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eOffice A COMPLETE FLEXIBILITY IN THE HEART OF MANCHESTER! In June this year, eOffice, the revolutionary design-led serviced office, opened a branch in Manchester, Britain. As design guru Wayne Hemingway said during the opening ceremony: “The challenges to starting your own business are considerable. In spite of the fact that the creative and high-tech industries are worth over 20 billion to the economy, and are amongst the most dynamic and fast growing sectors of the UK, there is still a reluctance from commercial landlords – who think that either young or ‘lifestyle’ businesses are too risky – to offer affordable and flexible workspace in city centre locations. The eOffice concept certainly has a role to play in helping these businesses.” The unique 10,000 sq ft workspace is based around the three key elements of design, technology and people. It is aimed at individual entrepreneurs, startups and SMEs as well as national or even international companies requiring a Manchester presence, or meeting
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spaces without the usual overheads associated with grade-A commercial property. According to its founder and CEO, Pier Paolo Mucelli: “As the original modern city, Manchester was the obvious location for us to open. The eOffice concept is innovative, adaptive and forward thinking, appealing to the diverse SME market - particularly the creative and high-tech industries. We want to be part of the fast growth service industry in the North West.” There has been a paradigm shift in the design and culture of workplaces. Innovative workplaces have a profound effect on organizational culture and individual performance. Design is strongly connected to business success, with clear evidence that Britain’s most successful companies are using design to spur growth and productivity. eOffice has collaborated with leading IT, furniture and interior design specialists to create a stimulating and
sociable environment with diverse mini ‘business districts’ under one roof. There are several self-contained small offices and a spacious open-plan area with Resolve workstations designed by Herman Miller, that can be arranged individually or in clusters, as required by clients – plus ‘breakout’ spaces where members can enjoy a coffee while surfing the wi-fi network or browsing through lifestyle magazines and design books. The reception area looks more like the lobby of a boutique hotel than an office, with designer furniture from Kristalia and Hynch Milius, complemented by iconic images of Manchester by leading graphic artists. With wireless connectivity throughout, and even wireless printing, eOffice enables members to instantly ‘plug and work’. There’s a choice of meeting rooms (all with plasma screens), ranging from an 88-seat theatre-style conference facility with the latest audio-visual system, to smaller
eOffice 1 Portland Street, Manchester, M1 3BE www.eoffice.net
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rooms suitable for one-to-one interviews. The eOffice open-plan workspace allows for vital interaction, creating both valuable business and social contacts – not possible for home-workers or those occupying conventional office space – with a monthly ‘Net Thursday’ event for members and the community portal myoffice.net providing further opportunities for networking and sharing information and ideas. Besides full time serviced office space, the centre offers hot-desking and virtual office – which provides a prestigious M1 postal address, mail handling and dedicated telephone answering and message forwarding service – allowing professional back up even when you’re on the road. Virtual Office is available from £69 a month, hot-desking from £119 a month and workstations from £299. Initial members are eligible for a generous discount of twenty percent. The minimum tenancy is one month. eOffice is situated at 1 Portland Street, in the heart of Piccadilly, just a minute from the mainline train station and Metrolink interchange.
1 designed by Assembly Room
1 eOffice Team in Manchester 2 Wayne Hemingway
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‘MADE IN ITALY’ When it comes to creativity and masterful execution, Italy is the world leader in furnishing. “Made in Italy” is synonymous with outstanding quality, advanced design and traditional workmanship combined with high-tech manufacturing processes – qualities epitomized by Kristalia. Founded in 1994 by young entrepreneurs sharing a passion for design and jazz, Kristalia focuses on innovative projects, using materials adapted from fashion and sports. Behind their sophisticated technology and design is the handiwork of skilled craftsmen with years of experience, and scrupulous quality control. Every single detail of products is perfected. For example, to prevent scratching when removing and installing
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KRISTALIA via Calderano 5 33070 Brugnera (PN) Italy T +39 0434 623678 F +39 0434 624901 info@kristalia.it www.kristalia.it
extensions on their tables, a special technique called “flocculation” is used to apply a velvety protective surface – a technique used in the automobile industry for glove compartments. Most pieces are assembled, tested and packaged in Kristalia factories, so every single technical and qualitative detail can be rigorously checked. Pieces from the Kristalia collection are remarkable for their character, ease of placement, and suitability for everyday living. For prestigious offices and waiting rooms, there are custommade desks and meeting tables from the “Sushi Alucompact” range, “Mantis” swivel armchairs and “Face” and “Boum” stackable chairs. “Cu” occasional tables and “Spor” lights are ideal for the hall.
