INSIGHTS

2019.07.29

R&D DISCUSSION Vol. 11

A workplace that fosters innovation
Changing the environment changes the way you work [Part 2]

Tetsuo Kobori Architect

R&D DISCUSSION TOP

Q: How do you proceed with the project?

A: In the project for "NICCA INNOVATION CENTER" completed in Fukui City, Fukui Prefecture in 2017, a workshop for "work style reform" that the client had been working on in advance was planned separately from the design. Professor Nobuyuki Ueda of Doshisha Women's University served as the facilitator, and when I visited the first time, the employees were actively expressing their opinions, so I was convinced that I could use this in the design and wanted to be actively involved. Professor Ueda is an expert in learning environment design who has been researching learning and workshops since the 1990s, when the word "workshop" did not yet exist in Japan, and he proceeded with a method of thinking about work styles from four perspectives, "space (K), tools (D), activities (K), and people (H)," called the "KDKH model." These four are like a four-wheel drive, and are based on Professor Ueda's idea that changing work styles and changing the environment are linked. If someone says they want to do a fashion show, they will talk about creating a space like a stage, and then other people will say that if such a space can be created, they will do a play. The discussions were not based on a pre-established harmony, but on a relationship of constant interaction. Professor Ueda was in charge of activities and people, and I was in charge of space and tools. I think the key to the success of the project was that the work style reform and design were linked together. Since we are a one-off manufacturer, I think it is very important to think together with the users about what kind of activities we should do here.

Q: "NICCA INNOVATION CENTER" is not only a workplace with a large atrium, but also has a distinctive feature in that the first floor is a public space.

A: Our client, NICCA Chemical, is a major manufacturer that develops and manufactures chemicals used in textile processing and hair cosmetics for beauty salons, with surfactant technology at its core. I'm sure NICCA Chemical technology is used somewhere in the clothes you wear. The project was to rebuild a research building where about 500 people work, but it's a big family-like company that is unique to Japan, and the researchers get along well with each other, but once they enter the lab, they rarely come out. There are almost no opportunities to meet people on other floors, and there is no externalization of knowledge. So, we decided to first bring everyone out. We arranged the "laboratory" and "mechanical balcony" around the open-ceiling office space "common," and created a main street to connect all the departments. The common is bright and pleasant, so everyone comes out. In addition to the main street, we also created a back street (alley). This makes use of ROGIC's knowledge that people tend to stay in dark, narrow places, especially when they want to concentrate. We have set up eight concentration booths on each floor, which are being used frequently.

Originally, NICCA Chemical often collaborated with universities and other research institutes on development, but they came to the conclusion that in order to bring about innovation, they needed to move beyond self-reliance, and so they made the first floor a "public commons" that anyone can enter. There are drawer-style showcases there that display the knowledge of each department. Since corporate showrooms tend to become outdated and not updated once they are built, they decided to assign one drawer to each department, so that they can display their knowledge responsibly. The cafeteria, which is connected to the public commons, has been named "Bazaar" and can also be used as an event venue.

NICCA INNOVATION CENTER. Utilizing abundant well water, the concrete slabs of the walls and ceiling are used as radiant surfaces.
The building is equipped with TABS air conditioning (Thermo Active Building System). [Photo: Takahiro Arai]
The "Bazaar," which is usually used as a staff cafeteria, can also be used as an event hall. [Photo: Kyoko Kataoka]

Q: Tell us about the projects you have been working on recently.

A: The new building of Baiko Gakuin University, "The Learning Station CROSSLIGHT," completed in Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi Prefecture this spring, is a project linked to the management reforms that were launched on the occasion of the 145th anniversary of the university's founding in the era of declining birthrates. The aim was to create an active learning environment where faculty, students, and the local community can interact, rather than the traditional classroom-based education where teaching staff and staff communicate one-way with students. The campus grid is tilted 45 degrees, and semi-open classrooms without corridors are arranged in a staggered pattern. Faculty and staff use a free address workspace. This unprecedented learning space was also derived from a workshop involving students and faculty and staff. There were quite a lot of students who wanted to interact more with faculty and staff, and it became an opportunity for faculty and staff to become more proactive.

