ECONOMIC GROWTH OF UDDEVALLA CITY?

Line on horizontal axis can extend inh order to create a connection with the surrounding or give direction to internal or external spaces and activities.

T H E S I S Q UE ST I ON

SpaceS, FunctionS and people

Open and inviting Have clear entrances Intensify the flow of people Invite public life/outdoor environment Activities can spill outside

S PATI AL PRO G RAM

Kungshamn 50 min

RECOVERING, LEARNING, EARNING, SOCIALIZING

EXCHANGE, SHARE, COLLABORATE, COOPERATE, CARE

D E S I G N S TRATE G I E S

Uddevalla is a mid-sized city, located in the province Bohuslän (swedish West coast) 8 miles North of Gothenburg, and is a central node in Västra Götaland.

LO CATI O N

TARG E T G RO UPS

A IDIN G THE OR IE S

Stenungsund 30 min

T H E S I S DI S COURS E DI AG RA M

*"!

!"#$%&''()$**$%+%,"-.#$%/0.$*$!'-%

Ljungskile 20 min

LOCAL NEEDS & ASSETS

- Community - Collaborate - Connect -Create -Share

Individuality Owning Linear flows

Introverted

DESIRED SITUATION: MULTI CULTURAL & VIVID COMMUNITY

For achieving the concept of the Co-Working HU be necessary to define the target groups, a lo design strategies, and a spatial program.

K A MPE N HO F The site is currently surrounded by trees on two sides with walking paths behind them. The site will be an empty space in the dense city centre and has a very nice view towards the Byfjord.

THE PROGRAMME Commuters/Freelancers, Start-up entrepreneurs, locals

& Collabor

D E S I GN F R A M E W OR K

For modern lifestyles

Open & Invit

Construction & Technology

men Sp at tal ia Su l Ty sta po ina bility logy

Atmosphere Soc ial Sus Fle tain ability En xibility vir on

DESIGN APPROACH

UDDEVALLA CITY

Start a Community

Regulations and

s ct pe cts pe As al l As ic ica lit Po onom s ect Ec l Asp ts Socia ntal Aspec Environme & Permits Land Ownership

al ctur an ite UrbArch tail De ercial Comm Studying Entertainment Creatin g Wo rkin g Le Re isure cr ea tio n

T RA N S I T I ON S - F ROM OW NI NG TO S HA R I NG The city centre is becoming too much introverted and social networks are becoming weak. By introducing a method that encourages people to share, collaborate and connect we might be able to change the existing situation. E x tr

C U R R E N T S I T UA T I O N : G A T E D C O M M UN I T I E S

S TA I N A B I L I T

The city centre consist mainly of cultural activities, shops, lots of cafetaria’s, restaurants and hair dressers. These are clustered around the main street (Kungsgatan). The area is in strong need of a revitalizing strategy. Therefore there is need for a coherent architectural strategy for the city centre, to be able to mature a more sustainable and integrated development.

Oslo 140 min

r rio r te In terio ts Ex an migr Im ts Studen Adults Children General Public Start-Up Entreprene urs Comm uters Young Eld Profess erl y ionals

N rope Re atio an gi nal on al

The aim is to provide the users with an homelike environment that encourages social interaction and enhances networking and collaboration opportunities for businesses by working in close proximity to people in other fields that share similar values.

HOW CAN WE DESIGN FOR A CONSOLIDATED CITY CENTRE, TO BE ABLE TO MATURE A MORE SUSTAINABLE AND INTEGRATED DEVELOPMENT ??

Uddevalla is embedded by hills and is known for its great green nature. The city centre is located along the fjord Byfjorden and surrounded by green nature areas. Skansberget is one of the valuable green areas, close to the city centre, but yet disconnected from the city network. Still the city is appealing to young families since it has a short commuting distance to Göteborg, and cheaper housing as well as a more calm environment.

R E S ULT The final result is a design proposal for a Co-Working HUB with flexible shared spaces for activities such as co-working and co-creating for ambitious start-ups, entrepreneurs, and small businesses. This proposal is approaching the main idea of sharing and collaborating which can expand further into other buildings in the surrounding.

