{"id":264735,"date":"2025-10-15T17:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-10-15T21:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/interiordesign.net\/?post_type=canvasflow&p=264735"},"modified":"2025-10-16T11:12:29","modified_gmt":"2025-10-16T15:12:29","slug":"max-zone-technology-park-ningbo-china","status":"publish","type":"id_project","link":"https:\/\/interiordesign.net\/projects\/max-zone-technology-park-ningbo-china\/","title":{"rendered":"In The Zone: Inside A Cutting-Edge Show Office And Sales Center In China"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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At the Max Zone Technology Park in Ningbo, China, amid a palette that nods to that of the city\u2019s waterways, Ippolito Fleitz Group designed a five-level show office with a working production line for an imagined 3D-printing company on the second floor, as well as a 5,100-square-foot sales center next door.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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October 15, 2025<\/p>\n\n\n

Words: <\/span>Rebecca Dalzell<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Photography: <\/span>zhu di\/shad\u00f8o play<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

In The Zone: Inside A Cutting-Edge Show Office And Sales Center In China<\/h1>\n\n\n

Ningbo, a city in eastern China, has a long and layered history. On Hangzhou Bay, it has been a major commercial port since the 6th century and was on the Maritime Silk Road. Today, it\u2019s one of the busiest container ports in the world. Ningbo is also home to the country\u2019s oldest private library and famous for traditional crafts like inlay and ceramics. In recent decades, the city has invested heavily in its industrial sector and become a hub for materials innovation and cutting-edge equipment, sprouting modern architecture to match.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ippolito Fleitz Group<\/a> (IFG) wove these varied strands together in its concept for a show office and sales center for the Max Zone Technology Park, a multibuilding campus for high-tech companies. It is the firm\u2019s fourth such project for the client, Shanghai Gold Concord Group Co., since 2021, but each is distinct, reflecting the local context and likely tenants. \u201cThe client is trying to demonstrate what Chinese workspaces could look like in the future,\u201d says project lead and IFG Shanghai studio director Patrick Wu, \u201cand is not concerned with efficiency or functionality, but with creating spaces that promote innovation.\u201d In Ningbo, Shanghai Gold Concord targeted the city\u2019s booming 3D-printing sector and asked IFG to consider what those companies would need from their offices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ippolito Fleitz Group Designs Show Office + Sales Center for Max Zone Technology Park Sales Center<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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At the Max Zone Technology Park in Ningbo, China, amid a palette that nods to that of the city\u2019s waterways, Ippolito Fleitz Group designed a five-level show office with a working production line for an imagined 3D-printing company on the second floor, as well as a 5,100-square-foot sales center next door.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The word ningbo<\/em> means calm waves<\/em>, and the city\u2019s nickname, Yong, translates to gushing water<\/em> and symbolizes the flow of wisdom. IFG played off these ideas to express the fluid transition from tradition to innovation. The design of the elegant 5,100-square-foot sales center is rooted in the former, drawing on ver\u00adnacular architecture, while the five-story, 10,000-square-foot show office offers a preview of the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prospective tenants begin their visit in the sales center, which IFG modeled on ancient Chinese courtyards. \u201cTraditional Chinese architecture is always symmetrical, with a sequence of spaces and a courtyard in the middle,\u201d Wu explains. \u201cIt\u2019s transparent, but there are layers and filters that block the view. We expressed a modern interpretation of this typology.\u201d At the entrance, panels of textured acrylic blocks partially screen the central space, a double-height model exhibition area; leather-clad partitions enclose smaller rooms like lounges around it. \u201cYou can feel the space, but you can\u2019t see through it, so there\u2019s a sense of exploration and dis\u00adcovery,\u201d Wu adds. But it can also transform into a large hall: The partitions have integrated pivot doors that can retract completely for events.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Embracing Ningbo’s Nautical History Through Design<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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A custom stainless-steel table anchors the meeting pod.