Rabobank

In 2009 emma was selected to be part of a cluster of five design firms for the new Rabobank headquarters interiors in Utrecht. Emma designed several meeting rooms, concentration spaces, work desks and relax environments.

The project revolved around the question how to accommodate 6000+ workers of who none has an own desk. ‘Rabobank unplugged’ is the title of this new way of working. We designed a recognizable family of environments in which people can find intimacy in the otherwise vast and impersonal spaces. This intimacy gives them the confidence to work together in places that are not their own.

The objects are constructed by layering three different kinds of native wood in a multi-dimensional repetitive pattern. They address all senses; the sight, smell, touch, and even acoustics of these environments are so specific that people are able to find them easily and personally relate to them even when they cannot, under the ‘Rabobank unplugged’  regime, can call them their own.