F L E XI B L E WAL L

r te Cen e dg nter le w Ce B Kno tivity ing HU ork Ac k -W Co ycle Par Rec ral House Cultu

This diagrams shows the aspects that I will investigate more in detail in this Master’s Thesis, while some other subjects are not investigated thoroughly or left out.

I NT E R AC T I ON S A co-working HUB is an extroverted and inclusive typology that consists of shared spaces for recovering, learning, earning and socializing. Taking into consideration that ‘a Home’ is the starting point towards a sustainable lifestyle.

Investigating a possible solution for achieving an extroverted and inclusive working environment that can encourage its users to meet, interact, share and exchange knowledge, thereby creating a social platform where they quickly bounce ideas back and forth, helping to create quicker, more resource efficient solutions.

Optimum view all around

OPEN LEC T UR E

Creating intimate spaces in between

INDOOR/OUTDOOR TRANSITION

O P E NING UP T H E COURT YA RD

M USIC , D A N C E & OT HER S

Activities can spill out, passers by can become active participants

Be transparent Inhabitable windows and/or edge Showcase - Make people curious & Display sustainable lifestyles

JOY & FUN

GA L L E RY A ND CO RRIDO R Light play in the corridors through skylight, extrovert gallery v.s introvert courtyard Gallery for additional quality space with nice view and connecting with surrounding

ACTIVIT IES SPILL

OUT Courtyard opens up towards main street of Kungsgata the n

Scale 1:400

TH E BA LCONI E S I N TY PE / UNI T A , A DDS MO R E VA LUE TO TH E B UI L DI NG, AS WE A DD A NE W TY PE O F SPACE WI TH SPE C I F I C QUA L I TI ES W HI C H CONTR I B UTE S TO A SMOOTH I NDOO R /OUTDOO R TR A N SI TI ON

GROUND FLO 18

COURT YAR D

Activities can spill out

5.6 m 5.6 m 5.9 m

INHA BITA BLE WINDOW

FACING S OUT H For g a ining op t im um sunl ig ht and b ecom ing a p rotec t ion wa l l a g a ins t p reva il ing wind com ing form south-Wes t

PLAY ING WITH VOLUMES / PRIVACY TRANSITION Gradually/spirally adding floors, gaining sunlight into the courtyard and terraces, facing building towards south 1

I NSI DE - OUTSI DE T R ANSI T I ON Ground floor open between Kungsgatan, courtyard and side street.

KUNG SG ATAN

ORIENTATION & VIEW C O- W OR K IN G

C O- C R EA T IN G W OR K SHOP

T AR G E T G R O U P S

Optimize incoming sunlight Optimize view to the water

L O C AT I O N

D E S I G N S T R AT EG IES

M ULT I PUR POSE HA LL ( M PH) EC OLOGIC A L ST OR E, C A FE & R EST A UR A N T

MAI N ST R EET F

APPENDIX / 94

1.GA LLE RY

3.OF F IC E

4.CHA MBE R

O PE N SPAC E

F I XE D SPAC E

1C F F K SK SK

SP ATIAL P R O G R AM

KUN GSG ATAN

Introverted, embracing activities, curtain walls to create visual connections

REST, LIVING, EATING, LIBRARY, SHOWCASING

COURT YA RD

SECTION b-b

D E S IG N FRA M E W ORK

I NDI R E C T I NT E R AC T I ON (VI S UA L LY )

I NDI R E C T I NT E R AC T I ON ( VI S UA L LY )

Circular corridor creating infinite sight-lines and different perspectives/ transparency by using glass partion walls and exterior curtain walls

From terraces to courtyard/Hide away but can overlook and have visual connection

DI R E C T I NT E R AC T I ON Uddevalla has more than 300 local organizations of different kind. There are also lots of small theatre associations whom unfortunately has no place to perform.

