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Hello,

We are currently halfway through the period during which our questionnaire on the planned student spaces is open: https://is.muni.cz/auth/go/fi-study-gform. We have received feedback that working through an 83-page PDF can be daunting, so we have decided to create a shorter overview of the planned zones and their amenities, supplemented with a few illustrative images.

This text should not assign any particular judgement to the individual elements; everyone should form their own opinion and express it in our questionnaire. In particular, the questionnaire also asks what you think is missing from the defined study space, which everyone must figure out for themselves, for example, by imagining spending a free two-hour time slot here. This text also assumes that you know the general context of the conceptual study from our previous post.

Overview of the entire study room

The study room would take up the entire second floor of Building C—i.e., from the end of the hallway with the restrooms near Building A to the exit to Building D—and would be completely open and passable. It is further divided into 10 different zones, which we will go through one by one. Due to the absence of walls, different surfaces, colors, and furniture choices are used to distinguish between the zones.

Floor plan of the entire study room with marked zones

The axis of the study room is a "corridor" defined by the use of vinyl flooring, while everywhere else (except for the kitchenette) there are carpets. Above this central corridor is a lowered ceiling, which hides any technical wiring.

Flooring used throughout the study room, with color-coded zones

Each zone also has differently arranged LED lighting and suspended ceilings.

Lighting (in red) and suspended ceiling panels to improve acoustics (in gray)

Zone 1: Refresh zone = kitchenette

A semi-enclosed space with a coffee machine, kitchen counter, sink, microwaves, and trash cans. Seating at two round tables or with your back to the hallway on an arched bench that encloses the kitchenette. A spiral-shaped grid of wooden slats hangs from the ceiling, continuing perpendicular to the floor at the rear of the arched bench and completing the kitchen's perimeter. White ceiling, cream walls, light oak vinyl flooring.

Kitchen floor plan with proposed furniture descriptions	View of the kitchen from the central corridor

Zone 2: Active relaxation = playroom

An open space with play and exercise elements, separated from the hallway by a wide wooden cladding on a supporting column, on which hangers will be installed. Darts, table football, wall bars, and ceiling bars for stretching are proposed. Seating on ottomans. Anthracite (dark gray) ceiling without a false ceiling, turquoise carpet on the floor.

Floor plan of the playroom	View from the central corridor through the playroom to the door to building A

Zone 3: Relaxation = sofas

Open seating area, separated from the corridor/auditorium by a 2 m high folding screen (made out of plasterboard), on which there is a writable magnetic foil on this side (and audiovisual equipment for the auditorium on the other side). Low sofas without backrests by the windows, like those in the faculty library, and upholstered armchairs with backrests by the wall near the meeting room, both complemented by small low coffee tables. Smooth plasterboard ceiling in anthracite colour, blue-grey carpet.

Floor plan of the relax zone with a description of the separation from both the kitchenette and auditorium	View from the relaxation zone towards the central corridor and auditorium

Zone 4: Auditorium

A terraced wooden stage of the amphitheater, complemented by chairs at the front, converges towards the "podium" which concludes with armchairs, a whiteboard, and a display screen. Above the "podium" is a suspended ceiling made of porous acoustic plasterboard, as seen, for example, on the walls of lecture halls A217, etc. The column next to the " podium" is covered with a writable film for leaving messages. In front of the stage line, the turquoise carpet from zone 2 Relax Active continues, and the ceiling is anthracite without a suspended ceiling.

Floor plan of the auditorium with illustrations of equipment	View from the terraced stage to the "podium"

Zones 5 & 6: Meeting 1 & 2 = conference rooms

Two closed conference rooms, each with a capacity of 12 people, which, except for color differentiation (rust-colored walls, carpets with red elements, cream chairs vs. blue walls, carpets with gray-blue elements, gray-blue chairs), are identically equipped: a central table, rolling chairs, a high bar table in the corner, a display screen on the walls, and a vertical (narrow) whiteboard. The meeting rooms are separated from the previous zones by a wall, and from the corridor and downstream zones (coworking, or lobby respectively) by glass walls, which are partially opaque due to a graphic motif. The ceilings of both meeting rooms feature rectangular, sound-absorbing suspended ceiling panels.

Floor plan of a meeting room with illustrations of the equipment	Cross-section of the meeting rooms looking towards building A

Zones 7 & 8: Coworking 1 & 2 

A large open space covering the entire width of the floor, intended for work. In the half that is closer to the faculty courtyard, there are two standard work tables with chairs and sofas without backrests. In the part closer to Hrnčířská Street, there are armchairs with round tables, one table for four, and a high table with bar stools. Cream walls, anthracite ceiling without a suspended ceiling, yellow carpets. There are many round, sound-absorbing panels on the ceiling. The openness of the entire study room is reinforced by the fact that the coworking zones are not separated from the rest of the floor by a door in the hallway.

Floor plan of the coworking zone – the half closer to the faculty courtyard	View from the central hallway to the half of the coworking zone closer to the faculty courtyard
Floor plan of the coworking zone – the half closer to Hrnčířská Street	View from the central hallway to the half of the coworking zone closer to Hrnčířská Street

Zone 9: Private = a cubicle

A small enclosed space separated from the coworking area by a sliding glass wall, intended for taking private calls. Three stools for sitting at low tables, a narrow blackboard on the wall. Indirect lighting hidden behind an acoustically absorbent facing panel. Same paint and carpet as in the coworking area.

Floor plan of the private zone with illustrations of equipment	View through the private zone towards the glass wall separating it from the coworking zone

Zone 10: Lobby

Although it may not seem so now, this side will probably be the "main" entrance to the study room, because here the study room corridor turns left and ends at the faculty courtyard near two of the four new large lecture halls in building D. The entrance door to the courtyard is complemented by a lobby room, which mainly contains sofas with backrests and small work tables. The lobby is separated from the corridor leading to Building D by a low wall, and from the corridor in the center of the floor by a wall with a wooden alcove, which is typical of the corridors in Building A. The carpet here is green, two of the three walls are lined with wood, and the room has a suspended ceiling with another sunken soffit.

Floor plan of the lobby with illustrations of the amenities	View from the entrance door from the courtyard towards the central corridor

Conclusion

Thank you for reading this far! The open study room is to be created for students, so we need to hear your opinion. You can have a real impact on what spaces will be used by future generations of students at FI. Please share your thoughts with us by October 31 using our anonymous form: https://is.muni.cz/auth/go/fi-study-gform

On behalf of the FI MU Academic Senate Students' Chamber (SKAS),
Ondra