A Sleek, Industrial Office with a Warm, Homey Touch

The vision of the redesign was all about efficiency and collaboration, incorporating modern office design principles with a natural, comfortable touch.

Mercedes Indonesia has recently relocated their headquarters to the CIBIS Nine building, and along with the move came a complete renovation with the help of Okky Wardhana and his team from Morphosa Indonesia. The vision of the redesign was all about efficiency and collaboration, incorporating modern office design principles with a natural, comfortable touch.

The 15th floor of the CIBIS Nine building in South Jakarta houses the new headquarters of Mercedes Indonesia. This modern, beautiful office keeps the company’s aesthetics at heart whilst providing a comfortable place for employees to collaborate, establish relationships, and feel at home. Unlike the concept of office design in the last two decades, the modern office is now more about open plans and less about private spaces.

In terms of the brief given to Okky, their request was simple: to follow the current trends in office design in Indonesia and also worldwide. What came about was an open layout with special areas for employees to rest, take a break, and interact with each other. Their old headquarters had scattered, closed offices, and the goal was to create something completely different. Most of the new space has an open plan, while the private meeting rooms have different themes using different colours, types of chairs and layout, all using frozen glass for privacy.

The reception area of the office uses black, grey and wood to match with Mercedes showrooms all over Indonesia, whilst the inside has a mix of dark and natural colours depending on each section. Okky made sure that every part of the office is interesting. He also incorporated Indonesian elements in his design, such as batik and ikat motifs. Specific parts of the office are distinguished using details such as hanging bulbs, carpets and natural, warm colours for the lounge areas, while the more official areas use an industrial colour scheme.

The break room in the office has a small, cafeteria-style layout with a pantry and a bar using high stools to emanate a comfortable and homey atmosphere. It also has a golf simulator, a foosball and air hockey table free for the employees to use during their lunch time. This room also connects to the outdoor area for a breath of fresh air. Relaxation is one of the main elements in this office, as employees’ well-being is important to improve performance and elevate their mood.

All throughout the office there are comfortable seating areas for everyone to use. “It’s not healthy to sit in one place for eight hours straight so we used these lounge chairs to encourage people to move more and sit in different chairs. We encourage activity to help staff be more healthy. It’s important to stimulate people to sit comfortably and in a more relaxed way in the office.” Okky said. These elements help Mercedes step away from the “boring” concept that a lot of offices in the automotive industry have.

A lot of Okky’s projects include Indonesian culture into its design. In this particular office, these local elements can be seen on the walls using small, 3D accents, as well as batik motifs on the floors that can be seen in the break areas. Another unique aspect in this office are the hanging wooden blocks with geometric patterns on the ceiling, as well as the brick columns

in some areas to coincide with the industrial theme. In partnership with Vivere, the furniture used in this office are from the Steelcase brand. It is evident that the future of office design will involve the well being of employees and the importance of collaboration. These aspects have been perfectly communicated at the new Mercedes office with the help of Okky and his team at Morphosa, creating comfortable areas for employees to use, and an open plan to encourage employees to work together. It is no doubt that Mercedes prioritises innovation and staying ahead in the automotive industry, and they have definitely used the same principles into the design of their own headquarters in Indonesia.