On Tuesdays the 3rd of May we went to go see the newly converted Rex Truform building. The building is well known to Capetonians with its prominent position on Victoria Road at the beginning got Woodstock. 

The original building, completed in 1948 and designed by  Andrews & Neigeman, and the later extension were all influenced by internationally renowned Architect Max Policansky who designed the Judges Clothing and Cavalla Cigarette buildings opposite and for whom Neigeman had worked for previously.

The conversion of the building into office space has achieved attention due to its innovative design and use of space. This is partly the reason why we went as a group to meet with the designer and examine how interior design has an effect on the facilities management of a building. Its main tenant is IInet and the premises is being used as a call centre. 

On arrival we were told how each level is catered for a different geographical location based on the area on which the IInet consultants were contracting with. IInet had decided to create a office/call centre in Cape Town due to our trading times and cheap labour. Therefore each floor has been designed to match the location in which the customers are calling. The building therefore has floors designed around New Zealand, Australia and Cape Town. Below is an image taken from google of the interior of the Australian floor:

As it can be seen from the image above, the wall has various 'Aussie Jargon' written on the wall. This interior design creates an environment suited to the business strategy of the company. It allows for the employees to get a feel for the people they are talking to and a background into where they live. 

It was interesting to see that the floors were very open and spacious which is not typical of a call centre. The design had been adapted to incorporate larger more open communal areas and meeting rooms rather than private areas. This was due to the nature of the company being one where privacy is not very important. 

It was interesting to see how the design incorporates communal dining and relaxing areas. In the one section of the buildings there is a place where there are pool tables, punching bags and table tennis tables where the employees can go and let off some steam. There are also large screen on display which show team progress and daily activity to motivate productivity. 

Overall the outing to Rex Truform was really interesting. It showed how the interior design compliments the facilities management of the building. The utilisation of space and design is a great way to promote worker productivity!