From floor space to idea space: with the new SAP AppHaus at its headquarters in Walldorf, SCOPE Architekten, working together with SAP, is transforming an existing area on the first floor of the SAP Learning Center (WDF05) into an open innovation space for workshops, design thinking, and co-creation. Across roughly 350 square meters, a working environment is taking shape that gives SAP's culture of innovation a spatial home — one that not only enables collaboration, but actively organizes and encourages it.
As part of the “Fit for Future” campus initiative, the project expands the headquarters' innovation landscape with a place where solutions for digital transformation are developed together. The interior architecture translates this ambition of SAP's into an open spatial framework that carries exchange and co-creation — the foundation for new, jointly developed solutions.
The Drafting Hall – Where Ideas Take Shape:
At the heart of the design is the idea of the Drafting Hall – the centerpiece of co-creation. Here, ideas don't emerge in isolation, but through collaboration, experimentation, and iteration. The design concept doesn't merely accompany this process — it translates it into a spatial experience. Drawing on the identity and experience of the former SAP AppHaus in Heidelberg, the interior architecture consistently develops that stance further for the new location. The new AppHaus thus connects SAP's established co-creation philosophy with a spatial concept tailored to the requirements of the Walldorf site.
An existing area becomes a generous, connected space that allows for both openness and concentration. Floor-to-ceiling glazing frames views of the adjoining forest and anchors the room in its surroundings. The flowing sightlines open up the floor plan and lend it a pleasant sense of spaciousness — an atmosphere that invites further thought.
The floor plan, too, follows the creative process that SAP fosters with the AppHaus. A bright welcome area links the kitchenette, a high table, and storage into a communicative threshold between arrival and work. A curved oak reception counter marks the starting point; behind it, a finely structured glass film creates a transparent yet visually shielded separation from the workshop rooms. From there, the space flows into the open design-thinking area with its lounge, locker zone, and a flexible speaker and presentation area. Blackout curtains can be drawn as needed, transforming the open floor into individual, focused work areas. PET felt panels with integrated magnetic strips accompany the working process, offering space for sketches, ideas, and prototypes, and making thinking immediately visible. A striking graphic wall forms the spatial backdrop to the speaker area and gives the AppHaus a distinctive identity.
Atmosphere as Part of the Innovation Process:
The design treats atmosphere as an active part of creative work. The ceiling develops into a spatial landscape: straight acoustic slats structure the room, while a curved ceiling coffer gathers the space into soft, organic zones and creates orientation without compromising its generosity. Building technology and ventilation sit deliberately visible within an open ceiling zone, kept in beige to match the ceiling, while dark-toned lighting sets a clear counterpoint. Linear luminaires and ceiling spotlights complement this spatial order with a flexible, adaptable lighting design that supports focused work as much as agile workshop and co-creation formats.
The floor also contributes to the spatial differentiation. Oak parquet defines the work area and brings warmth and a natural materiality. Sage-green carpet zones the lounge and atrium areas, creating informal places to meet. Mobile, wheeled lounge furniture keeps these zones endlessly reconfigurable — depending on the format and group size. Together with light and acoustics, the result is a working environment that naturally supports the shift between focused work and open exchange.
A Dialogue of Surfaces:
Colors, materials, and textures interlock precisely, shaping the room's distinctive identity. A finely tuned palette of deep petrol, muted rosé, and sage green creates calm and focus, while oak wood and light natural tones bring warmth, and pale-blue curtains set bold accents.
Even the acoustics are part of this design language: the PET felt panels — made from recycled material — dampen the room's sound, while their magnetic strips turn them into presentation surfaces for the creative process. Finely textured fabrics round out the material palette.
Transformation with Purpose:
Sustainability was factored in from the very start of the design process. Rather than conceiving the space entirely anew, the design consistently builds on the existing structure, transforming it into a future-ready innovation space. Recycled PET acoustic panels, durable natural materials, and an open spatial structure form a flexible foundation that allows for change and can adapt to new requirements. Materials are used deliberately, and spatial qualities are reinterpreted.
The result is not a static workshop room, but a living platform for co-creation. The spatial concept developed together with SAP provides a flexible foundation that can adapt to different formats and future requirements. The room stays true to the idea behind it: open to whatever comes next.
