Zühlke – We are really looking forward to this move

In May 2020, innovation service provider Zühlke will be the first tenant to move into JED. In conversation with Nicolas Durville, CEO of Zühlke Switzerland, it becomes clear that JED is the perfect new home for a company that values innovation and interdisciplinarity.

Zühlke was announced as the first anchor tenant. What prompted you to make the relatively quick decision? Was it love at first sight with JED?

Nicolas Durville: Two points were crucial for the quick decision: The history of the building we chose on the site and the design possibilities within the existing basic architecture.

The history of the site, especially that of the hall building we chose, fits in extremely well with Zühlke. The hall building is the former NZZ printing hall. In the course of digitalization, the media industry has undergone a major transformation. The digital transformation of business models is one of our core areas, which is why we could not have imagined a more suitable building. The building tells the story of our company’s history and activities.

Furthermore, the architectural conditions that the building provides for us as a company are very interesting. The spaciousness and flexibility of the hall construction supports our collaboration and project work: for example, we are introducing a project loft where teams from different areas will work together. This new spatial proximity will allow us to work even more interdisciplinarily on projects. We will also have a spacious piazza where employees can come together and exchange ideas. By building the hall, we can create the perfect conditions for innovative teams to work together as well as possible in their project environments.

Was it always clear that you wanted to stay in Schlieren?

The area offers many exciting and innovative companies in close proximity. The Limmattal/Zurich-West economic region is developing rapidly, which suits us. What’s more, the transport links to Zurich are unbeatable.

Nicolas Durville

«By building the hall, we can create the perfect conditions for innovative teams to work together as well as possible in their project environments.»

Why is Zühlke moving?

We are growing, so we have to move. At the new location, we can continue to develop as a company. We have more space and are all in one building again. Precisely because we are a company where the majority of employees spend a lot of time with customers, we need a fixed point, a home for Zühlke. That is why we have invested accordingly.

Was it immediately clear that you wanted to move into the hall building?

The question of moving into another part of JED never even arose. For example, there was no question of Zühlke moving into the new building that is now being constructed. The reason for this is the urgency of our move: our teams are currently spread across the Cube and three floors in the nearby Sony Tower. It is very important for us to move as soon as possible.

How many people will be moving?

We will be moving almost 500 employees from the Cube and Sony Tower sites across the tracks. Due to the current situation surrounding COVID-19, this will happen in stages. We have to constantly reassess the situation and remain agile. But we are used to this. In addition to our employees, we also have to relocate our machinery. We have a test workshop where we produce small series for innovative new products and parts. This relocation will require a somewhat greater logistical effort.

What specific changes will there be for your company and your employees?

We are very pleased with the generous amount of space that we can now benefit from and use flexibly. Intermediate floors will be installed in our Project Loft and we will be able to bring together entire project teams from a wide range of fields. Business consultants, user experience specialists, designers, project managers and developers can now work together on a project in the same place.

With regard to the workplace situation, we differentiate between employees who are involved in a project for a fixed period of time, then complete it and move on to the next one, and those who have a fixed and mainly internal role in our company, such as the HR, Finance, IT or Marketing departments. These generally have fixed workplaces, while employees working on projects are very likely to move to a different position in a different team once they have completed their task.

As CEO, I too will no longer have a fixed workplace. I no longer want this because I believe that a flex office mentality cannot be communicated credibly enough if the company management does not live it itself. So I will also benefit from the exchange at different workplaces, sometimes sitting next to people I know very well – and other times getting to know new people with whom I have not yet had such close personal contact. I’m looking forward to that.

What do you hope to gain from flexible workplaces?

With the flex-office-approach, we are hoping for even better networking between employees and a more intensive professional, but also informal, exchange between them.

Of course, we also consider the need for undisturbed concentration and confidential discussions. We provide sufficient quiet zones and meeting rooms for this purpose.

What other advantages does your new infrastructure offer?

In addition to the advantages mentioned above, which primarily support the collaboration and interdisciplinary nature of our company, I would also like to mention the sufficiently large space. This has the advantage that we can bring other customer projects or start-ups into our building, where our customers can also work with us. We are also hoping for an increased exchange with innovative companies in the area. We are also actively seeking this. By meeting customers and partners, we can make our work and future collaboration much more visible.