Regenerative spaces in the enterprise: the BS Osimo case between Environmental Psychology and Biophilic Design
Today more than ever, workspaces are called upon to respond to new needs: psychophysical well-being, sustainability, corporate identity, and efficiency.
BS Osimo, a company active in the supply of interior design materials, decided to face this challenge by commissioning MeMlab – Mind, Emotion, Movement with the restyling of its operational headquarters.
The outcome? A regenerative environment designed on a scientific basis, where environmental psychology and Biophilic Design meet to shape a new way of living at work.
We talk with Rita Berto, environmental psychologist and PhD in perception and psychophysics, and Bettina Bolten, biophilic design consultant, both part of the MeMlab technical committee.
From analyzing to designing regeneratively: an interdisciplinary approach
The restyling project involved articulated and complex spaces: warehouse, commercial and administrative offices, showroom, meeting rooms, and an extended outdoor area.
“The transformation was based on an evidence-based approach, integrating environmental psychology and Biophilic Design,” explains Rita Berto.
“We applied the Reasonable Person Model to design environments that met inherent needs for understanding, exploration, and psychophysiological regeneration.”
The goal was not just aesthetic. The work environment was designed to promote psychophysical recovery, improve social dynamics and increase job satisfaction.
For Berto, “a regenerative environment is not only beautiful, sustainable and ergonomic: it is a place that reflects our evolutionary connection with Nature and responds to innate biological mechanisms.”
Renderings made by ArredoCAD
The Biophilic Design principles: nature inside the office
“Biophilic Design is based on biophilia, the innate human affinity with Nature,” Bolten explains.
“In the design for BS Osimo, we selectively applied the 10 themes of the Bolten & Barbiero protocol (2023), focusing on natural light, materials, flows, acoustics, and the connection between interior and exterior.”
Some key interventions:
• Optimized natural lighting and smart shading to reduce glare and avoid over exposure to the sun during warmer months.
• Natural and eco-friendly materials, particularly wood, which has played a central role in our history and is valued for its surface variance, knots, grain and color, managing to maintain a “natural” identity despite human processing.
• Plant elements strategically inserted to increase perceived quality and psychological comfort.
• Multifunctional spaces, zones for individual work and collaboration.
• Protection and control are two evolutionary concepts that have been incorporated to meet workers’ needs for privacy and personal space, enabling them to keep a good level of privacy while having proper control over whatever is happening in their immediate surroundings and outside.
• Flow management between operational and office areas, improving safety and wayfinding.
• Optimized acoustics with sound-absorbing ceilings.
• Neutral, natural colors to stimulate concentration and relaxation, with more vibrant accents where needed.
Renderings made by ArredoCAD
Environmental psychology applied: space and performance.
The design took into account the three pillars of the “optimal relationship between people and space”:
- Comprehensibility: clear rules, legible spaces, active participation in changes.
- Manageability: physical comfort, ability to customize, presence of regenerative spaces.
- Meaningfulness: identity of place, shared values, consistency with the brand.
“An environment that meets these criteria,” Berto adds, “improves performance, reduces psychophysical stress and promotes a sense of belonging. The main obstacles to well-being often come from neglected physical-aesthetic elements: environmental stressors, lack of privacy, uncomfortable workstations.”
The pre-restyling survey revealed the absence of four fundamental elements for psychophysical regeneration:
• Consistency
• Complexity
• Readability
• Mystery
Their right combination is the foundation of the positive perception of a space and its ability to generate psychophysical well-being.
Renderings made by ArredoCAD
Personal identity to build corporate identity
According to environmental psychology, enhancing corporate identity also means valuing individual identity.
“Spaces must allow each worker to express himself,” Berto says. “Territoriality, that is, the chance to personalize a corner, a workstation, promotes emotional attachment to the place, which is mirrored in greater involvement with the company.”
Challenges and opportunities: the real value of biophilic design
Like any innovative action, this one has also met with some resistance.
“One of the most common obstacles,” says Bolten, “is the difficulty in getting people to understand that Biophilic Design is not an exercise in style, but a functional choice, related to people’s health.”
Initial costs can also seem higher, especially for sustainable materials or customized solutions.
“But the return on investment shows up over time: less absenteeism, more productivity, more user satisfaction,” Bolten points out.
With creativity and focused design, it is possible to find biophilic solutions even with low budgets, without sacrificing regenerative quality.
Renderings made by ArredoCAD
A new way of working (and designing)
With the support of MeMlab, BS Osimo has transformed its headquarters into a place that welcomes, regenerates and inspires.
A space that not only improves daily work, but also consistently tells the company’s values.
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