The Brewery in Jamaica Plain – home to Studio G Architects and several other great local businesses

It’s important to practice what you preach. So as we embark on the final phases of the Brewery Studios 3^rd Floor Renovation, we’re reflecting on workplace design trends and their implementation into our very own office space.

Here’s a look at what our new space will offer:

Balance Striking a balance between focus and collaboration is critical. We were early adopters of the collaborative office concept: we have no enclosed offices and everyone from interns to principals works side-by-side in an open studio-style workspace; enclosed spaces such as our workroom offer acoustic and visual privacy if needed.

Materiality When used creatively, materials can communicate a lot about the function and mission of a space and an organization. Our new conference room boasts walls of clear glass to emphasize transparency and communication. Polycarbonate panels between business suites provide visual privacy and basic acoustic separation, while still allowing daylight to pass through. Magnetic and writable wall coverings along public corridors encourage on-the-spot charrettes, displays and inter-office communication.

Community The Brewery Studios functions a lot like a community or a network of neighborhoods, with a hierarchy of linked public and private spaces to support a wide range of activities and individual work styles. Each business on our floor has individual space, but all share several ‘civic’ zones – gathering spaces of different sizes and levels of formality. Our office corridors function like streets, dotted with informal meeting areas like indoor parks or squares to stimulate conversation and the exchange of ideas.

Branding As we often tell our clients, your space is an extension of your brand. This holds especially true for designers (no pressure, huh?!) With that in mind, our talented interiors team infused our new space with a vibrant palette of materials, including – of course! – Studio G’s signature lime green. They also designed a custom signage wall and innovative cable system along the elevator lobby/reception to support a rotating exhibit of designs, products and news.

Flexibility Famed architect Mies van der Rohe said ‘Less is More’ – and when it comes to office design, we believe less drywall is more. Why? Because it gives us the freedom to adapt and change our space to accommodate new staff, new project teams, new work styles, new technology and equipment without the waste, cost and hassle of demolition and reconstruction. Designing flexible spaces with movable, adjustable partitions and furnishings is critical to long term space planning success.

Diversity Our new office plan will be as diverse as our staff, with a mix of spaces to support a wide variety of tasks, including: quiet areas for focus work or private conversations; a vibrant café/lounge; a collaborative work room; a large interactive conference room; open work bays; organized storage and supply areas; and touchdown zones (no, we’re not talking about football) offering small, informal spots with basic amenities (phone, internet connectivity, seating, work surface) that allow visitors, employees, reps, consultants, etc. to accomplish tasks on the fly without investing valuable real estate in larger permanent workstations or offices.

Sustainability Sustainable thinking and practices are integrated from the very beginning into each design decision for every project – the ‘G’ in Studio G stands for Green after all! Our reno includes low flow plumbing fixtures, low VOC finishes, high efficiency lighting, recycled materials, ample daylight, cross ventilation and more.

Stay tuned over the next several weeks as we continue to share updates and photos from our renovation!

For an inside look into the workspaces of several other global architecture offices, visit: http://www.businessinsider.com/20-beautiful-offices-that-architects-chose-for-themselves-2014-4