Koyama Company Head Office

Evolution from a Basic Logistics Company Building

Home to logistics and distribution as local industries, there are many companies in the area that began and have grown as family businesses after World War II. In this project, the construction of a new office building and renovation of the existing building were carried out to address such issues as the deterioration of the present building (built 35 years ago) and the increased number of employees.

The design comprises a new building and renovation of the existing head office building. The new building has three floors, with the first and second floors for company operations, and the third floor serving as the president's residence. The first floor of the renovated building is also for company operations, and the second and third floors are for the chairman and company founder.
As a company responsible for logistics and distribution such as storage, online sales, and transportation, the client had the vision of “a hotel for storage,” and the atmosphere of the entrance has been lightened in response to this vision.
The office floor layout used to be divided into sections, but a “hot-desking” layout was adopted to enable seating to be changed every day. The hexagonal tables can be flexibly connected and separated, making it easy to create a meeting space according to the number of people. There is no separation between departments with this seamless space, increasing conversation between employees, and leading some to say that “communication is more lively than when seating was fixed.” As a result, the new arrangement has helped to improve the flexibility, ease of work, and productivity of the Group, starting with communication.
Since the branches in the Tokyo metropolitan area operate 24 hours a day, the third floor of the new building is the president’s residence so that he can be contacted and give instructions at any time.
Although the renovated building is positioned as an annex, there is a meeting room on the first floor for meetings with customers, group meetings, and employee training. First-time visitors also enter the company from here. This building is connected to the new building by an external eave, and the two function as one for company operations. At the entrances of both buildings, the representative’s philosophy of “The HOTEL for Storage” is displayed and conveyed both to visitors and employees.

Glimpses could be seen of the company growing after World War II from a family business. At first, the company converted part of the residence into an office, but with the changing of the times, the number of online shoppers increased, and the company expanded due to the remarkable increase in demand for logistics and storage, and rapid growth of the delivery truck business, which took advantage of its location for next-day deliveries. A large employee workforce and local part-timers are indispensable for the development of the business, and it was necessary to change the image of the company not only for current supporters but also for new hires.
At first glance, logistics and storage industries tend to be perceived as blue-collar, but the image of such work as being dangerous, dirty and undesirable and has changed due to automation and workstyle reform, and the efforts of the company as a whole have led to the acquisition of new customers, with strategy and growth as the mainstays of the business.
By changing this image, we believed that the new building and renovation helped the company focus not only on “employment” but also on “future customer acquisition.”