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Curved details alluding to waves and Chinese roof tiles unify the various rooms. Made of U-shape panels in stainless steel and wood, the partitions seem to ripple throughout. Thin arched lights embedded in the dark terrazzo floor glint underfoot like whitecaps, and curved ceramic tiles strung on steel wire hang in front of windows. \u201cThe wave components start in the floor inlay and gradually fly off the wall,\u201d Wu observes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These subtle gestures bring depth and texture that elevate the visitor experience. \u201cThere\u2019s a warm, welcoming atmosphere and a sense of hospitality,\u201d Wu notes, evident in a custom water bar and a sculptural restroom, its walls paneled in undulating copper-finished stainless steel. It\u2019s especially notable in the intimate tearoom, where a custom oval table has two tops: one in marble for eating and drinking, and a higher leather-wrapped surface for signing contracts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Imagining the Workplace of the Future\u00a0<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Gradient-glass walls frame the materials lab on the carpeted R&D floor.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In contrast, the show office next door feels cooly high-tech. It\u2019s a theoretical workplace for an imaginary 3D-printing company that, like a model apartment, is functional but will never be used. Freed from utilization metrics, IFG could get creative. \u201cWe believe that future businesses will only find success through innovation\u2014and that comes from unexpected moments,\u201d Wu says. The firm focused on formulating a memorable, exploratory journey that fosters serendipitous collisions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 28-foot-high lobby makes a splash with a spiral flying staircase leading to a stainless-steel meeting pod suspended from the ceiling. \u201cThe mezzanine is entirely column-free: It hangs from the floor above to create a striking sense of levitation. It becomes a sculptural, futuristic object,\u201d Wu continues. Light strips on the ceiling fan out from the pod like sun rays; below, a frosted stainless-steel grille frames the mirrored reception desk. There\u2019s no mistaking that this is a company of tomorrow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In the show office lobby, a spiral steel staircase behind the mirrored reception desk leads to a mezzanine meeting pod.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Upstairs, IFG installed a working 3D-printing production line that can manufacture a robotic arm, its circular shape representing continuous progression, while a sleek open office is all anodized- aluminum tables and reflective magnetic panels. The research and development floor centers on a materials lab, an elevated cube with gradient-glass walls resembling a fizzing test tube that provides visibility to teams working around it. Sea-green terrazzo flooring subtly references Ningbo\u2019s waters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For Wu, it\u2019s not just the ultramodern vibe that makes the office an avatar of those to come, but the flexibility of the spaces. When people can collaborate anywhere, there are more chances to innovate. Ideas, he adds, are like droplets on the ocean, creating ripples that become waves. Offices of the future should let them flow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Walk Through Max Zone Technology Park\u00a0<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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The project\u2019s water connection derives from the word ningbo meaning calm waves and the city\u2019s nickname, Yong, translating to gushing water.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Stainless also defines the water bar off the lobby.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Magenta was introduced to stimulate dialogue and creativity.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Painted stainless-steel planters brighten the open office area.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Magnetic tubes hang frames for product displays on the open office floor, where tables are anodized aluminum.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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In the separate sales center, a custom window treatment is composed of arched ceramic tiles strung on steel wires.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Leather-clad partitions line the model exhibition area, where inlaid arched lights glint in the terrazzo floor and textured acrylic blocks screening the entry have a rippled water effect.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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A wooden totem sculpture marks the entrance to the restroom, where the undulating walls are copper-finished stainless steel.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Marble tops the custom table in the sales center\u2019s tearoom, with sisal carpeting.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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A trio of 7-foot-long pendant fixtures inspired by Chinese lanterns illuminates another marbletopped table lined with chairs, all custom.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
PROJECT TEAM<\/h6><\/div>\n\n\n\n

IPPOLITO FLEITZ GROUP:<\/strong> PETER IPPOLITO; SENEM CENNETOGLU; SAMMA SUN; XINKANG FAN; JILL YANG; GUANLIN LI; LEO LUO; DONG CHEN; JING ZHANG; MAVIS LI. DA HUANG FENG STAINLESS STEEL:<\/strong> METALWORK.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

PRODUCT SOURCES<\/strong><\/h6><\/div>\n\n\n\n

FROM FRONT YUN YI METAL:<\/strong> PLANTERS (OFFICE AREA). GUAN MEI LE SHENZHEN:<\/strong> ACRYLIC BLOCKS (MODEL AREA). THROUGHOUT GUIYI: <\/strong>TERRAZZO FLOORING. VOXFLOR:<\/strong> CARPET. BENJAMIN MOORE & CO.; DULUX:<\/strong> PAINT.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n