UB it will ocation,

TAR G E T G ROUP S

D ESIGN ST RA T EGIES

ROOM TYPOLOGIES FORMING THE CO-WORKING HUB

SI C , D A N CE O T H ER S

-C R E A TI NG R K SHO P

GA L L ER Y

PRIVACY LEVEL OF ROOM TYPOLOGIES

CYCLING / CYCLING

LOCAL COMMUNITY The intention is to combine people at different ages and background with a common interest for sustainability, co-working and co-creation. By creating a comfortable, homelike environment in the workspaces we can enhance work efficiency and productivity. This will also enhance social interaction between different target groups and create a diverse multicultural HUB, belonging to the local community.

SP A T IA L P R OGRA M

Residents of Uddevalla are willing to commute for work or study, to get the desired living conditions. Now they can work or study in the Co-Working HUB in order to save on time and money.

Y & FUN

(REST, EATING, LIVING)

(L EISURE / CUL TURE)

MA I N ROA D

A meaningful, creative and innovative atmosphere, in order to start up resource effective businesses. Social network, meeting point , and a test ground for new resource efficient strategies, are additional advantages.

CO - L I VI NG

Common activity Growing food together GREENHOUS E

DI R E C T I NT E R AC T I ON Big and open courtyard, opening up for spontaneous interaction outside

G OI NG BACK TO MAI N QUEST I ON

CAR PARK ING

How can we design for revitalization of a city centre that is drained out of urban life, by focussing on coworking spaces, for a resilient socio-economic growth of uddevalla City? The city centre is becoming too much introverted and social networks are becoming weak and disconnected. The big challenge is to make people settle down (live &work) in Uddevalla, to create a city centre that is full of live and activities that attracts the ma jority. By introducing a method that encourages people to share, collaborate and connect we might be able to change the existing situation towards a more sustainable future. The city has great potential for new start-up businesses and needs co-working offices to facilitate inhabitants with a place that encourages sharing and collaboration.

O F F I CE & CH A M B E R (WORK /STUDY)

Kungsgata n

STA RT- UP E NTR E P R E NE UR S A good opportunity expand social networks and collaborate with each other in order to strengthen existing local networks, and generate new sustainable and innovative business ideas.

Gallery - Salon - Office - Chamber

COMM UT E R S

1 YOUNG P RO FE SS I ON A LS

D ESIGN FR A MEWOR K

D E S I GN FR AME WOR K

Proposed new structure TA R GE T GR OUPS

EXCHANGE OF IDEAS

DE S IGN S TR A TE GIE S

S PA TIA L PR OGR A M

DESI GN STRATEGI ES

Proposal Co-Working HUB

SPATI AL PROGRAM

NECESSARY I NT E RVENT I ON The proplems with the city centre are interconnected and needs several interventions an actions to be solved. We will have to bring people together and create a strong identity for Uddevalla in the first place, by focussing on existing qualities. Some potentials of the area are; - Green Areas, Byfjorden (Water), Cultural Activities (Cinema, Folkets Hus, the Library and Böhuslan Museum) and High Accessibility (public transport)

17 16 15 14 13

ART GALLE RY

32 FIRE POLE

MPH (MULTI PURPOSE HALL)

23 CO-WORKING OFFICE

33 HOUSE KEEPING

MUSIC ROOM / THEMED ROOM

24 PHONE B OOTH CABINS

LOUNGE / MA IN L IVING ROOM

GARBAGE & SORTING

COMMON A R EA /ROOM

MACHINE RY: WOOD/METAL/3D

25 STUDY ROOM

35 BIKE PARKING

A DM INISTR ATION

WORKSTATIONS / WORK AREA

36 GREEN HOUSE

FIR ST A ID

SHARED KITCHEN / CAFETARIA

26 CHANGING ROOM 27 PRINTE R AREA 28 ASSEMB LY ROOM 29 TE RRACE

38 FIRE PIT

EX HIBITION COR NE R

FILM S CR EENING/LECTUR E

KITCHENETTE / BAR

MEETING ROOM

37 BARB EQUE

Increasing the access to public transportation and provide facilities that makes it convenient to be a commuter in the city centre. Connect the city centre and the train station.

