AXA Insurance Headquarter

The Middle East has now become a land of advanced experimental design and of fertile interaction between customer needs and the energy of designers. The philosophy of our design firm is based on the objective of designing new frontiers on aesthetic, emotional and intellectual maps of the world, has been masterfully applied to the project of Axa Headquarter, located along the bustling bay of Manama, in Bahrain Bay. A long blue shape of sixth floors cut in the middle and at the lower corner by white Islamic skin glass pattern forms the imposing building. A further tribute to local traditions is found in the geometries of the volumes, decomposed, oversized and transformed into a geometrical shape of the building. The diagonal planes not only draw a dynamic and singular external aesthetics, but form the backbone of the complex, allowing designers to create a versatile building, capable of carrying its outer skin inside. The external shapes breaks in the interior spaces, designed for the maximum comfort of the users and employees, modern comfort offices with all the facilities including multi-function auditorium. The layout of the custom-made workstations varies according to specific organizational needs. The building has a ground floor and six floors of offices and four underground floors containing 220 parking lots. A lobby characterizes ground floor and retail areas while floors 1 to 6 are characterized by open-plan layouts, designed to promote efficient work and idea sharing. Here custom-made workstations are designed to offer maximum flexibility. They can be adapted to workers’ requirements and are easy to move around. The first floor contains a multimedia room and training room. Every element is calibrated with meticulous attention to every single aspect of the design: for example, the use of the company’s colors on the workspace floors and in other architectural details , the use of a volcanic stone that gives a good power energy to the environment to clad the main lobby and lift lobbies walls and the use of glass partitions to make the meeting rooms more private, while maintaining the openness and brightness of the space. The need for acoustic comfort due to the presence of numerous reflective windows, led the designers to use acoustic sound-insulating product in natural wood, which became a structural part of the of the surfaces in the passage areas, as well as in the meeting rooms and multifunctional rooms. Spaces created have satisfied all the conditions of a stimulating, dynamic and contemporary work environment. The design guarantees the highest quality of workspaces also supported with aesthetic choices and ideal furniture. The building was designed as LEED green building and most of the materials used for the construction and for the interior are suitable to be certified green and ecological.