White furniture, light parquet and glass panels. On the first floor of this workshop specializing in the management of aircraft engine parts, the massive desks and dark blue linoleum have given way to a new workspace. It is the delight of Belgin Akarsular, customer manager at Safran at the Villaroche site (Seine-et-Marne): “The office furniture is smaller, it’s brighter and there’s more space. »
Improving everyday working life was Jean-Gilles Fratello’s goal when he launched this redevelopment project in 2019. Transformation and progress manager at Safran, he wanted to “rearrange the workspace by including the 70 employees in this process”. One of his colleagues directed him to Camille Rabineau, director of Comme on travail, a company that leads workspace co-design workshops.
Caroline and Belgin both participated. “During the first workshop, Camille asked us about our expectations, what were the irritating points”, says Caroline. For Belgin, it was the comings and goings in front of his office: “Before, we had a large open space with a corridor in the middle. There was a lot of passing. When we were on the phone with a client, it was awkward. From now on, large windows delimit the services.
Include different company profiles
“We were divided into four teams to come up with a layout proposal,” adds Caroline. On the employee side, many were enthusiastic about taking part in the meetings, recalls Belgin: “Each department was represented by several people. Everyone wanted to be able to submit their ideas. »
Trained as an urban planner, Camille Rabineau plays the role of facilitator in these workshops. “My approach is to broaden the discussion as much as possible and include the different profiles of the company. The participatory aspect improves the appreciation of the project”, she underlines. Integrating employees into the process is often fruitful. “Expertise is shared by the architects and the users of the space: they know what they need”, defends Camille. An analysis confirmed by Laure Philippe, interior designer at Othéa. She works regularly with Camille Rabineau: “Our role is to check the feasibility of the employees’ proposals. But often they come up with ideas that we wouldn’t have had”. If the employees are on the initiative, the support offered by Comme on travail was essential. “Being used to our premises, it was hard to imagine anything else. Without this outside perspective, we wouldn’t have gone so far in transforming the space,” admits Caroline.
Today, the reorganization of this service has “become a bit of a reference” on the Safran site (5,000 employees), says Jean-Gilles with satisfaction. “Some ideas, like the conviviality room, have been implemented elsewhere and a co-design project is underway on the lower floor. Out of 180,000 euros of work, the workshops offered by Comme on travail cost Safran 10,000 euros. An amount adapted to the size of each company, but an essential investment to improve the quality of life in the office and attract new employees.
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