30 ROOF GARDEN

20 DRAWING ROOM

Directing the streets towards one central square. 4

INTE R ACTIVE BOA R D

R ECEP TION

10 P UBL IC STA IR CAS E

Connecting the Green Areas

Proposed new structure 31

WHAT IS THE NEXT STEP?

CONSI LODAT ED CI T Y, ROBU ST CI T Y CENT R E

The question is how to accelerate the transition to a consolidated city centre which is open for collaboration and sharing of all kinds and at the same time extroverted and open for the outside world, eventhough change in such a big scale is a slow longterm proccess. Nevertheless Co-Working HUB might be a good starting point in showing the essential of sharing and collaborating, hopefully this ideas will inspire the close surrounding environment and boost a new trendof exchanging knowledge and how to regulate the transition from public to private on an urban scale too.

1 St FLOOR PLAN

2nd FLOOR PLAN

3rd FLOOR PLAN

ROOF GARDEN

DI S P L AY

I NDI R E C T I NT E R AC T I ON ( VI S UA L LY ) Roof terraces and roof garden connected to the courtyard visually

DI R E C T I NT E R AC T I ON DI R E C T I NT E R AC T I ON

Neighbourly greating when passing by

The most exposed corner in the southwest is very visible from Kungsgatan. It is meant to be a display window for what is going on inside the building.

F I R E P OL E

I NDI R E C T I NT E R AC T I ON ( VI S UA L LY ) - VI S UA L CONNE C T I ON F ROM G A L L E RY TO SA LON TO O F F I C E TO C HA M B E R

Chamber (Courtyard) Office (Buildings)

Salon (Side Streets)

Gallery (Main Streets)

G E NE ROU S L I VI NG ROOM WE AVE S TO G E T H E R A L L PA RTS , AC TS AS A S OC I A L ROOM T HAT I S NE VE R C LOS E D W H E R E YOU CA N HAVE A CO F F E E , S OC I A L I Z E , WO R K , ACC E SS I N FO R MAT I ON , E TC . T HI S WI L L A DD VA LUE TO A L L I N HA BI TA NTS I N T H E C I T Y

Courtyard with private oasis

note: C o m mo n

Secondary and tertiary streets will preserve some of the privacy needed and at the same time connect with the main streets and roads to create a gradual transition from public to private.

s pa C e s C o n ne C t i ng b e t w e e n

w o r k s pa C e s to e n ha n C e s o C i a l i n t e r a C t i o n , a nd at t h e s a me t i me C r e at i ng a g r a d ua l ly

P L AT FO R M S A ND I NT E R FAC E S A R E CONNE C T E D BY S OC I A L PAT H S I N T E R M S O F STA I R S , F I R E P OL E S , HA NG I NG NE TS A ND S L I DE S

Main Roads/Streets

t r a n s i t i o n f r o m p u b l i C to p r i vat e .

The buildings, can be introverted as well as extroverted and act as an edge between the private spaces(courtyards) and the common spaces(secondary streets)

E x tr I NTROVE RTE D COURTYA R D

EX TROVE RTED FACADE

E X TROVE RTE D FACADE

SECTION a-a 0 Scale 1:200

SECTION a-a

APPENDIX / 95

Š Razjan Hassan, 2018 [email protected] GĂśteborg, Sweden 2018-08-30

Stay tuned for exciting updates!

Flexible Office Solutions

• Apr 21, 2020

Case Studies: Why Do People Use Coworking Spaces?

Updated: Nov 1, 2020

Working, we all do it, but where we do it is changing. It all started back in 2005, when we really started to embrace the advances in the tech sector. These advances in computers, internet, telecommunications, email servers helped ease the restrictions on where we could work and allowed the growth of a new movement. This movement was for a work environment that was collaborative, sustainable, and matched the needs of the community it was serving. 

The typical office space that was filled with stuffy furniture, office politics, competition, and regulations that didn’t benefit the community did more than stifle the worker, it helped ignite a desire for more freedom in where someone works, when they work, and how they work.