I feel that workshops are particularly effective for projects with few design requirements. You have to come up with a lot of ideas and it takes a lot of time, but they gather information that is overwhelmingly important to the design, honest opinions and creative ideas that are not the most common denominator, and they overwhelmingly change the awareness of the users. Buildings that go through this process start being used the moment they are completed, and I have witnessed them evolve at an incredible pace.

In workshops, we use various communication tools, but one particularly effective way is to "make knowledge three-dimensional as a space." In our industry, it's the same as when you make a model out of a drawing, and the facts become overwhelmingly clear. There is a tool that Professor Ueda was involved in developing called "Cube." I think everyone is taking notes in a notebook now, but if you close that notebook, some people may look back at it once a year, and some people may never look at it. It is said that even if you take notes, your knowledge absorption capacity is about 5%. This is made three-dimensional, that is, put on the table in a cube, and first look at it yourself. Furthermore, we talk to the person next to us while looking at each other's cubes. From experience, we have found that this method makes it easier for lively discussions to occur even in Japanese people. I learned about this cube when I saw it being used at MIT Media Lab, and it is the same as the "graphic recording" that was done there. It is a profession that turns lectures and workshops like today's into manga on the spot, and makes all meetings three-dimensional. We also incorporate it into meetings with clients.

The reason we put effort into meetings and workshops is because we want everyone to experience that changing the environment can change how you think and what you say. The arrangement of chairs, the type of drink, etc. For example, if there was wine in front of me, I think I would start talking about something completely different (laughs). In short, when clients understand that the environment has that kind of magic or power, they are more likely to try different things.

Umeko Gakuin University “The Learning Station CROSSLIGHT”.
The first floor consists of a cafe restaurant open to the local community and a workplace with a free address system. [Photo: Takahiro Arai]
The learning area is made up of semi-open classrooms connected in a staggered pattern to create a space with good circulation.
[Photo: Takahiro Arai (top 2)/provided by Baiko Academy (bottom 1)]
Back to Part 2

PROFILE

architect

Tetsuo Kobori

Kobori Tetsuo

Born in Gifu Prefecture in 1971. After completing his Master's degree in Civil Engineering at Hosei University Graduate School of Engineering (Jinnouchi Hidenobu Laboratory) in 1997, he joined Kume Sekkei. In 2008, he established Kobori Tetsuo Architectural Design. In 2017, he won the Architectural Institute of Japan Award and the JIA Japan Architecture Grand Prize for "ROKI Global Innovation Center -ROGIC-" in the same year. In 2019, he won his second JIA Japan Architecture Grand Prize for "NICCA INNOVATION CENTER". He has received numerous awards, including the BCS Award and the AACA Excellence Award. His other major works include "Showa Gakuen High School" and "Minamisoma City Fire and Disaster Prevention Center", and his latest work is "Baiko Gakuin University The Learning Station CROSSLIGHT".

OTHER DISCUSSIONS

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.56

Mind change――
Aiming for a company that will develop into the future [Part 2]

Hidehito Kawahara, President and CEO of ALFA PMC

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.55

Mind change――
Aiming for a company that will develop into the future [Part 2]

Hidehito Kawahara, President and CEO of ALFA PMC

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.54

Mind change――
Aiming to become a company that will develop into the future [Part 1]

Hidehito Kawahara, President and CEO of ALFA PMC

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.53

Next-generation transportation and future urban planning [Part 2]

Professor Akinori Morimoto, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Waseda University; President, City Planning Institute of Japan

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.52

Next-generation transportation and future urban planning [Part 2]

Professor Akinori Morimoto, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Waseda University; President, City Planning Institute of Japan

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.51

Next-generation transportation and future urban planning [Part 1]

Professor Akinori Morimoto, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Waseda University; President, City Planning Institute of Japan

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.50

The world is full of possibilities
--Perceive playfully and take action! [Part 2]

