Revel Architecture & Design and Perkins+Will have collaborated to design the offices for Informatica, a cloud management company located in Austin, Texas.

Informatica, a leading enterprise cloud data management company, strategically selected a prime location in North Austin for its new employee-focused workplace with an overarching goal that the space would serve as a prototype for future branches. With design direction led by Revel Architecture & Design, in collaboration with the project’s architect of record Perkins+Will, the thoughtfully crafted space exemplifies Informatica’s core brand values, built to accommodate over 400 people. Utilizing post-occupancy analysis—from other Informatica facilities—of office culture, efficiency, space utilization and employee needs, the design partners were able to fully maximize data-backed design and planning.

As Austin quickly emerges as a new hub for high-tech companies with considerable competition for quality personnel, Informatica tasked Revel and lauckgroup with designing a space that would attract and retain the most qualified talent. The new Informatica office needed to merge cutting edge technology with the fashion-forward design that Austin is known for. Inspired by this, the design team, with the help of lauckgroup, incorporated features throughout that emphasize an employee-focused workplace.

No detail was left untouched in the design of the Informatica office. Custom steel and wood slat walls function as personal storage space, standing collaboration space, and dividers between corridors and open work areas. The reception area features specialty 3-axis cut millwork married with custom felt ceilings. Unique felt wall patterns including diamonds and full-wall gradients provide continuous seaming around wall angles. Revel also worked with Perkins+Will to source wood species native to Texas that worked in-situ while still appearing elevated.

Challenged by the long, narrow building layout and the need for more than 250 staff workstations, the design team opted for highly flexible workstations to accommodate the ever-changing team sizes of various departments and planned expansion on the floor. The open workstations offer support spaces close by in the form of standing collaboration zones, cozy “railway car” nooks, work rooms, team rooms and conference rooms. Not only does this ecosystem provide varied and flexible workstations for employees, but Revel’s two-layer circulation system in most of the open work areas helps to reduce visual and acoustic distractions.

Communal areas throughout the space take center stage and address the many needs of employees with a broad range of workplace preferences. From one large, centrally-located break room to smaller cafe and meeting areas, there are numerous options for impromptu team meetings or workspace away from their assigned desks.

Despite many overhead systems in the space, Perkins+Will helped coordinate daylighting controls, sound-masking speakers, network trays, ductwork, IT and A/V devices, fire-life-safety, all related cabling, sprinklers, acoustic panels and more by working with the contractor to unify all the trades. As a result, ceilings were kept high, open areas have clean visual lines and there is an overall sense of neatness and flow.

Informatica’s new space is an energetic work environment that respects deep concentration and allows diverse teams to stick close together. Additionally, the Austin office has become a benchmark for the organization, leading to implement the lessons learned into the complete renovation of the remaining Informatica’s Headquarters.

Designers: Revel Architecture & Design and Perkins+Will

Photography: Casey Dunn

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