The survey “The new workplaces” carried out by Nomisma was presented during the event organized by Europa Risorse SGR together with the case study “Welcome, feeling at work”, the biophilic workplace under construction in Milan -already illustrated on WOW in a previous article- which materializes the goals also confirmed by the survey.

The fascinating speech by Kengo Kuma offered an overview of his biophilic approach to architecture, while the scientist and botanist Stefano Mancuso, recognized among world changers for his innovative approach, explained his Fabbrica dell’Aria, the air purification system which, after the experimental application at Lombardini 22 we have already spoken about, will be used for the first time on a large scale in the Welcome buildings.

Download the complete Nomisma survey in Italian here.

The identikit of the ideal office that emerges from the Nomisma survey coincides exactly with the characteristics of “Welcome, feeling at work” the biophilic multitenant office complex developed by Europa Risorse SGR
“Born from the desire to make the office greener and sustainability of Milan, near the large lung of Parco Lambro – as stated by Antonio Napoleone, President of Europa Risorse SGR, who continues – We realized how important it is instead to think above all of the “people” who will work there and their psycho- physicist. By applying this thought we have created a healthier, brighter, more dynamic, social and surrounded by nature work environment, which is the context that makes people feel most at ease. In the “biophilic” environment people are happier to come in, get sick less and are more creative and productive and, in the end, this translates into significant savings on production costs for the company: a “win- win-win” between people, companies and the planet!”.

Kengo Kuma’s sensitivity and genius give the certainty that this office building under construction will really be able to respond to the wishes that emerge from the research.

“Until today, the direction taken by architecture has been to sever the relationship between man and nature. In the future, the role of buildings will be to connect the two worlds, exactly as happens in Welcome Milano, where architecture proposes new ways of working and lifestyles”, says Kengo Kuma.

“The biophilic architecture of the Welcome project is designed with organic elements and spaces that are as close as possible to a natural environment, with a view to fostering a creative and forward-thinking urban working life,” says Yuki Ikeguchi, partner at Kengo Kuma and Associates , designer of Welcome.

The main indications emerging from Nomisma’s research.

The survey conducted by Nomisma sees environmental sustainability playing an increasingly important role for businesses and workers, a collective responsibility that drives people to adopt increasingly eco-sustainable lifestyle choices.
The actions of the community are guided in the first place by love for nature (89%), followed by responsibility towards future generations (88%), by a sense of ethical and moral duty (85%), by the search for condition of life that favors wellbeing (82%) and finally love for habitat (81%).
This leads to the idea of a widespread commitment in adopting concrete actions in support of sustainability. 

88% of those interviewed consider it very important to take actions to limit the consumption of plastic and 83% believe that, to combat climate change, everyone must change their lifestyle.
The research also investigates the benefits and disadvantages of smart working and how this way of working is evolving.

The design of homes and office environments of the biophilic future is considered a fundamental element for almost all workers (95%).
In fact, workers want a workplace capable of supporting their psycho-physical wellbeing (87%), of increasing oxygen and purifying the air (86%), of promoting employee productivity thanks to a comfortable environment (85%) , contribute to the improvement of the corporate reputation (76%) to favor the presence in the office thanks to the brightness of the environments connected with nature (74%).

Do the current offices meet these expectations?

Only 37% of workers feel inspired entering the office and only 17% feel happy, while 30% feel anxious and 38% boredom.
The factors determining a negative mood at work depended on the search for greater economic satisfaction (45%), on a decrease in concentration due to unfavorable working environments (24% which rises to 41% for those who go to the office with a state of anxiety), from the search for more targeted and satisfying assignments (26%) and from the search for new career opportunities (24%).

The factors capable of determining the positive aspects of work are instead work flexibility (25%, which rises to 32% for those who go to the office feeling feelings of happiness), work-life balance (24%), consistency in ethics and corporate values (12%), and complete attention to personal wellbeing (8%).

What do the workers want? And the companies?

87% of the interviewees believe that one of the responsibilities of institutions and employers is to guarantee the psycho-physical wellbeing of the person in everyday life and in the workplace.

The workers therefore believe that the choice of the ideal company headquarters must be guided both by logistic, architectural and interior design criteria (linked to the structure of the building and the organization of light, greenery and spaces, as well as the location within of the city) and by soft aspects that impact on the professional growth of the person and on the organization of his work in the company.

Alongside the data from Nomisma’s research are those focused on savings made possible by the Welcome biophilic office.

Almost 2.5 million euros a year saved on 10,000 m2 for a tenant who will occupy the rooms for 10 years (source: Stok, The Financial Case for High-Performance Buildings, 2018).

In addition to 14 euros per sq m per year of savings in terms of electricity consumption: on a basic rent of 350 euros per sq m / year, the savings would be 35 euros per sq m / year.