FOCUS & CREATE OFFICE SPACES

This office is a beehive of activity without all the bee clichés

• Tulin Artan Aug 20, 2019
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Before founding ecobee in 2007, CEO Stuart Lombard was on a mission to reduce his family’s carbon footprint and save money. When his family returned home one winter day to find their house freezing, he knew there had to be a better way to both conserve energy and save money. Being an engineer, it was then that he decided to build his own thermostat. It was on that day, that ecobee was born.

Interior Designer: Tulin Artan, ARIDO
Design Firm: Ray Inc.
Project Photographer: David Whittaker

The relocation to the old Bank of Canada building at 250 University Avenue in combination with a limited budget, necessitated trade-offs to create the loft style look. Ecobee’s thermostat is marketed as helping customers to “maximize comfort and savings without compromising your lifestyle.” The design followed suit.

Lombard and his team sought a space that didn’t have the traditional corporate office feel, had a large lunchroom style space for town hall meetings, and no obvious ‘beehive’ imagery. A subtle space that captured the start-up company’s casual, young vibe was their goal.

Ray Inc incorporated their key brand elements like simplicity, a sense of play and approachability with an industrial tone. Reclaimed wood and steel also emphasize the sustainability element.

The design team placed workstations closely together to foster ideas and exchange, which allowed a front-facing client area and lunchroom to have more space. Every employee has access to natural light and views of the outdoors.

A project for this company would only serve half its purpose if it neglected the environmental impact. The design team re-used existing carpet under the workstations, linear office lighting was repurposed, while a newly exposed concrete floor was polished to appeal to the client’s appetite for raw materials.

According to their CFO, Jon Prosser, “The designer was fully committed to us throughout the project and expertly interpreted our vision to create a unique office design truly embodying the ecobee brand. They sourced, scheduled and managed the entire project for us completing it within budget and timeframe. We were thrilled with the outcome and would not hesitate to recommend them or use them for future projects.”