ARRIAL was already operational at the end of 2019, but the grand opening, originally planned for May 2020, was cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Film technology company ARRI has opened a new company headquarters and moved the entire Camera Systems division to Munich’s Parkstadt Schwabing. ARRIAL is the new production and office building, offering over 600 workspaces tailored to meet ARRI’s future needs. It is located at Herbert Bayer, Strasse 10.
Judith Gerlach, Bavarian State Minister for Digital Affairs commemorated the opening with a visit to the new building earlier this week. Gerlach was welcomed by ARRI Executive Board members Michael Neuhaeuser and Markus Zeiler, the two Managing Directors of ARRI Cine Technik Stephan Schenk and Walter Trauninger, as well as by the members of the supervisory board and representatives of the owner family, Carolin Stahl and Christoph Stahl.
For the new company headquarters, an open-space office concept suitable for ARRI was developed to meet the requirements of the workplace environment. The building features larger offices and numerous retreat rooms for focussed, individual work or internal meetings, while customers and other external parties have access to versatile meeting rooms.
Many rooms have been named after feature films that were captured with ARRI cameras including Das Boot, Skyfall, and Easy Rider.
ARRI also plans to open a museum where the company will display some of the 19 Academy awards received for its contributions to the film industry.
In the neighbouring ARRI Studio, equipped with camera and lighting technology from ARRI, virtual all-hands meetings are produced along with live webinars and other moving-image productions.
ARRIAL has solar panels on the roof which allows ARRI to produce its own electricity while feeding any surplus energy back into the network. Inspired by the architecture of American film studios, the building consists of two spacious, interconnected building blocks.
“Some visitors recognise analogue film strips from earlier times or the carbon housings of our digital ARRI cameras in the dynamic-looking, almost perforated, black brick facade,” said Managing Director Walter Trauninger who is responsible, along with Stephan Schenk, for the Camera Systems business unit.
“ARRIAL has united all the specialist areas within the Camera Systems unit—from development and production to marketing and service—as well as all central functions under one roof, with the shortest possible distances between them,” added Managing Director Stephan Schenk.
Executive Board member Michael Neuhaeuser noted: “With this move, we are setting an important course for the future of ARRI. At ARRIAL, we offer our employees optimal conditions for successful work to ensure that ARRI remains innovative well into the future.”
Numerous companies were involved in the construction. A total of 7,700 sqm (over 82,882 ft.) was built on the approximately 10,600 sqm (over 114,097 ft). site. This resulted in 17,500 sqm (over 188,368 ft.) of net-floor space for offices and an additional 15,000 sqm (over 161,458 ft) of storage, usable space, and parking.
“With around 1,400 employees and numerous branches worldwide, ARRI is truly a global player,” explained Executive Board member Markus Zeiler. “Still ARRI remains a Munich-based company with a long tradition. With this new building, ARRI is committing itself to Munich as a production and innovation location in the future.”
The company’s founding location in Munich’s Tuerkenstrasse is still owned by ARRI and its Media division, responsible for postproduction, and the ASTOR Film Lounge at ARRI with three movie theatres will remain on the premises, as will other private and commercial tenants.
ARRIAL was already operational at the end of 2019, but the grand opening, originally planned for May 2020, had to be cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.