In this article, we are going to cover the different case studies of how people use a coworking space. We find it is easier to look at other people’s experiences to understand how a space is used than to go with just one word descriptors. So here we go…

Case Study 1: The Practitioner

A practitioner means someone who sees clients professionally in a services capacity. This could be a massage therapist, a psychologist, a nutritionist, an acupuncture therapist, or any other similar profession. 

How does the practitioner use the space?

It will depend on each practice, but typically most practitioners prefer to have a set fixed weekly schedule in the same room each week.

A practitioner will use say Room 3 every Monday from 8am to 1pm and pay for only this time slot.

Why does this work for a practitioner?

Many practitioners see clients on a regular basis and need to schedule weeks in advance. Keeping a set schedule in a set room provides consistency not only for themselves but for their clients.

Is this the only way a practitioner works in a coworking space?

No, newer practitioners often opt to use a more flexible membership. This allows them to subscribe to a certain number of hours each month but doesn’t tie them down to a specific day or room. This allows them to meet clients when it is convenient for both parties and allows them to say yes to new clients easier.

Case Study 2: The Professional

A professional is someone who owns their own business and provides a service, for example lawyers, financial planners, coaches, consultants, and other service related individuals that may provide services for others in areas of accounting, marketing, photography, film, technology, etc.

How does a professional use a coworking space?

A professional typically uses many different types of plans at a coworking space and it depends largely on how they run their business. Here are some factors that will impact how a professional uses coworking spaces, when looking at their needs:

To see clients

To have a dedicated locked room

To have flexible use of a desk

To have flexibility to meet clients on an as needed basis

To have meetings with more than 2 or 3 people at a time

For those professionals who see clients and do so on an as needed basis, they will often opt for a flexible private office plan.

For those professionals who need a dedicated locked room, a full time private office plan is typically the best option.

For those who see clients in groups more than 2 to 3 people at a time a meeting room or conference room plan is usually the best option.

For professionals who just need a quiet place to work and an occasional office to work or hold calls, our premium workspace membership works well.

Why does this work for the professional?

Professionals need a space that will work around their schedules. Professionals often work at varying times throughout the day so a space that closes at 5pm doesn't provide an option for professionals to see clients at night. Some professionals also prefer to work on the weekend. When looking for a coworking space, it is important to look for options that will work for your business.

Case Study 3: The Remote Worker

The remote worker is someone who works for a large company but doesn't need to be in the same physical building as the company. Many businesses are starting to employ a larger remote worker workforce and while this trend provides an opportunity for many to work from home, it also creates the need for some to find home office alternatives.

How does a remote worker use a coworking space?

A remote worker tends to pick one of two different options. The first option is to work in an open workspace with a few hours a month available in a private office. The second option is full time office. It will depend on the specifications of the company. Some companies provide a coworking stipend of $200/mo for coworking space, others require that someone use a full time office that is locked.

Why does this work for the remote worker?

A remote worker might still work from home from time to time, but working from home can be isolating. By working from a coworking space, a remote worker can benefit from being part of a community, can enjoy less distractions, and increases in productivity.

Is there any other ways a remote worker my use a coworking space?

Yes, a remote worker may choose to also subscribe to a flexible office plan if they know they will be on a lot of confidential conference calls. Depending on the type of coworking space you use some of these calls can happen in a phone room, but if the coworking space is big enough you should be able to book a private room with a desk for your call.

Case Study 4: The Small Business

A small business is more than one person using the space at the same time. Most coworking spaces will have plans that allow for use of more than one person giving volume discounts. A small business that may choose to work in a coworking space could be a start up, a small service based business, or even a small non-profit organization.

How does a small business use a coworking space?

Typically a small business will choose either full time hot desks, a shared private office for their team, or they'll request an area be built out for their team.

Why does this work for a small business?

A small business will always be concerned with overhead. One of the highest cost associated with overhead is rent and payroll. Working in a coworking space allows a small business to save money and share architecture with other businesses so they don't have to pay for the full price themselves. When looking at a commercial lease, the cost is much higher than just the lease amount, a business needs to factor in utilities, cleaning supplies, labor to upkeep the space, water, furniture, and internet. When a business uses a coworking space they just worry about one price the use of the space.

