Marsh & McLennan Offices – San Diego
ID Studios, Inc. have completed a workspace transformation for global insurance company, Marsh & McLennan, located in San Diego, California.
Marsh & McLennan Agency approached us about renovating their 85,000 s.f. offices, spanning 3 1/2 floors in a mid-rise building in the fast-growing UTC area of San Diego. They wanted a completely renovated space to support their new and future culture goals. When we met with them with regards to their design goals, we learned that they wanted the local office to reflect the lives of their San Diego employees and to make their space to feel like “home.”
San Diego is the most biologically diverse county in the United States where temperatures, landscapes, and wildlife can all vary greatly in only a matter of a few miles. We brought a diverse layering of materials, textures, and environments to embody the five habitats within San Diego which are Farmlands, Wetlands, Beaches, Mountains and Desert.
For example, when we thought of Farmlands, we conceptualized graphic lines of new growth, and bright colors layered with soil, minerals, and earth. We brought that vision into the new indoor/outdoor café and created a local coffee shop feel. This has become a popular space where employees love to hang out and is not only being used throughout the day but has brought together people and departments that might not otherwise have interacted.
Marsh’s Community Conference Center is utilized in house and is also available to the community at large as part of their community outreach program. In the CCC, a local beach is prominently depicted by a local photographer, Aaron Chang. His photo entitled “Black’s Beauty” is prominently displayed on one of the conference room walls while Shaw’s “Of the Grid” carpet in Coast 15456 provides organic shapes in beachy tones to further enhance the shoreline habitat feel.
We find that the most predominant trends that clients are requesting are open collaborative spaces, connection to the outdoors and natural light for all. At Marsh & McLennan, we have included an increased number of open and closed collaborative areas where planned and spontaneous meetings can take place. Since 100% of their employees use laptop computers, adding plenty of alternative work spaces is key to making the open office successful.
Designer: ID Studios, Inc.
Photography: Joel Zwink
