PTC Office Redecoration
How I brought harmony between human psychology and rigid tech branding. Storytelling through space and emerging technology. Two visual systems for one space. The concept sparked enthusiasm and was adopted globally.
[CLIENT]
PTC | Bucharest, Romania
[SCOPE]
Space Redecoration for the Common Areas
[SERVICES]
Concept, Design, DTP, Production Consultancy
When PTC asked me to redecorate its office common spaces, the brief was simple: make the cafeteria, hallways, and shared spaces look better.
But form follows function, so I never start with what looks better. I start with what the space or product needs to do for its users. It guides every design choice I make.
PTC is a global technology company whose software helps the world's largest manufacturers design, produce, and service products.
Their Bucharest office was comfortable, but it didn't align with how the company wanted to be seen. The challenge was to define a space for unwinding without looking too cheesy or too nerdy, while making the rest of the office more appealing. The goal was to reflect PTC more clearly, without clichés or rigid communication.
Before sketching anything, I studied how people used the spaces. The cafeteria was where people decompressed. Lunch breaks, informal conversations, and moments between intensive work are part of a regular day in a corporation. The hallways are transition zones, high-traffic corridors where they move between meetings and workstations.
These spaces needed different things, and that difference became the project’s core idea: each space should serve how people use it.
For the cafeteria, I kept the color palette light and the compositions calm: soft tones, clean layouts, breathing room. People use this space to rest. The visual environment should support that, not compete with it. No bold graphics grabbing attention. No motivational messaging shouting from the walls. No stock images of coffee beans either.
For the hallways, I used the full color palette. These were spaces people moved through, so the design should be livelier and more energetic. The visual shift between the cafeteria and the hallway was deliberate: you noticed the energy change as you walked from one into the other.
The question that took the project to the next level
Once the concept was established, I asked myself: why wasn't PTC's own technology present in its own office?
This is a company that builds augmented reality tools for global enterprises. Their clients use PTC's VuMarks (physical markers that trigger AR experiences) on manufacturing floors, in maintenance workflows, and in training locations worldwide. But you could walk through PTC's office and never know what the company makes.
So I proposed inserting VuMarks directly into the design. Visitors and employees could point their phones at specific elements to unlock additional content: product demonstrations, interactive brand experiences, layers of information built into the walls.
It wasn’t technically complex and became obvious once you saw it. The physical spaces should do more than house the people who build the product, they should demonstrate it. That is why I incorporated VuMarks into the design, reinforcing the project’s central idea.
The concept and visuals were approved immediately and implemented. Other PTC offices around the world adopted the approach.
