Archi.ru: What exactly was the subject of the tender? How was it organized and how many companies participated in it?
Denis Kuvshinnikov: Kaspersky Lab has rented about 30 thousand square meters of office space in the new class A business center Olympia Park (the building of the center was designed by the British bureau John McAslan & Partners in cooperation with the Moscow bureau ADM) and plans to transfer all staff there its Moscow headquarters. Accordingly, during the tender, the general designer of the future office was to be determined, who would take upon himself not only the development of the design project, but also the design of all systems, including engineering, security systems and IT. Organized by Cushman & Wakefield, the tender was carried out in two stages - first, a long list of participants was drawn up (according to our data, there were about 12 companies there), and then a short list. At each stage, we held tender presentations for the customer and were pleasantly surprised by how deeply the staff of Kaspersky Lab was deeply interested in the selection process, paid attention to the details of the design process.. In particular, 8-10 people came to each presentation from the company, representing different its divisions, and each of them asked us very interesting and sometimes unexpected questions. For example, why, in our opinion, customers should opt for a Russian company, when it is possible to attract more experienced foreigners. I must admit that I personally adhere to a very clear position on this issue: a company that was born and raised here should cooperate with Russian architects, also because when developing a design project with a customer it is necessary to discuss the smallest details and nuances, and language the barrier in these matters significantly interferes.
After ABD Architects were shortlisted, another very interesting and, in general, unconventional round of the competition took place. The chief architect of the project was supposed to give the customer a tour of his already completed project and in practice show how certain design solutions work. We chose the headquarters of Siemens as the object of the show, Mikhail Gumankov and Fyodor Rashchevsky conducted the excursion, as well as representatives of Siemens itself, who spoke in detail about how they are settling in their new headquarters. It must be said that Siemens and Kaspersky Lab have a lot in common: both companies have gathered all their divisions under one roof (more precisely, the Lab is just going to do this) and are mastering a fundamentally new structure of office space. I think this excursion played a role in our victory.
Archi.ru: And in what conditions does Kaspersky Lab work now? And which company envisions its new headquarters?
D. K.: Now the headquarters of "Kaspersky" is located in the "Diapazon" business center of class B, which is located in the north of Moscow, near the metro station "Oktyabrskoye pole". The office is a long, narrow floor cut into two parts by a corridor, on either side of which are different departments. The company has been based there for several years and has long outgrown this office - both in terms of quantity and its status in the Russian and world markets. Olympia Park is a modern business complex consisting of 3 five-storey buildings connected by an underground passage. There is also a spacious parking and a dining room underground, and next to the office buildings there is the Khimki Reservoir, a yacht club, and various sports facilities. Plus, as already mentioned, today the divisions of "Kaspersky" are located in several offices, and they all need to be combined with a margin for the potential growth of the company. That is why two out of three buildings were rented, with a total of 10 floors.
As far as I know, it was the modern architectural solution and the large floor area that were one of the main arguments in favor of choosing this particular complex. In the language of the company, these floors are called “pancakes” and they are much preferable to the tower, which clearly shows how horizontal connections are stronger in the company than vertical ones, and how important communication with employees and team organization are for customers.
Interestingly, already at the very first negotiations stage, the company's management let us understand that status is far from the most important thing for Kaspersky, and the main emphasis in the project should be on the correct organization of the working space, to create conditions for professional and informal communication. The category of VIP zones, for example, is completely excluded from the project: there will be no special dining rooms for the management, no separate reception, no lounges for the top echelon. We are even discussing the possibility of using the executive's office, which is often away, in his absence as a meeting room. Honestly, we were very surprised by this kind of democracy. We are impressed by this approach to the organization of office space and we expect to create an extremely interesting, modern office.
Archi.ru: Do I understand correctly that transformable spaces are at the heart of the design project of Kaspersky's headquarters?
D. K.: Now we are working on creating a properly functioning office, developing circulation zones, meeting rooms, auxiliary zones and separately working out and discussing various options for organizing workplaces. We pay great attention to the communication of the company's employees. So, on each floor we are discussing the possibility of organizing a patio overlooking the Khimki Reservoir - a space of about 100 square meters with a kitchen and a coffee point that can be used for celebrations or presentations of the entire department. We design various meeting areas, both open and closed. Plus there will be a common area on the ground floor where all company employees can gather. There will also be a conference area for 200 people, consisting of three transformable conference rooms. The idea of creating a museum of the company's history and a zone for working with the press are also being discussed. Also on the ground floor, meeting rooms for external meetings will be concentrated - this is very convenient from the point of view of security and from the point of view of logistics. In the central building (out of three) there will be more of them, and in the second less. As for the working areas, we do not make them completely open - on the contrary, the workplaces are "diluted" with chamber recreation areas, meeting rooms, low partitions. Thus, we get a so-called "zoned openspace", but employees do not have the feeling that they are working in a factory or in a call center.
Archi.ru: The Siemens headquarters project focused on ergonomics and energy efficient technologies. To what extent are these things of interest to the Russian company?
D. K.: Of course, they are interested, but, as they say, within reasonable limits. The company does not have ambitious plans to certify the office by LEED or BREEAM, but there is a desire to use reasonable technologies. We are discussing the possibility of controlling light using daylight and presence sensors. In addition, RBTT will take care of all the engineering systems, which will improve the building's air conditioning system so that the premises can be cooled down even in winter.
Archi.ru: How long is it supposed to fully develop and implement this project?
D. K.: Throughout the year. In 2012, Kaspersky Lab plans to move to a new office.
