ING Bank Śląski S.A., established and headquartered in Katowice, has turned its former call center into a modern training and conference facility. Opened last year, it covers the area of 675 sq. meters and was designed by the Małeccy architectural studio.
ING had invited architects into a closed competition to design interiors of the center. The best project was proposed by Małeccy and the bank employed the Katowice-based studio to implement their ideas.
The center is dominated by bright colours. A load-bearing steel structure of walls of the building is covered by double milky glass panes. It also helps to increase their acoustic insulation. The project of centrally located conference hall and a mezzanine floor enabled to create a space for up to 140 people. The center can be divided into eight independent rooms possible to be arranged as training, conference or workspace areas.
The oval construction of the main conference hall is made of glass, its upper surface is made of steel. The curtains are in company’s trademark orange color. The center also feature a library on the mezzanine floor, a computer room and a rest area on the ground floor with chairs designed by Mies van der Rohe. The interiors are also equipped with high-tech solutions enabling for lighting, temperature, curtains and hardware’s remote control.
The ING Bank Śląski training and conference center is located in the headquarters at 34 Sokolska St. (the headquarters was designed by the Australian architectural office of Denton Corker Marshall). Małeccy got a honorable mention of the “Silesian Voivodeship Architecture” competition in 2011. The prize was awarded by the Katowice branch of the Association of Polish Architects (SARP) in the category of “interior of the year”.
