Calvin College – Interim 2019

Visiting the Munich Steelcase location was a highlight for me so far this trip. Steelcase is originally based out of Grand Rapids, but has multiple locations across the globe. We visited the “Learnig + Innovation Center” in Germany.

Upon arriving, we were greeted and treated with lots of respect and Steelcase was very welcoming to us. They made me feel at home inside of their workspace. Klaus Pronaf gave us lots of background on he facilities and then provided a tour for the entire group. The Steelcase location in Germany has three different buildings, each with specifically designed floors that are personalized to the employees that work there. Unfortunately because of time, we were only able to visit 3 of the 5 floors in the main office building.

The most fascinating thing to me about the building design and office workspaces, was how different it was from my presupposed view of what an office looks like. For example, they removed cubicles and personalized desks for each employees and replaced them with open working areas where dialogue and conversation is more common. There’s only one section of the building where there are personalized offices, and that is the leadership floor. But Klaus explained the leadership only stop in their offices in the mornings, then are in meetings the rest of the day. Another thing that caught my attention was how open and bright the workspace was. Klaus said this is because sunlight and open space makes space for more creativity to flow and for the employees to be more efficient. One example of this is Steelcase changed the original staircase the building had and replaced it with a wide and open staircase that made the 3 middle floors all feel like one large floor. This allows for easier and faster communication amongst the workers.

I really enjoyed my visit to Steelcase because they showed me there are many ways to create an office environment. Each company needs to find and create an environment that fits their field and their employees. I enjoyed seeing all of the innovation and ideas that Steelcase is coming up with.

Today we visited the first created concentration camp: Dachau. This was actually the second concentration camp I’ve seen, but that did not make it any less eye opening. It makes all of the war stories so much more real when you can literally see where they took place. Three specific things that struck me were the crematoriums, the gas chamber, and the barracks.

I stood in this room for a while just imagining what it would’ve been like during the war. The horrible smell in the air, the heat of the furnaces, all while corpses are being dragged into the room and thrown into the furnaces 2-3 at a time. It’s almost impossible to imagine this happening.

This gas chamber was disguised as a shower room so that prisoners would willingly enter. Then the guards would shut the steel doors and everyone inside would soon be dead. It sounds like a horror movie, and it really puts your stomach in a knot to actually stand inside this room and try and imagine how this could happen.

These barracks were each designed to hold about 200 prisoners, but by the end of the war they each held about 1600. These extremely tight living conditions resulted in a variety of diseases that ended up killing thousands of prisoners. We think dorm rooms are tight, but these prisoners had absolutely no space of their own.

This was a very somber visit, but also a very educational one. I think it’s important to visit and learn about these sites so that we can embrace what’s happened in the past and remember to never let it happen again.

This morning was a somber one, as we visited the concentration camp at Dachau. It was a humbling, deeply personal experince for the group. The camp was covered in snow and more was falling, giving it a deathly silence.

The biggest thing that struck me about the camp was the terrible living conditions endured by the prisoners. The camp was designed and built to house about 6,000 prisoners, but up to 30,000 were housed there throughout the war. The Nazis forced horrific living conditions on these already extremely overcrowded prisoners. Sickness spread like wildfire, and those terribly sick were separated into unheated barracks where they suffered through winters, robbed of all clothing but their undergarments.

Hearing about the torment others went through really makes you think about how blessed you are. It is still difficult to realise and understand the true scope of the evils that were committed, but this visit was an important step in confronting the problem of evil that resides in all of us. It is only through Jesus’ love and grace that our lives can be changed.

Today we had our most sobering visit yet: the Dachau concentration camp. As we drove into the town of Dachau, I was expecting to see the camp as we got close; however, it was not very obvious. We parked in what looked like a very ordinary parking lot in the middle of a modern town, similar to all the other towns we had visited. Only after we walked a bit into the memorial site did I recognize that we must be getting close to the camp as we came upon high barbed wire fences and what appeared to be the main entrance to the camp.

We entered the camp through the main gates which read “Arbeit Macht Frei” which translates to English as “Work sets you free.” A horrible lie inmates where told as they entered the camp, as many did not ever leave the camp. As we walked around the grounds, nobody spoke. It was a very power moment as we comprehended what we were seeing. A barbed wire fence enclosing the camp with armed guard towers, barracks built to house 200 people but housed 2000, and furnaces build for the very specific purpose of concealing the evidence of the atrocities carried out in the camp.