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DESIGN,TECHNOLOGY AND PEOPLE
In May this year eOffice, a designer-led serviced office with branches in London and Manchester, and Dainese, a leading manufacture of protective clothing for motorcyclists and dynamic sports, launched the Dainese Room, the first branded and sponsored meeting room in Britain. The design teams from both companies worked together to create a beautiful meeting space, with great graphic applications, contemporary furniture by Kristalia and state-of-the-art equipment, including wireless connectivity and high definition plasma TVs. Dainese Room is part of the eOffice serviced offices in Manchester, UK. eOffice manages the space and can let the Dainese Room to small or large businesses on an hourly or daily basis. Its opening coincided with the launch of the first Dainese D shop in Britain. As the company’s Marketing Director, Alessandro Zamuner, explained: “We have such stores in many major cities round the world including Milan, Paris, Moscow, Munich and Tokyo, and believe that Manchester fits in with our strategy of identifying key
locations around the world from which to showcase and sell our product.” The opening was attended by Rizla British Superbike stars Shane 'Shakey' Byrne and James Haydon, who signed autographs and answered questions from ITV's bike-racing presenter, Jane Omorogbe.
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3 1 James Haydon and Shane Shakey Byrne, riders of the Rizla Suzuki team 2 Ed Ashley Carter, Gemma and Peter Wall 3 Vanessa Neal and Gareth Jamie 4 model, Alessandro Zamuner, James Haydon, Pier P Mucelli and model
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COLLETTA DI CASTELBIANCO
ITALY'S FIRST CYBER VILLAGE
Colletta di Castelbianco is a medieval hill-top village restored by the visionary architect Giancarlo De Carlo. Nestled in the stunning Martime Alps, 20 minutes’ drive from the Riviera towns of Alassio and Albenga, the area is renowned for its wonderful restaurants and cuisine, amazing scenery and friendly locals. The restoration of the village combines a respect for the aesthetics of the ancient stone arching staircases and vaulted ceilings, with contemporary
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high technology. The village’s sophisticated infrastructure provides its inhabitants with the full spectrum of telecommunications resources. Apartments have high speed broadband and digital TV, for telecommuting or entertainment.
eOffice Business Centre in Colletta Due to open in November 2006, the eOffice Colletta Business Centre will offer individuals and companies a contemporary venue with the latest technology, ideal for seminars, training, think tanks, team retreats, working holidays or a teleworking lifestyle. It will have ergonomic workspaces, impressive meeting and conference
rooms, and relaxing spaces for taking time-out, featuring individually sourced designer furniture and contemporary art. Fast fibre optic broadband connection, wireless or wired connection at every desk and in the meeting/conference room, a telephone system with teleconferencing, fax/email bridge, print station, outstanding audio visual equipment (LCD screen, satellite TV, audio system). eOffice Colletta Business centre will
provide eight hot desk work stations all equipped with ergonomic desks and chairs, wireless and wired broadband network, print server. Bookable for periods from an hour to a week, the 6x4.5m meeting room provides ample space for sixteen people in stylish surroundings. The seminar room may be booked for periods from one day. The 6x7.5m room can be configured as a classroom, seminar, theatre, round table, etc, with
seating for up to 35 people. Access to eOffice Business Centre will be by prepaid swipe cards valid for periods ranging from 24 hours to a year. Accommodation packages, catering service, group and private dining can be arranged on request. The work is still in progress and eOffice Colletta Business Centre will be complete and available for hire beginning of November 2006.
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