The Oklahoman Media Company, an award-winning news and information company, produces Oklahoma's daily newspaper The Oklahoman as well as news websites NewsOK.com and Oklahoman.com. Based in Oklahoma City, the company moved to a building downtown in 2015, renovating a 60,000 square-foot space. The new design's primary objective was to increase collaboration and transparency throughout the organization. Big Wing Interactive, the company's digital marketing services arm, also operates out of its new location.
Working with Butzer Gardner Architects, Lingo Construction and Spaces, Inc., an interiors and space planning firm, The Oklahoman Media Company set about creating an open, light-filled interior whose variety of workspaces would flexibly support all of the organization's daily activities, including reporting, editing, photography and video, advertising, web communications and business management, marketing, technology and customer service. To achieve a collaborative environment, the design team devised an open floor plan of 230 panel-based workstations using Dividends Horizon®, chosen for its low horizon lines. The workstations were paired with low-horizon Template® storage, a configuration that permits sweeping views of surrounding Oklahoma City.
The design team dispersed multiple collaborative areas throughout the workstations, complementing them with small huddle rooms for more private and focused group work. In addition, the team provided 11 conference rooms ranging in size from small to large, a break room, six small coffee areas, six copy centers and a video and photography studio. In these collaborative settings, the designers used a combination of Antenna® Workspaces and LSM Conference Tables. Both systems permit power access as needed while maintaining a clean, contemporary aesthetic. These areas support The Oklahoman Media Company's wide range and pace of daily work, while also fostering the social culture that is so critical to the news and media industries.
To further support a culture of openness and transparency, Butzer Gardner Architects designed glass-front private offices. In total, the new space has 50 offices, furnished with Reff Profiles™.
Because of the active, intense and often long workdays of a media company, the project also required attention to ergonomic support that would allow individuals to tailor their seated positions as needed. The design team selected Generation by Knoll® for the workstations and private offices. The chair's design flexes to accommodate a range of postures and styles, and is appropriately mobile and durable for an active workday. MultiGeneration by Knoll® with Hybrid Base, used in collaborative and conference areas, was selected for its support of natural movement and productive fidgeting. The team also installed Sapper XYZ Dual Monitor Arms and Act II Keyboard Platforms, which offer intuitive adjustment mechanisms and a compact profile.
The Oklahoman Media Company's new location is celebrated as a contemporary, light-filled space, a welcome transformation of a building that was once an eyesore. The company reports increased employee satisfaction due to collaborative planning and furniture that supports an active, fast-paced day. In general, the space has improved communication and team-based work.
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