Wider colour spectrum, yet recognisable as police
When you walk into the new police station, you arrive in an open and bright entrance area. The ground floor and first floor are reserved for the basic team and detectives: the officers who take to the streets. For them, there are electrically adjustable sit-stand workstations, meeting rooms in various sizes, informal coffee corners and, last but not least, changing rooms – for which Gispen supplies no fewer than 600 wardrobes. The second and third floors are for the other departments, including the 112 control room. Tim: 'For the control room floors, conscious choices were made in the design in the colour palette. Because of the work process, the control room is quite a busy environment. That's why we applied soothing shades of green here.'
Michelle Zwiers, interior architect at Gortemaker Algra Feenstra, explains: 'An individual identity for different types of users was an important starting point for the design. From the corporate identity colours, we have created a wider colour spectrum for Hilversum police station: from dark blue, turquoise and fresh blue to green. By using different color schemes on the individual floors, recognizability is created but also its own identity and dynamics. In the restaurant on the first floor, where everyone is welcome, all colors come together on a large acoustic wall, a real eye-catcher.'
Specific design requirements
For the loose inventory, the police equipment has been taken into account. Officers must be able to sit comfortably with batons or holsters with a weapon and, if necessary, be able to move quickly through the rooms without damaging the furniture. That is why all seats on the ground floor have a hard finish that is solid and easy to clean, and chairs without armrests or extra wide seats have been chosen. The interchangeability of furniture was also examined, should departments grow or shrink. Furthermore, a good acoustic climate was desired. Michelle: 'All the art that has been added to the building has an acoustic effect, such as felting, wall-sized artworks and photos of the region from a drone perspective, printed on acoustic canvases. Gispen also installed filing cabinets with acoustic value.'
Tim: 'Gispen knows our organisation well and has drawn up a core range that meets our needs. This range can be maintained in Gispen's Circular Hub, an extra advantage.' We supplied from the Gispen range, among other things: circularly designed TMNL desks, ZINN office chairs, UT conference tables, Triennial lounge chairs, KOLM column tables, JUNA train benches and NOMI chairs. These chairs are used in many different versions and are equipped with a cover that can be easily cleaned or changed. We also supplied products from Hay and Casala.
Extras: project and cable management
The architect visited Gispen's Inspiration Centre several times with the client and users. We also provided trial placements of meeting chairs at the police station. Gispen provided two additional services: project management and cable management. Jeroen Ideler, account manager at Gispen, explains: "It involved large numbers of products to be delivered and a tight schedule. Then having your own project manager is worth its weight in gold.' Tim: 'Also a plus for us, one fixed point of contact who knows the ins and outs.' Jeroen: 'All deliveries went smoothly. Compliments to our drivers, for their driving skills in the middle of the center! Furthermore, our technicians made all workstations neat and ready for use, without cords or loose cables. So that everyone has a practical, ergonomic and safe workplace.'
How do you like it?
Tim: 'We are very happy with the result. Even though we have only just passed; Aesthetically, everyone is very positive. Now we are going to see how it works in practice. Colleagues will always have to get used to it, but we really included the end users in the process. Representatives from several departments went to have a look at the Gispen Inspiration Centre, employees were able to sit for a test; That does something to the experience. Hilversum Police Station has an exemplary role within the organisation: together with GAF and Gispen, we have succeeded in creating a beautiful and functional working environment for a wide range of end users.'
Photography: Lucas van der Wee
