The best escape route from a meeting at the Denmark office of toy brand Lego is down a metal slide.
Completed by designers Rosan Bosch and Rune Fjord in 2010, the open-plan office in Billund incorporates block-like display stands, model-building tables and a library of Lego pieces.
The eight glass-fronted meeting rooms, each painted a different colour, are located on a first-floor mezzanine that wraps around the building’s perimeter.
On the ground floor, circular holes punched through a wooden table in the coffee area create both leg room and planting beds, while lounge areas are dotted between workstations and display cabinets.
If you like Lego, you should also check out our earlier story about a greenhouse made from the building blocks.
Photography is by Anders Sune Berg.
Here's some more text from Rosan Bosch:
LEGO PMD
LEGO’s designers are the luckiest in the world – they get to play with LEGO all day long! Now, the designers of LEGO’s development department, LEGO PMD, has a physical working environment that corresponds to its playful content – a working environment where fun, play and creativity are paramount and where the physical design gives the adults a chance to be part of children’s play.
With the values ’fun’, ’unity’, ’creativity & innovation’, ’imagination’ and ’sustainability’ as basis for the design, LEGO PMD has become a unique de- velopment department where the designers can become part of the children’s fantasy world.
LEGO doesn’t just create fun for others – at LEGO PMD working is fun!
In order to create a design that corresponds to the focus on play, innovation and creativity, imagination has been given free rein.
Across the room, an existing walkway has been transformed into an oversized sitting environment, where a light-blue padding turns the walkway into a light and soft cloud.
The cloud unfolds and expands into sofas, sitting space and a slide that connects the two floors in a fun and playful way.
The idea of scale is challenged with design elements such as huge grass wall graphics and a giant LEGO man and tables with built-in bonsai gardens, thus playing with perception and scale – who is big and who is small? Where does work stop and imagination start?
Through the physical design, the children’s fantasy worlds become part of the everyday, creating the setting for the creation of new design for new games and play.
Furthermore, the design of LEGO PMD makes it possible for the designers to work closer together. At ground floor, the open space at the centre of the room creates a dynamic flow where informal meeting pla- ces create a setting for social interaction and exchange of information.
Towards the sides, there is room for concentrated work, and specially designed means of exhibition such as the show-off podiums and the model towers give the designers a chance to display their work to each other, facilitating the sharing of knowledge and ideas across the department.
On the first floor, an expansion of the balcony has made room for five small and three large meeting rooms in each their own colour with glass facades and a view of the large, open space.
A Fun Zone with a yellow table bar creates room for relaxation and social interaction, where a number of building tables for children make it possible for LEGO’s youngest employees to test the newest models and products.
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The new LEGO PMD is the children’s universe where imagination reins free – for children and designer alike!
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Project Title: LEGO PMD
Clients: Lego System A/S
Designers: Rosan Bosch & Rune Fjord
Location of project: Lego System A/S
Address: Systemvej 6
Postal code: DK- 7190
City: Billund
Country: Denmark
Year: 2010
Project: Design and interior decoration
Scope: 2000m2
Materials: Polyurethane floor, carpet, dry wall, acoustic bats w. graphic print, glass partition walls, acoustic ceiling, furniture