Is there any other ways small businesses use coworking spaces?

Yes, small businesses can utilize coworking spaces for networking, holding workshops, marketing events, as well as hosting client meetings.

If you'd like to learn more about how we can help you with your workspace needs, reach out to schedule a call .

• What is Coworking

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Dubai’s Extraordinary Flooding: Here’s What to Know

Images of a saturated desert metropolis startled the world, prompting talk of cloud seeding, climate change and designing cities for intensified weather.

• Share full article

By Raymond Zhong

Scenes of flood-ravaged neighborhoods in one of the planet’s driest regions have stunned the world this week. Heavy rains in the United Arab Emirates and Oman submerged cars, clogged highways and killed at least 21 people. Flights out of Dubai’s airport, a major global hub, were severely disrupted.

The downpours weren’t a freak event — forecasters anticipated the storms several days out and issued warnings. But they were certainly unusual. Here’s what to know.

Heavy rain there is rare, but not unheard-of.

On average, the Arabian Peninsula receives a scant few inches of rain a year, although scientists have found that a sizable chunk of that precipitation falls in infrequent but severe bursts, not as periodic showers.

U.A.E. officials said the 24-hour rain total on Tuesday was the country’s largest since records there began in 1949 . But parts of the nation had experienced an earlier round of thunderstorms just last month.

Oman, with its coastline on the Arabian Sea, is also vulnerable to tropical cyclones. Past storms there have brought torrential rain, powerful winds and mudslides, causing extensive damage.

Global warming is projected to intensify downpours.

Stronger storms are a key consequence of human-caused global warming. As the atmosphere gets hotter, it can hold more moisture, which can eventually make its way down to the earth as rain or snow.

But that doesn’t mean rainfall patterns are changing in precisely the same way across every corner of the globe.

In their latest assessment of climate research , scientists convened by the United Nations found there wasn’t enough data to have firm conclusions about rainfall trends in the Arabian Peninsula and how climate change was affecting them. The researchers said, however, that if global warming were to be allowed to continue worsening in the coming decades, extreme downpours in the region would quite likely become more intense and more frequent.

The role of cloud seeding isn’t clear.

The U.A.E. has for decades worked to increase rainfall and boost water supplies by seeding clouds. Essentially, this involves shooting particles into clouds to encourage the moisture to gather into larger, heavier droplets, ones that are more likely to fall as rain or snow.

Cloud seeding and other rain-enhancement methods have been tried across the world, including in Australia, China, India, Israel, South Africa and the United States. Studies have found that these operations can, at best, affect precipitation modestly — enough to turn a downpour into a bigger downpour, but probably not a drizzle into a deluge.

Still, experts said pinning down how much seeding might have contributed to this week’s storms would require detailed study.

“In general, it is quite a challenge to assess the impact of seeding,” said Luca Delle Monache, a climate scientist at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla, Calif. Dr. Delle Monache has been leading efforts to use artificial intelligence to improve the U.A.E.’s rain-enhancement program.

An official with the U.A.E.’s National Center of Meteorology, Omar Al Yazeedi, told news outlets this week that the agency didn’t conduct any seeding during the latest storms. His statements didn’t make clear, however, whether that was also true in the hours or days before.

Mr. Al Yazeedi didn’t respond to emailed questions from The New York Times on Thursday, and Adel Kamal, a spokesman for the center, didn’t immediately have further comment.

Cities in dry places just aren’t designed for floods.

Wherever it happens, flooding isn’t just a matter of how much rain comes down. It’s also about what happens to all that water once it’s on the ground — most critically, in the places people live.

Cities in arid regions often aren’t designed to drain very effectively. In these areas, paved surfaces block rain from seeping into the earth below, forcing it into drainage systems that can easily become overwhelmed.

One recent study of Sharjah , the capital of the third-largest emirate in the U.A.E., found that the city’s rapid growth over the past half century had made it vulnerable to flooding at far lower levels of rain than before.

Omnia Al Desoukie contributed reporting.

Raymond Zhong reports on climate and environmental issues for The Times. More about Raymond Zhong