When it was built in Manhattan in 1913, the Woolworth Building–at the time, the tallest building in the world and one of the most technologically advanced–used the early 20th-century version of healthy office design. Every office was within 10 feet of a window for natural light, and a unique air circulation system brought cool air up and hot air down to keep the spaces comfortable. Inside an office on the 24th floor, one new tenant now plans to design a healthy space that is state of the art for the new millennium.
At the Fast Company Innovation Festival last week, global architecture firm M Moser shared a look into what will become its newest office–for now, a raw, unbuilt space–and explained how it will meet the “platinum” rating for the WELL Building Standard, which scores buildings on features like how a space promotes fitness and nutrition and the quality of water, air, and light, all of which impact both employee well-being and productivity. For the firm, every office is an opportunity to push healthy office design as far as possible.