DEDANG DESIGN: Winner of World Design Awards 2025. In the internet age, “sharing” and “community” have long been frequently mentioned keywords. From small buildings to large cities, shared facilities and community-based operations are constantly forming diverse connections between people, businesses, and organizations. Against this backdrop, Keppel, a global asset management and operations company from Singapore, has launched KONNECT, a product that meets the needs of future spaces. At Keppel Jing’an Centre PAC, Keppel China’s flagship project, the question “How should the KONNECT as a shared meeting space be presented in a premium office building in the Jing’an core business district?” With this question, we embarked on a design exploration journey with Keppel.

A train carrying infinite excitement

The first KONNECT space is located on the third floor of the recently completed office building of Keppel Jing’an Centre PAC. Keppel hopes this space will serve the non-standard meeting and event needs of businesses throughout the building and the surrounding area. KONNECT, while symbolizing Keppel’s diverse product portfolio, also reflects the ultimate mission of this space product: connecting businesses and people, creating and winning through connections.

Based on this concept and vision, we liken KONNECT to a central station connecting myriad phenomena. Arriving at this hub, one boards the train of sustainability and, accompanied by a series of converging journeys, travels toward infinite brilliance. Numerous station-related imagery is incorporated into the space, including the train as a central visual focal point, the adjacent seating, the card-flipping information signage on one side of the reception hall, and the metal track paving the hall, etc. On the outdoor terrace, the track flips to create a circle, symbolizing a journey towards infinity. In the future, the train will stop at more stations in this city.

A needed non-standard gathering place

The client and we both understand that being needed is the most essential aspect of a space. The space has a total interior area of approximately 800 square meters, with an outdoor balcony of approximately 200 square meters. At the outset of the design process, we conducted two workshops with the client. We first conducted a comprehensive understanding of the target customer base, clarifying their preferences for the spatial ambiance and tone, as well as their key needs in various usage scenarios. We then conducted in-depth research on customer behavior in different scenarios, simultaneously collecting and analyzing customer experience data and key pain points. Based on the above systematic analysis, the integrated output covers the entire customer journey of the core target customer group, from contact to use to feedback. Using space design as the carrier, digital operations and top-level experience services as the medium, and with the help of digital operations and high-quality service experience, the concept of “customer-centric and experience-first” is put into practice, and ultimately the optimal solution of “professional and understanding” is achieved.

Based on the results of the workshop, we divided the space into two areas, left and right, with the lobby as the hub. The left area is the activity area, which can accommodate dynamic activities such as team building, forums, exhibitions, and photo shoots. The right area is the meeting area, which is divided into meeting spaces of different sizes and types to accommodate more static meetings such as business negotiations, thematic training, creative workshops, and high-level board meetings. This reasonable division of active and static areas and functional composition, as well as ample outdoor space, effectively responds to the non-standard meeting and event needs of corporate users. This is because many companies do not have the conditions to configure such functional spaces in their own offices, and even if they do, they may not be willing to invest the cost to implement them. For individual businesses, such non-standard demands are, after all, low-frequency scenarios, and investing high costs for them is unwise. From this perspective, KONNECT aggregates fragmented, non-standard meeting needs, creating a “professional and understanding” gathering space through more efficient time-sharing and a more professional service experience. It not only meets the demand but also saves tenant companies on renovation costs, thereby becoming an important component of the core competitiveness of PAC.

A diverse and flexible scene container

Due to the diversity and uncertainty of non-standard demands, we emphasize “Fit For Purpose” in space design. With operations as the core starting point, we focus on studying the dynamic changes of multiple scenarios and set up sufficient flexibility and autonomy to form different space combinations according to the needs of meetings and activities, such as electric partitions in multi-purpose halls and training classrooms, movable flower beds on the terrace, modular combinable furniture, interactive walls with flip machines for customizable information, and the “cloud mirror” for flexible selfies and group photos. These are designed to cope with the uncertainty of needs and scenarios, embrace more possibilities, create more lasting customer stickiness, and help the space always maintain sufficient adaptability and vitality during long-term operations.

In addition to spatial flexibility, KONNECT also boasts intelligent equipment and system. Each room is equipped with an integrated smart screen, centrally controlling all HVAC, lighting, AV, curtains, and other equipment. A full-range array microphone and ceiling speakers are discreetly integrated into the ceiling, meeting the sophisticated requirements of various conference levels. KONNECT has also greatly enhanced the meeting and event experience in terms of intelligent operations. The intelligent conference system is compatible with multiple applications required for remote meetings and can be flexibly switched to adapt to the needs of different meetings and events. Through its exclusive mini-program Klik+, users can browse, book, and enter and exit KONNECT spaces in one stop.

The flexibility of space, the intelligence of equipment, and the smartness of operations are a comprehensive combination of “hardware + software + wetware”. We strive to use these three key points to build the strong scene-enhancing power and high experience value of KONNECT as a spatial product.

A sustainable industry benchmark

KONNECT is the first coworking space project in Shanghai Jing’an District to receive the RESET Embodied Certification and Embodied Carbon Neutral Certification. To align with Keppel’s sustainable development vision, RESET Embodied Performance standards were incorporated throughout the design and construction process, meticulously managing carbon emissions and comprehensively quantifying and improving KONNECT’s performance in carbon emissions, circularity, and wellness. The design incorporates a significant amount of recyclable materials, striving to achieve functional space while promoting resource reuse and effectively reducing environmental impact. For example, countertops and outdoor floors utilize recycled concrete with recycled shells as aggregate, cabinets utilize recycled straw composite panels, and conference areas feature recycled corn fiber carpeting.

As a highly innovative spatial product, we also worked with the client to develop a series of peripheral products for KONNECT. The most important of these is the KONNECT Space Playbook, which translates and conveys the standardized logic of the space in text form. This playbook provides a standardized reference for the use and service of the space for multiple users of the space, including clients, operation teams, and third-party service providers, ensuring a comfortable spatial experience and efficient and consistent space operations. Furthermore, the playbook will provide a replicable and scalable blueprint and industry guidance for the planning and operation of similar spaces, helping to efficiently implement more similar projects and thus fostering the sustainability of the KONNECT model.

For both the client and us, our exploration of KONNECT is just the beginning. Since its opening, the space has welcomed numerous businesses, communities, and institutions, and their feedback has provided the foundation and basis for KONNECT’s continued iteration and development. As the space’s real-world use cases continue to expand, the connections it creates will become increasingly diverse. In the near future, as KONNECT envisions and advocates, space will connect intelligence with gathering, “Beyond the Space, Konnecting the Future.”

Project Details:-
Firm
DEDANG DESIGN

Designer
Wang Junfeng

Project Name
KONNECT

Project Category
Office Building Interior (Built)

Team
Wang Junfeng, Gu Zheng, Chen Xinyu, Jiang Wenchao, Fan Ruonan, Zhang Yanzhe, Li Zhen, Li Mingxian, Wang Dulong, Hao Xu, Huang Hanzhang, Wei Yuan

Project Location
Shanghai

Country
China

Photography ©Credit
©Sha Peng

Dedang Design is a young and creative collective that promotes sustainable urban and rural development. Based in Shanghai, Dedang’s work have been widely recognized, winning prizes such as Architizer A+ Awards, Azure AZ Awards, etc., and have been selected for prestigious exhibitions such as the 18^th Venice Architecture Biennale.

Our core members come from diverse backgrounds, which provides a comprehensive and professional service for clients and users. We firmly believe that good design is about creating the most reasonable, not the perfect, outcome within limited circumstances. Reasonable expectations, moderate design, and appropriate construction constitute our core capability and value.