– A “Work Active” enhanced office space and digital environment -
Protea Japan Co. Ltd. (Minato-ku, Tokyo; President: Mark C. Minter) has won the ‘New Office Promotion Award’ at the 35th Nikkei New Office Awards. Only 16 out of the 131 entries received this prestigious accolade, which recognises comfortable and functional offices.
“In line with our Live Active® philosophy to support people’s health and wellness across all stages of life, at home and at work, we are committed to providing the best environment for our employees,” says Protea Japan President and CEO, Mark Minter.
When the business chose the Prime Terrace Kamiyacho building in Kamiyacho, Minato-ku, Tokyo, the space was a brand-new, empty shell. This presented an excellent opportunity and a dedicated team was tasked with implementing a modern, “Work Active” concept design. It took six months to complete the project, and all employees continued to work remotely until the office opened in April 2021.
The interior was carefully planned to meet LEED* and WELL* Gold-standard sustainability and ergonomic design features. It is intended to cultivate collaborative, cross-functional, agile thinking and management processes. All elements of the office are connected electronically. Employees check in and out of desk spaces and meeting rooms, and remote working is fully enabled with the use of cloud-based services such as Office 365. A simultaneous interpretation system provides linguistic support for the diverse nationalities employed at Protea Japan. Digital signage, swipe card entry, Wi-Fi, and electronic whiteboards are just some of the other features that make this a modern working environment.
The varied work, meeting and rest spaces promote a hybrid, flexi-time way of working to empower employees to stay active, engaged and productive. They are encouraged to use all the communal workspaces, glass-enclosed meeting rooms, and a variety of seating options inside and outdoors. The electronic desk check-in system is intended to discourage people from always sitting in the same place and this “function follows form” idea enables them to easily mix with colleagues from all departments.
Sound masking and sound-absorbing materials are used to minimise noise, and lush plants are generously arranged in most areas, with large windows and other biophilic elements bringing freshness, greenery and clean air to the space and increasing connectivity to the natural environment. The added benefits of oxygenation is known to the ease tension and promotes smoother, more active meetings.
There is also a fully equipped Power Plate® studio that offers efficient, full-body workouts whenever employees need a quick break from their work. Alongside that is a modern spa room that is used for training and to film educational product videos.
“We are honoured to receive this prestigious award,” says Mark Minter. “We put careful thought into every aspect of the design. We believe that a functional office design and activity-based environment is crucial to achieve work-life balance. We would like to express our gratitude to the judges for their recognition of the importance of the work space in building employee engagement and promoting agile management best practice.”
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* Achieved LEED Gold status in 2021. Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is the most widely used green building rating system in the world. LEED certification is a globally recognised symbol of sustainability achievement and leadership. (https://www.usgbc.org/leed)
* Achieved WELL Gold certification in 2022. WELL is a performance-based system for measuring, certifying, and monitoring features of the built environment that impact human health and well-being, through air, water, nourishment, light, fitness, comfort and mind. (https://www.wellcertified.com/)