As it turns out, garages are no longer the standard office set up for startups.
With an abundance of coworking spaces in Orange County and many under construction, there is no doubt that the spirit and concept behind this century-old idea is still thriving. Beyond startups, coworking spaces also have become a preferred work environment for organizations looking to expand into new regions or remote workers seeking networking and training opportunities.
While coworking has become widely accepted, this concept comes with its own mission, culture and set of values. In fact, there is a coworking manifesto leveraged by many design experts today as a transformative framework that can be applied to meet specific needs. Values described in the manifesto include collaboration over competition, community over agendas, and participation over observation and learning over expertise.
HanaHaus Experience
These concepts ring true in many of the coworking projects H. Hendy Associates has been involved with including HanaHaus, a new and innovative collaborative workspace in Newport Beach powered by leading enterprise application software provider, SAP.
The historic building used for HanaHaus is owned by Burnham Ward. The Lido Village Marina building previously held Newport Balboa Savings and Loan Co.
SAP found the flourishing tech industry in Orange County to be the perfect place to create a destination where ideas and capital connect, and was seeking an office space that seamlessly blends the companies two marquee segments—an innovation center and dynamic coworking environment.
HanaHaus was built on the notion that great ideas can spring from anywhere and the new workspace serves to inspire creativity and interaction allowing ideas to become reality.
To bring HanaHaus to life, the design team applied the “design thinking” methodology—a solution-based approach to problem solving—which enabled Hendy to extract key insights that were then used to program every inch of the space. Journey maps, which incorporated SAP employees and HanaHaus patrons and visitors were also studied and used to help inform the flow, layout and workspaces needed to meet the needs of each user type.
Complete with a two-volume open seating area, myriad conference and focus rooms and on-demand workspaces to collaborate and ideate around every corner, the choice of where to work is up to the user. The architecture of this historic building is a representation of embracing the old and finding inspiration in the new. To conserve the history and charm of the former bank building, Hendy preserved two original vault doors, one of which was flipped on its side to showcase the mechanics on both ends.
Walton is principal and project director for H. Hendy Associates.