While I have been to war memorials and museums before, this visit felt more real. Not only were there images displayed of what had happened, but we stood in the very room where those images were taken, allowing us to imagine quite vividly what it must have been like 80 years ago. When we boarded the bus and left, I was still shocked that all of this could have existed and happened in the middle of what seemed to be a very normal German town.

We started our day going to the World War II Nazi concentration camp. A very sobering and thoughtful experience that I am sure some students will post about. Here are just a few pictures.

We spent the rest of the day riding in the bus and losing a few more hours in traffic jams.

Arrived in Prague just in time to get to dinner on the tram and see the city all lit up at night. But it is late now and we are tired…so more pictures tomorrow! Good night.

A little while ago, our group visited a company named Steelcase. This company focuses on helping companies increase their productivity and efficiency through productive working environments. AMAs we were walking through the company, I kept thinking about how successful this company is and their goal is not to sell as much product as possible. They place high value on creating strong relations with their customers or as they would call them, guests. 

Each work environment was different from the previous. There were rooms dedicated to individual use and others meant from large groups, along with different technology. One of the more interesting systems that they use is a tablet outside each rooms so that reservations for the room can be made. Calvin has similar technology in some locations but it is not used to the same level that Steelcase uses it for.

As we continued asking questions to our guide, he was able to help us understand how their company keeps ahead of the competition. Using innovation and research with talented employees, they are able to gain business with large companies. Overall, Steelcase is a thriving company not only because of their high quality merchandise but their innovative approach to helping companies succeed in competitive markets. 

We had the opportunity to visit Gentex, a company known for automated electronics, auto-dimming technology, and car cameras. Although traffic delayed our arrival, we were still welcomed warmly with refreshments. We split into three groups to rotate through various areas of the building. I liked going around the company with a smaller group, because it made it easier to see and hear each one of our guides.

My group’s first guide took us into a showcase-type room, where he explained some of Gentex’s various products. One of the items he showed us was a rearview mirror that could switch between acting as a regular mirror and becoming a camera display. The perks of using the camera display is that it will alert you when a car moves into your car’s blindspot and can even display the blind spot on the sides of the mirror. Other products included side mirrors, a roof window with dimming technology, and a stand for the rearview mirror that could pay tolls in the United States, so you don’t have to worry about having multiple toll collection systems cluttering your car.

Lastly, he showed us Gentex’s iris technology, which allows the rearview mirror to scan the iris of the driver. An unlimited about of users can be inputted into the system, and some can have limits set upon them such as a time frame or mile radius in which they are allowed to drive. Functions might be limited or even inoperable to drivers whose irises are not recognized. The guide even mentioned being able to drive up to Starbucks or the gas station and having the car pay for you without you having to exchange money or a card. The driver spending this money will be authorized with the accurate iris technology. This has some strange implications. It quickens the process of filling up your tank or getting your morning coffee, but it might leave you unsure as to how much money exactly you are spending per day. Also, it might increase consumer spending, because there is no loss felt like there is when handing over tangible cash. Finally, it brings up privacy concerns. Data could be collected as to specifically who is driving the car where, when, for how long, and what they bought. Privacy is becoming a larger issue with no easy answer, and this is one more case where I’m not sure if, just because we can do something, we should.  

After the showcase room, we went into the factory part of the building, where we saw a small section of how parts are shipped into and out of the building. Having worked in a factory before, I was amazed at the quietness and cleanliness of the area. I was even a little impressed at the lengths that Gentex considers worker safety, by considering ergonomics. For example, there was a conveyor belt at waist height to easily drop heavy boxes into containers, rather than carrying them from one area to another, and pallets that could be raised or lowered when loading or unloading boxes. Another safety measure was that trucks bringing items to the factory had to have their wheels locked into place before the door could be opened. Across the bay door was a stretchy fence that, we were told, could stop a forklift moving at full speed. We did not see a demonstration, but it was nice to know that Gentex took measures to avoid any forklift accidents during offload.

Finally, we were taken into a conference room to discuss more of Gentex’s products and technologies (like crazy thin auto-dimming windows for airplanes) and give space to answer further questions. All in all, our Gentex visit was for informative and a great experience.

Today we had another company visit, this time was with another familiar company for us Grand Rapids folks. This Steelcase location is located right in downtown Munich and it’s facilities are very modern (as you would expect).

We were led around by the customer experience manager, Klaus. Klaus was very accustomed to showing groups around their building and was very enthusiastic.

