MERCEDES-BENZ AUSTRIA HEADQUARTERS

QUINTESSENTIALLY DYNAMIC

Salzburg, Vienna or Linz? After several months of evaluating the various locations, a choice was made: a new building on a greenfield site in Eugendorf, bringing the operating divisions, the financing business and the importer together under one roof. Doing this would also provide the welcome opportunity to completely reorganize the way in which the teams collaborate.

The new working environment was essentially the product of a concrete needs analysis and the participation of 300 employees. The planning of it also took into consideration the very latest in requirements originating from the field of occupational psychology.

The main inspiration for the design of the headquarters was, in fact, Mercedes-Benz itself: a premium car brand, whose clear design idiom could be applied to the workplace. The bold contrasts and the interplay between dark and light provide employees and visitors alike with an emotional experience. The materials that have been used are authentic and high-quality. And last but not least, the different areas of activity are separated from one another by prominent colour surfaces: a flash of red, the lifeblood, shoots from a black core and fades gradually to white at the places where total concentration is required.

Function plays the key role, however: for every activity there is just the right room, available on demand. Moving between the zones is the main idea and it facilitates the change in perspective. Inspiration can be found not only in the surrounding mountain peaks, which have of course greatly influenced the design of the conference rooms. The important thing is that nothing now stands in the way of open and direct communication between employees, their questions or their ideas.