BTS: Take a tour of Koskela’s WorkHub™ office

The shift to hybrid work coincided with Koskela’s relocation to Sub Base Platypus, North Sydney. 

It was an opportunity to practice what we preach, and Koskela’s new office is fully fitted out with the WorkHub™ collection. 

What’s WorkHub™? The collection comprises two product families – Jacob and Boobook – plus a range of agile accessories to transition workplaces (like ours!) to the new hybrid work norm. 

What makes WorkHubgreat? 

  • The products are repairable, mostly onsite. Koskela is the only supplier in the market to offer removable covers for upholstered booths, which prolongs their quality use. 
  • Manufactured in Australia, so the lead-time is 8 weeks, the factories are gold-standard, and the carbon from freight is significantly reduced. 
  • Koskela is a Certified B Corporation® that is committed to absolute zero carbon emissions (no offsets) by 2030

See WorkHub™ in action on our office tour... 

First stop, the Jacob WorkHub™

Photographer: Nick DeLorenzo

Jacob WorkHub offers the ultimate small meeting space. An oasis of calm in Koskela’s open plan office. The upholstered booth comfortably seats five, and with the AV package, it’s easy to dial in colleagues working remotely. 

“This quiet and roomy booth is our go-to for virtual meetings with clients. The AV system is optimised so they can see and hear our whole team.” Lilia, Project Manager 

Next stop, the Boobook collaboration zone 

Photography: Nick DeLorenzo

Also pictured: Jack whiteboard, Warrawee desks, Jimmy caddy, and Joey toolbox.  

Boobook is a screening system that creates zones for collaboration or focus. It’s a sustainable alternative to building meeting rooms. Boobook is partially made from materials diverted from landfill (Woolpack and Replas), and its modular and reconfigurable if an organisation’s circumstances change, or if they move. 

The Warrawee desk is on castors for people to easily reconfigure. Its standing height so people can literally think on their feet. The Jimmy caddy is where the remote controls for the TV are kept, otherwise they would quickly go walkabout! Every Koskela staff member has a Joey toolbox, which live in our designated lockers. It stores all our work essentials – pens, measuring tapes, emergency snacks – and doubles as a laptop stand. 

“I use this space to host our global team WIP every week and it works seamlessly for dialling in the warehouse staff.” – Rachel, Work & Learn Leader 

Now, head to the Jacob phone booth 

The Jacob phone booth is amazingly soundproof. Acoustically tested, it has a Measured Insertion Loss of 9.9 dBA, which in layman's terms means sound transmission is halved.  

“Me again! I’m always darting into this phone booth because my voice goes up a few decibels on calls and it helps muffle the sound.” – Rachel, Work & Learn Leader 

Stop by the Jacob Hideaway

Also pictured: Mille chair on castors 

There are two of these back-to-back Jacob Hideaways in the office, creating a bank of four desks for individual work. The upholstered walls block out sound and visuals, making it easy to concentrate on the task at hand. 

Like all the upholstered products in Koskela’s WorkHub™ collection, the Millie chair has removable covers, which can be cleaned when needed to keep them looking like new. At the end of their functional life, we can recycle the old covers and get new ones made, without replacing the whole product. 

Photo: Anson Smart

“These Hideaways are the first spots to get nabbed every morning. I guess it’s a case of the early bird gets the worm, because they really help you focus and get so much work done.” – Alex, Brand & Content Leader 

Visit the Boobook booths 

Photo: Anson Smart

Also pictured: Curlew sofa, Disc table, Laptop table 

Two standalone Boobook screens make three booth seating zones, which we consider a very economical use of space! We’ve fitted these booths with the modular Curlew sofa, which can be mixed and matched with single, double and corner units. Elevated on tubular steel legs with a firm foam body, this is an elegant soft seating option for the office.  

In one booth we’ve included a Disc table, and in the other, two Laptop tables, to offer a range of setups. The furniture mix can be reconfigured, depending on how people want to work. 

 

“I like to sit here with my teammates to do a WIP. You can work and catchup, so it feels social but still productive.” – Jess, Live Leader 

Final stop, the Anssi table 

Photo: Anson Smart

Also pictured: Sled Base Bar stool

Although not technically part of Koskela’s WorkHub™ collection we are very enamoured with the 20-seat Anssi table and Sled Base Bar stools in the kitchen and could not resist showing you as the final stop on the tour. 

Like almost all Koskela’s tables, the Anssi table can be integrated with power and data, and for this table we integrated power so people can work here if they choose to. But you do have to compete for a spot at lunchtimes!  

The leather stools pair beautifully with the terracotta splashback tiles, repurposed from Croatian roof tiles! The entire kitchen was, in fact, transplanted from our Rosebery office to prevent unnecessary waste. 

“This long table brings everyone together which helps us maintain our connections.” – Sasha, CEO 

Browse our entire commercial furniture collection for more modern workplace and office furniture.