This facility was not a manufacturing plant for furniture like their Grand Rapids location, but rather what they called a learning and innovation center. Between the 3 connected buildings that Steelcase occupied, 2 of them were off-limits for us as memebers of the public because they were primarily devoted to Research and Development for new products.

The third building that we saw, in some ways doubled as both a show room and an office for employees. Klaus mentioned that they get around 100 visitors a day (usually current or prospective customers). This third building is all about building company values through the floor plan. This is a big selling point to customers which goes beyond the furniture itself. Part of what Steelcase provides, is consulting to the customer to see how the customer can make best use of its space.

Neuschwanstein Castle was built in the 19th-century as a Romanesque Revival palace. This palace was commissioned and built by Ludwig II of Bavaria as a retreat and in honor of Richard Wagner.  The construction for the palace began on September 5, 1869.  This castle was a home for the king to withdraw from public life.  Neuschwanstein was opened to the public in 1886 seven weeks after the death of King Ludwig II. Since Ludwig II of Bavaria had died, the Neuschwanstein Castle has about 6,000 visitors each day in the summer to see the king’s private refuge. 
Ludwig II of Bavaria definitely wanted a private place since the castle was located high in the Alps. We climbed up a steep hill for about twenty minutes to get to the castle.  While walking up the hill, we got to see the beautiful scenery around us. 
Once we got inside the castle, we saw all of the intricate artwork and furniture that was for the king. Our tour guide gave us more detail for what was in the paintings and the purpose of the rooms. 
This castle was beautiful and lovely to live in. Too bad it was not completed before Ludwig II died in 1886. I felt privileged to be able to see the Neuschwanstein Castle and to learn more about the history. 
It is cool to see that the Neuschwanstein Castle has made an impact in the American culture.  At Disney World, they designed and built the Disney Castle based off of the Neuschwanstein Castle. I enjoyed making comparisons between the two while on the tour. 

We had the opportunity to visit Steelcase’s Learning and Innovation Center in Munich today, where we were welcomed warmly. The Learning and Innovation Center is a three building campus that was fully opened in 2017. For a year, only part of the campus was finished, and Steelcase decided to move all of their future Munich employees into the finished area, despite the inconvenience of the cramped space, because they wanted the employees to stay close and connected rather than grow apart for a year. Once the campus was fully finished, the employees spread out and the facilities were no longer over capacity.

The section that we walked through had a nature design, with wooden floors, plant decor, and large glass windows for natural lighting. Access to natural light is important for employee morale and productivity. The Learning and Innovation Center even had a cafe where employees or guests could buy beverages and food and, nearby the cafe, an atrium filled with plants and built with glass windows and a glass ceiling to let in the most sunlight, creating a relaxing space for breaktime. Another way in which Steelcase designed the Center with their employees in mind were staircases. The main staircase was intentionally built wide with easy access to the five floors to encourage natural meetings and minglings among employees to take the place of tight spiral staircases that create hierarchies among employees and inhibit happenstance meetings. While we were standing at the base of the stairs, workers would walk up and down these stairs, and I noticed that some would say hi to Klaus, our guide, when walking through our group, so I assume the staircase serves its purpose.

As for the five floors, they work to serve employees in different ways. The floors contain a variety of different workspaces to fit the needs of the workers. A person cannot concentrate on a task for eight hours straight, so by moving around the different floors and the different work stations, the employee can choose the space that fits the task, thereby increasing their productivity. We were allowed into one room that had two circular tables, rather than one long table. We were told that the two circular tables are to increase mobility to encourage people to contribute to the conversation because they are not deterred by having to walk around a table to reach a screen. Rather, the two separate tables create a space that is easy to move through. Also, the two table setup allows a presenter to move and interact better with their audience, rather than confining themselves to a single edge of a long rectangular. In this room, we were shown Steelcase’s magnetic stickers and peg boards used to help guide discussions. Outside of this room, we eventually meandered to an area that held a prototype table that Steelcase decided to openly place in a highly trafficked area to test out the design on real people in a real setting who had the option to leave feedback about the design.

The different workspaces and various areas of the Learning and Innovation Center also serve as almost showrooms to show potential customers what their work spaces could look like. Steelcase does, however, caution against “copy and pasting” their exact layouts, because the workstations might not fit their particular company and the company’s workers. Steelcase does offer a consulting service to help companies design workspaces to fit their company.

Steelcase’s Learning and Innovation Center lives up to its name. The consideration of employees in the design and showcasing that design to current and potential customers displays Steelcase’s success and capabilities.