Office interior design in Barcelona code-compliant, not just rendered.
Núria Bosch (architect, COAC) leads office design with the four real constraints baked in from day one — classification of use, CTE-DB-SUA accessibility, DB-HR acoustic, electrical contract capacity. The Ajuntament licence sticks the first time, the team can occupy the day after handover.
Drawing turnaroundFrom survey to contractor-ready set
About this service
Designed for team productivity, not for the camera angle.
Most office renderings break the moment a building inspector measures a corridor — under 1,20 m at one point, no adapted bathroom for 50+ aforament, sound between meeting rooms not at DB-HR levels. We design backwards from the four real Barcelona constraints, then make it look good.
01
Classification-of-use check first
Cadastre check on day one: is the local registered as terciari (office use ready) or habitatge (needs change-of-use to Activitats, 6-12 weeks)? At 22@ usually terciari; at Eixample often habitatge. We flag this before signing the design fee.
02
CTE-DB-SUA accessibility
Corridors over 1,20 m, adapted bathroom if aforament > 50, exits per route distance, signage homologated. Calculated in the working drawings, not retrofitted after the inspector flags them.
03
Acoustic DB-HR + lux per task
Workstations 500 lux with CRI >80, meeting rooms with dimmer, focus rooms warm indirect, reception decorative-led. Acoustic between rooms 45-50 dBA — measured with sound meter at handover, not just specified.
Five questions and Núria visits the local within a week. The fixed-fee design proposal — with classification-of-use check upfront — lands in your inbox 48h after.
Three office design tiers
Pick the depth. Deliverables follow.
Office light
Layout strategy and concept board — without the technical memoir for the Ajuntament. Right for teams up to 15 in a local already registered as terciari, where only re-zoning and re-styling is needed.
From
€24/m²
Delivery
3-4 weeks
Site survey + CAD base fileincluded
Two layout options + comparisonincluded
Material concept + paletteincluded
Furniture layout planincluded
Indicative lighting schemeincluded
3D of key rooms+€8/m²
Technical memoir + change-of-use+€1.200 fixed
Standard project
Full project with 3D, electrical plan with circuits per zone, DIALux lighting calc, DB-HR acoustic, FF&E spec, and the technical memoir signed by Núria for the licence file. The most-requested package for offices of 15-50 people.
From
€36/m²
Delivery
5-7 weeks
Everything in Office lightincluded
3D walk-through of all roomsincluded
Electrical plan + zone circuitsincluded
Lighting plan + DIALux calculationincluded
FF&E schedule with supplier refsincluded
COAATB technical memoir for licenceincluded
Acoustic study (DB-HR) per zoneincluded
KNX backbone for lighting/HVAC+€8/m²
Full + supervision
Standard project plus fortnightly visits during the build. Núria walks the site, signs off the first-fix, runs final acoustic measurement with sound meter, lighting check with luxmeter. For clients who want the architect on-site, not just on paper.
From
€52/m²
Delivery
5-7 wk + build
Everything in Standardincluded
Fortnightly site visits during buildincluded
Acoustic measurement at handoverincluded
Lighting measurement at handoverincluded
Furniture supplier coordinationincluded
Outside-contractor quote reviewincluded
Snag walk with the architectincluded
Change-of-use coordination+€1.200 fixed
Common office design questions
Things owners ask before signing.
Not without a change-of-use to Activitats. The cadastre still says habitatge, your insurance won't cover commercial use, and the Ajuntament can fine €1.500-6.000 + force closure. We file the change-of-use as part of Standard or Supervision tier (+€1.200 fixed); 6-12 week turnaround.
At 22@ most naves and buildings are already terciari, no change-of-use needed. You'll need a llicència ambiental simplificada (3-5 weeks) for offices under 50 people, ambiental ordinària above that. Bigger lead time on the licence than on the design itself.
Spanish Building Code, Safety of Use and Accessibility section. Sets corridors > 1,20 m, adapted bathroom if aforament > 50, exit routes by distance, signage. If the project doesn't comply, the Ajuntament rejects the licence — not the contractor's fault, just the file's. We design to it from the first sketch.
An office without proper acoustic isolation is one where the meeting rooms broadcast to the workstations, and the urban noise comes through windows. DB-HR fixes minimums (45-50 dBA between rooms). We measure with a sound meter at handover — and we also redesign room layouts so noisy rooms (kitchenette, comms) don't share walls with focus rooms.
Yes — the deliverable is yours, you can hand it to any contractor. Many clients ask three contractors to quote against our drawings and choose. We also bid on our own designs; no hard-sell into our build.
If aforament passes 50, an adapted bathroom and an extra emergency exit are mandatory. We recalculate at the project, the cost delta is itemised on Núria's quote. We flag it before, not after.
Free first survey with the architect
Office design proposal in 48h after the visit.
Send the address of the local, photos and a line about the team. Núria visits the local within a week, runs a classification-of-use check at the cadastre, and the fixed-fee proposal lands in your inbox 48h after.
Adjacent commercial design and fit-out scopes in Barcelona