Nobuyuki Ueda Professor Emeritus of Doshisha Women's College of Liberal Arts, Director of Neo Museum

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.49

The world is full of possibilities
--Perceive playfully and take action! [Part 2]

Nobuyuki Ueda Professor Emeritus of Doshisha Women's College of Liberal Arts, Director of Neo Museum

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.48

The world is full of possibilities
--Perceive playfully and take action! [Part 1]

Nobuyuki Ueda Professor Emeritus of Doshisha Women's College of Liberal Arts, Director of Neo Museum

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.47

Light is Life: Humans on the Solar Earth [Part 2]

Hiroyasu Shouji ShojiLighting Designer

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.46

Light is Life: Humans on the Solar Earth [Part 1]

Hiroyasu Shouji ShojiLighting Designer

R&D DISCUSSION Vol45

Building fire-resistant wooden buildings [Part 2]

Noboru Yasui, Architect and Chairman of NPO team Timberize

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.44

Building fire-resistant wooden buildings [Part 1]

Noboru Yasui, Architect and Chairman of NPO team Timberize

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.43

What is a sign? What is sign design?
What? [Part 2]

Toshiaki Yashima Information Designer

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.42

What is a sign? What is sign design?
What? [Part 2]

Toshiaki Yashima Information Designer

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.41

What is a sign? What is sign design?
What? [Part 1]

Toshiaki Yashima Information Designer

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.40

Data-driven urban development that makes people happy [Part 2]

Taro Hitokoto Director of Neural Pocket Co., Ltd.

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.39

Data-driven urban development that makes people happy [Part 1]

Taro Hitokoto Director of Neural Pocket Co., Ltd.

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.38

Japan's Strategy for Achieving Carbon Neutrality by 2050 [Part 2]

Takuzo Saito Director of the Evaluation and Assessment Department, Housing and Construction Center, Better Living Foundation

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.37

Japan's strategy for achieving carbon neutrality by 2050 [Part 1]

Takuzo Saito Director of the Evaluation and Assessment Department, Housing and Construction Center, Better Living Foundation

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.36

The "extra" required for architecture revealed through regional projects [Part 2]

Yasushi Takeuchi Professor, Tohoku Institute of Technology (-2021), President and CEO, Abisei Planning Co., Ltd. (2022-)

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.35

The "extra" required for architecture revealed through regional projects [Part 1]

Yasushi Takeuchi, Professor, Tohoku Institute of Technology (-2021), President and CEO, Abisei Planning Co., Ltd.

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.34

Before-Before Architecture Theory
Design techniques that unravel history [Part 2]

Toru Ajisaka, Professor, Kagoshima University

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.33

Before-Before Architecture Theory
Design techniques that unravel history [Part 1]

Toru Ajisaka, Professor, Kagoshima University

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.32

How to create a "water mass" that attracts adults
Turning aquariums into "media" through a customer-centric approach

Gen Nakamura Aquarium Producer

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.31

How to create a "water mass" that attracts adults
Sunshine Aquarium "Oasis in the Sky" [Part 2]

Gen Nakamura Aquarium Producer

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.30

How to create a "water mass" that attracts adults
Sunshine Aquarium "Oasis in the Sky" [Part 1]

Gen Nakamura Aquarium Producer

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.29

Wellness and Performance Management
How to Live in a New Era Vol.2 [Part 2]

Takayuki Hirai
Deputy Director of the CHO Office at DeNA Co., Ltd.; Representative of Ibuki LLC

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.28

Wellness and Performance Management
How to Live in a New Era vol.2 [Part 1]

Takayuki Hirai
Deputy Director of the CHO Office at DeNA Co., Ltd.; Representative of Ibuki LLC

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.27

A work style that brings about innovation
How to Live in a New Era Vol.1 [Part 2]

Takahiro Sakamoto
Representative of SSIN LLC, Advisor of KOKUYO Co., Ltd.'s Work Style Reform Project

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.26

A work style that brings about innovation
How to Live in a New Era Vol.1 [Part 1]

