Skanska office unit in Poland and Microsoft with local partners have presented the most advanced technologies for office building presentation and visualization. The joint venture is a pioneer project in the Central Europe. Owing to the solutions supporting state-of-the-art offices, HoloLens mixed reality glasses allow you experience space in an innovative way, and get you to the heart of the Wave project and the office of the future. New technologies allow larger groups of people to simultaneously see the hologram of the building in mixed reality, observing it in the 1:1 scale, despite the fact that it is still under construction. Owing to the use of mixed reality, it is also possible to see virtual indoor design of an office building and to make changes in real time.
In February, Microsoft and Skanska in Poland signed the agreement on strategic cooperation which assumes knowledge exchange while working on breakthrough innovations for the office building industry. The first few months of cooperation together with external partners have resulted in developing Microsoft Azure-based technologies using the opportunities offered by mixed reality. Thanks to them, it is already possible to use image, sound, and interpersonal interaction while wearing HoloLens glasses to provide a common experience of the Wave project, the first Skanska office building in Gdansk. The guests can understand the idea of the investment architecture, its location, and transfer to the amphitheater among the buildings or the future office, hear the sounds typical of such spaces or to look around. Potential tenants and local residents can also look at the office building from all sides, and find out about the most important information related to the area, such as available bus or tram stops, service outlets and catering venues.
Wave office building is also the first Skanska project using the SQAR solution presented by one of the finalists of the Urban Quest contest organized by Skanska, Microsoft, and Business Link for young technological companies. Based on Microsoft Azure, it is possible to see the future investment in the 1:1 scale, in real space, on a mobile device. Furthermore, Spantium has created an application for generating virtual office interior design. Owing to this, tenants can see the interior design of the office and quickly modify it during a walk through the Skanska office building.
The mixed reality technology uses holograms to transform digital information outside the 2D screens into the 3D world. HoloLens is a breakthrough as regards opportunities of using artificial intelligence (AI). It allows people to interact with holograms in physical space, which means they can view and rotate the holographic images in any direction in the air or in conjunction with actual physical items.
– Thanks to linking the two perspectives, IT and real estates, together with Microsoft, we set a new direction for PropTech development in Europe. We perceive a vast potential of new technologies we want to use for complex presentation of our offices to prospective tenants and partners long before the building is ready for use. Owing to Microsoft technology, together with our partners, we have developed high quality solution not only to support commercialization of our office buildings, but to understand their potential and architecture, which is a breakthrough in the real estate industry – says Anna Tryfon-Bojarska, Innovation Manager at Skanska office unit in Poland.
– Mixed reality in HoloLens connects the Wi-Fi device with applications and solutions that help people to learn, communicate, and cooperate more effectively. The device has been designed to help bring companies like Skanska into the future. The future of modern workplace that supports the development of employees and the company using the latest tools, such as Microsoft 365 and Surface for Business devices – adds Anna Wesołowska, Senior BG Lead Surface and HoloLens at Polish Microsoft Subsidiary.
Wave full of technologies to support employees
The office building will be equipped with the innovative Connected by Skanska system to facilitate daily functioning in the office space, as well as building management. Users will be able to move around the office using their smartphones without traditional access cards, prepare virtual invitations with QR codes for their guests, as well as book parking places at the underground garage for them. Skanska and Microsoft cooperate on developing the Connected by Skanska system in order to better adapt it to future needs of office users.
At the same time, Wave is probably the first office building in northern Poland to be realized according to the assumptions of the WELL certificate. Offices with the certificate are full of solutions that focus on health and wellbeing of people. Wave will provide more fresh air, appropriate access to daylight, or lighting adapted to biological rhythm of people, which will result in less fatigue of the employees.
At the same time, Wave has been design to support alternative means of transport: the project is to provide approximately 400 parking places for bicycles, infrastructure with changing rooms and showers for cyclists and joggers, scooters and electric car stations, to be used by future employees.
Wave – key facts and numbers:
- Leasable space of Wave Phase 1: approx. 23 300 m2. GLA. Th whole complex: approx. 48 000 m2.
- Scheduled deliverance of Phase I to market: June 2020
- Certificates: LEED, WELL, Building without Barriers
- Additional benefits to tenants: Connected by Skanska
- General contractor: Skanska S.A.
- Author of the architectural design: medusa group