Back in 2016 Bean Buro – a Hong Kong design studio with connections to France, the UK, and Japan – designed office space for Warner Music’s Hong Kong operations. Given that it had previously designed the recording company’s Beijing office, that wasn’t the first time Bean Buro had worked with Warner.

Now in 2022, the two organisations have just completed a third collaboration. Having outgrown its previous home, Warner Music Hong Kong has moved into a new Bean Buro-designed headquarters. Located at Kowloon Bay in an area that overlooks the site of the old Hong Kong International Airport, this latest office builds on the success of the first two projects.

In terms of design, the architects struck upon the narrative of a ‘music box’ as an energetic and sociable design for dynamic working. They were inspired by the idea of the large volume within the large floor plate representing a ‘music box’ that contains all the collaboration functions with flexible spaces.

Within this volume, they have included everything from a multifunctional welcoming reception, a signature LED wall, a DJ booth, movable lounge furniture, a board room, and a games room. And then, on either end of the music box, they have added two ‘neighbourhoods’ with collaboration spaces, small meeting rooms, café seating and phone booths.

Considering the client’s core business concerns, acoustics were a critical consideration. To ensure success on these terms, Bean Buro enlisted the assistance of a specialist acoustic consultant.

Significantly, the solutions included in the final design extend beyond what one might expect. While the recording studio, itself, includes a bespoke curvy ceiling panel and inverted fluting detail on the timber walls – both of which help to scatter sound, reduce reverberation, and produce optimal recording conditions – the acoustic solutions are also used elsewhere in the office.

The inclusion of things like 3D acoustic panels on the walls in meeting areas and acoustic partitioning between different zones help ensure the workplace is as employee friendly as possible. That means that everybody in the office – whether they are demoing music, working quietly, or collaborating with colleagues – can do so with minimal disturbance.

And they help ensure that the new Warner Music Hong Kong office is the dynamic, sophisticated workplace that its owners had hoped it would be.

Bean Buro
beanburo.com

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