Experience architecture live: Behind the scenes with CSMM

Munich, 06 June 2023 | On the occasion of the upcoming Tage der Architektur, the “Architecture Days”, which are taking place nationwide, planning and consulting company CSMM will be offering tours of four of the most striking office architecture and working environment concepts it has planned and implemented at various German locations. The guided tours will take place in Düsseldorf on June 17^th and 18^th and in Munich and Frankfurt on June 24^th, and will allow enthusiasts – whether experts or novices – to gain an insight into a variety of the company’s architectural projects at first hand – projects which embody CSMM’s workplace philosophy and showcase its range of services (architecture, interior design and consulting) in a holistic manner.

The Tage der Architektur will kick off on June 17th and 18th at CSMM’s own company location in Düsseldorf’s Medienhafen. On an area of 300 square meters, CSMM created an intelligent and stylish office, which showcases and embraces the company’s philosophy of workplace design: well thought-out places of possibility that allow for hybrid working arrangements. Thanks to a flexible floorplan, the office meets the growing demand for agile forms of working. A desk-sharing concept enables office units to be used more effectively and workflows to be structured more efficiently. “Our headquarters in Düsseldorf embodies our philosophy of workplace design, in which the office is turned into a place of possibility to allow for flexibility in use,” explains Sven Bietau, managing partner at CSMM and head of the Düsseldorf office.

Making the best possible use of architectural structures with good design that is both identity-establishing and flexible is an integral part of CSMM’s work ethic. In the process of site selection, the team thoroughly analyzed the market for existing buildings and made a point of selecting a property that had already been redeveloped in a future-proof way. “The Medienhafen has a lot of creative potential, and many of the old surrounding harbor buildings have been converted to allow for a modern use. We deliberately chose this building as it had been revitalized and thus matched our own vision of sustainable architecture.”

In Frankfurt, CSMM will be opening the doors to the law firm Herbert Smith Freehills LLP (HSF for short) in Frankfurt's Marienturm on June 24^th. For this client, CSMM took on the evaluation, planning and design of the company’s new office space. The result of this process was a corporate interior design concept that represents the HSF brand in an architectural way. The relocation entailed much more than a simple move between offices; it also marked the beginning of a reorganization of the company’s corporate culture and its work structures: the entire team had the opportunity to participate in the conception of the contemporary working environment, spanning a total of 2,500 square meters on three floors.

The deliberate departure from the previously spatially defined hierarchical structures now allows for new modes of working. “The team at HSF was very much in favor of establishing more flexible team structures that could be constantly reconfigured. We therefore opened up the space for more diversity and transparency in collaboration,” says Malte Tschörtner, managing partner of CSMM who was in charge of implementing the extensive change management measures in Frankfurt.

The identity-establishing new work concept which was developed for Munich-based fittech startup Freeletics can be toured on June 24^th. Indoor and outdoor sprint tracks, training areas, a communal kitchen and an open plan workspace showcase the Freeletics lifestyle. As one of the leading providers of AI-based fitness and lifestyle coaching, Freeletics commissioned CSMM to mirror its corporate culture on its 6,500 square meters of office space in the M4 building of Munich’s “Die Macherei” quarter.

The design concept included not only collaboration and retreat spaces, but also rooms for informal meetings and socializing, as well as lecture and sports areas such as the 35-meter indoor sprint track. The CSMM team created a large-scale open space concept, covering the five floors and including the 360-square-meter rooftop terrace with a 25-meter outdoor sprint track and calisthenics training area where employees frequently meet up as early as 7 a.m. to work out together. “In talking to the team at Freeletics, we quickly realized that the startup’s team spirit lies at the heart of what they do,” says Kerstin Littel, project manager at CSMM when describing the project. “That’s why we designed a large kitchen for communal breakfasts and lunches. It truly is the social heart of the building and where the company culture really comes to life.”

With a tour of the commercial property known as “Fritz”, which was built in 1973 in downtown Munich, CSMM will be demonstrating the potential that lies in revitalizing old structures on June 24^th. In this project, an innovative use concept was implemented that heavily benefitted from the revitalization measures that were taken: a redesigned façade and the addition of two stories to the building. The concept exemplifies how buildings can be transformed into contemporary structures in a resource-saving manner. Much attention was paid to ways in which modern building codes and standards could be met and to how the interiors could be designed in a way that makes them fit for the future.

“As architects, we want to design places of possibility that are ecologically sustainable, economically feasible and people-focused,” explains Timo Brehme, managing partner at CSMM. “For our 20^th anniversary, we are using the motto “Re:build the future” to demonstrate our approaches for making a positive contribution in the construction industry,” continues Brehme. “The architecture tours are a great opportunity to present our concepts and designs – and this time not only to clients and their employees, but also to everyone interested in sustainable development and the construction industry.”