Takahiro Sakamoto
Representative of SSIN LLC, Advisor of KOKUYO Co., Ltd.'s Work Style Reform Project

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.25

Looking at the future design process through "Renovation" [Part 2]

Masataka Baba Architect

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.24

Looking at the future design process through "Renovation" [Part 2]

Masataka Baba Architect

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.23

Looking at the future design process through "Renovation" [Part 1]

Masataka Baba Architect

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.22

Architecture in Film: Special Effects TV and Comedy Films of the 1960s [Part 2]

Tatsuo Iso IsoArchitectural Journalist

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.21

Architecture in Film: Special Effects TV and Comedy Films of the 1960s [Part 1]

Tatsuo Iso IsoArchitectural Journalist

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.20

Pioneering the future with the power of design
Discovering Young Artists [Part 2]

Toshiki Kiriyama Director

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.19

Pioneering the future with the power of design
Discovering Young Artists [Part 2]

Toshiki Kiriyama Director

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.18

Pioneering the future with the power of design
Discovering Young Artists [Part 1]

Toshiki Kiriyama Director

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.17

The present and future of theater space
Research on Plaza Spaces Vol.3 [Part 2]

Masaji Ito + Kenji Maruyama Theater Workshop Co., Ltd.

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.16

The present and future of theater space
Research on Plaza Spaces Vol.3 [Part 1]

Masaji Ito + Kenji Maruyama Theater Workshop Co., Ltd.

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.15

How to create public spaces with 100% occupancy rate
Research on Plaza Spaces Vol.2 [Part 2]

Yuko Yamashita Yamashita, Network creator, Hiroba-nist

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.14

How to create public spaces with 100% occupancy rate
Research on Plaza Spaces Vol.2 [Part 1]

Yuko Yamashita Yamashita, Network creator, Hiroba-nist

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.13

Designing "social fluctuations"
Research on Plaza Spaces Vol.1 [Part 2]

Shoji Okabe
Evangelist at Snow Peak Business Solutions Co., Ltd., and co-representative of the nonprofit organization "Hama no Toudai"

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.12

Designing "social fluctuations"
Research on Plaza Spaces Vol.1 [Part 1]

Shoji Okabe
Evangelist at Snow Peak Business Solutions Co., Ltd., and co-representative of the nonprofit organization "Hama no Toudai"

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.11

A workplace that fosters innovation
Changing the environment changes the way you work [Part 2]

Tetsuo Kobori Architect

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.10

A workplace that fosters innovation
If the environment changes, the way you work will change [Part 2]

Tetsuo Kobori Architect

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.09

A workplace that fosters innovation
Changing the environment changes the way you work [Part 1]

Tetsuo Kobori Architect

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.08

Environmentally friendly architecture and healthy spaces drive the economy
ESG Investment and Wellness Offices [Part 2]

Shinichi Tanabe Professor, Department of Architecture, School of Creative Science and Engineering, Waseda University

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.07

Environmentally friendly architecture and healthy spaces drive the economy
ESG Investment and Wellness Offices [Part 1]

Shinichi Tanabe Professor, Department of Architecture, School of Creative Science and Engineering, Waseda University

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.06

The centripetal force of a single sketch that depicts a scene from the future [Part 2]

Tetsuo Fukuda Industrial Designer

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.05

The centripetal force of a single sketch that depicts a scene from the future [Part 1]

Tetsuo Fukuda Industrial Designer

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.04

Thinking about future redevelopment from postwar "buildings" [Part 2]

Shunsuke Kurakata historian

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.03

Thinking about future redevelopment from postwar "buildings" [Part 1]

Shunsuke Kurakata historian

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.02

Architecture: Perspectives from Industrial Design [Part 2]

Kozo Yamada, Director and Advisor, GK Design Corporation

R&D DISCUSSION Vol.01

Architecture: Perspectives from Industrial Design [Part 1]

Kozo Yamada, Director and Advisor, GK Design Corporation
R&D

Update : 2018.09.21

Tags

PAGE TOP