“We’ve been creating paintings and sculptures for over 70,000 years and our relationship to bones is just as old. Everything around us – clothes, nuclear power plants, internet – can be traced back to the structure of bones.” – Hideki Tokushige, Japanese artist
In the centre of Manchester city stands a 200m tower; a sculptural skeleton born from two spines deformed and twisted around each other. The smaller green spine of flourishing gardens and green balconies wrap around the larger main spine comprising office spaces, a café with a green terrace and a restaurant. A design focused on movement and the organic, with sustainability and the user-experience at its core. This is The Osteon
In response to growing climate concerns, the tower utilises a sustainable and low-carbon timber-concrete hybrid structure. The main spine acts as a double skin façade, promoting passive ventilation within the building. Its green spine and green balconies employ a biodiversity scheme aimed at encouraging native Manchester wildlife. The landscaping strategy contains a rainwater harvesting system, solar panels and sustainable urban drainage systems in the form of ponds.
The design of the office spaces emphasizes the social and collaborative value of the workspace. They are divided into several zones, providing employees with a mix of areas including informal spaces, meeting rooms, private spaces for focused work and spaces for discussion. Biophilia is included both internally and externally to improve employee mental health, and emphasize the ‘organic and natural’ theme of the building. This is all to provide employees with an enriched office experience.
The Osteon represents a new approach to office design, pulling away from the monotonous ‘sea of desks’ and moving towards landscaped environments that can provide employees with a natural and conducive working space.
Link to tour of office space:
