Architectural knowledge and passion for "creating human-centered spaces": The designer's challenge to realize his ideals

Architecture and spatial experience—Yosuke Ando has pursued his career at NOMURA Co.,Ltd. with these two interests, which he cultivated during his student days, in mind. Since joining the company in 2005, he has worked to create spaces that are attuned to "how people spend their time," while flexibly incorporating cutting-edge digital tools. We will unravel his thoughts and journey as he continues to create experiential value through repeated challenges and innovations.

Involved from planning to architecture and interiors– a concept design approach that maintains the concept.

Ando belongs to the Creative Division, Creative Production Center "no.10". He is part of a team that handles a wide range of projects, from architecture to interiors, and concept design new experiences through space.

Ando: "My area of responsibility varies depending on the project. Recently, I've worked on internal recruiting spaces, apparel stores, and a cafe in Saudi Arabia. Last year, I handled a residential project from construction to interiors, and now I'm working on an experiential training facility in collaboration with local specialty products, as well as the renovation of a large commercial facility."

In recent years, there has been an increase in cases where Ando is involved in the entire process, from the early planning stages to architecture and interior design. Ando's specialty is large-scale projects that involve positioning facilities within the cityscape. He works closely with planners and is involved from the planning stage onwards.

Ando: "My team values clarity, which means turning the concept we came up with at the beginning into a concrete form. By being involved from the planning stage, it becomes easier to build a consistent concept for the entire facility, and I believe we can create a more complete space than if we were to proceed separately. However, it is difficult to complete everything on my own, so collaboration with a planner is essential."

At no.10, we prioritize not only the quality of concept design but also customer satisfaction throughout the process. As part of this, we use software called a game engine to visualize the expected final product.

Ando: "Using a game engine allows you to experience the feeling of actually walking through the completed space. Unlike traditional still perspective drawings, it allows you to intuitively convey the image of the space, which speeds up the client's decision-making process and ultimately improves the quality of the project. It takes time and effort, but we use it in most of our projects."

Construction takes time and money, and it is not easy to redo something once it has been built.

Ando: "We want our clients to be satisfied before moving on to the next phase. To that end, we use digital tools to carefully reach a consensus. We believe this process is extremely important when creating a space."

A new perspective found at the intersection of culture and architecture

▲ "Yaskawa Electric Miraikan" Photo: Masato Kono, Nacasa & Partners

Interested in culture and art, Ando was attracted to the "charm of the space itself" when he visited the Toyota Municipal Museum of Art as a high school student, and decided to study architecture at university.

Ando: "At the time, architecture was primarily about creating boxes, or buildings, and I had the strong impression that architects created works that reflected their own personalities. However, as I continued to study, I began to think that I wanted to get closer to the people who live in the city and make proposals that were rooted in their actual lives.

I also love music, and I have experience as a DJ during my student days. The experience of being able to directly feel the joy of customers up close made me strongly attracted to jobs that involve "close interaction with people." That's where my interest in interiors and display industry came from."

While pursuing my job search with these thoughts in mind, I came across NOMURA Co.,Ltd.

Ando: "I was attracted by the track record I saw in magazines and the sight of my university seniors enjoying their work. The relaxed atmosphere of the company building at the time was also appealing."

I decided to join the company because I felt it was an environment where I could create concept design that resonate with consumers. After joining, I was assigned to the Communication concept design Department, where I was in charge of designing corporate showrooms and event spaces. Through my involvement in creating spaces, I grew to a certain conviction.

Ando: "The way people spend their time changes greatly depending on concept design and space. The form of the space naturally guides people's gaze and movement. By designing how to present displays and how to make visitors feel about them, we can improve the quality of the visitor experience itself."

Ando deepened his knowledge of experience design through a process of "hypothesis, verification, and improvement." This approach came to fruition in 2015 with the experiential showroom "Yaskawa Electric Miraikan," for which he was primarily responsible.

Ando: "I designed a space to explain industrial robot and motor technology in an easy-to-understand way for the general public. As a facility to displays futuristic technology, concept design the space itself to feel like you're inside a robot, using slanted walls instead of the usual vertical ones. I also used irregular angles between the walls instead of 90 degrees to create a distinctive space. In addition, I embedded LEDs in a line on the floor, expressing a sense of the future through color changes and flashing."

We also proactively made use of digital tools, and by creating the CG ourselves, we were able to create a more detailed spatial experience.

Ando: "In a design with many slanted walls, it's necessary to make small adjustments to the angles while checking how they actually look in 3D space. Usually, we outsource the creation of perspectives, but to create the intended space, it's much smoother to make the fine adjustments while verifying them yourself."

This project won multiple awards, and its approach to creating spaces that take into consideration people's experiences and behavior would go on to have a major impact on subsequent projects.

A unique space created by combining technology and passion

▲Houses on the Rias Coast

In 2016, I was transferred to "onndo," a concept design team that handles commercial projects, something I had hoped to do since joining the company. This team was the predecessor to no.10, the team I still belong to today. What awaited me there was a large-scale project to completely renovate the "Times Square" commercial facility in Shanghai, China.

Ando: "It was a complete renovation, including removing the floor and erecting a bridge, as well as completely renovating the exterior. It took about three years, and being able to conceive the entire space from scratch made it the ideal project for me."

This project also marked a turning point in the use of digital tools.

Ando: "When making proposals to foreigners, due to language and cultural differences, it's difficult to convey the intention with just 'drawings,' and I feel like it's hard for them to understand without 'visuals.' Because of this, I've had to make many revisions to the perspective in the past. After thinking about ways to improve this, I felt that nothing beats 'proposals that can be experienced,' so I decided to introduce VR."

This was an advanced initiative at the time, and was a method that was only implemented in a few cases within the company.

Ando: "During the presentation, I had the president wear VR goggles, and I operated the controller to let him experience the space. We also partnered with an external company to carry out analysis using the VR model. By measuring the brain waves of six subjects, we were able to quantify their feelings about the space, such as comfort. Being able to quantitatively show the difference before and after the renovation made the presentation much more persuasive."

In 2024, he took on the challenge of designing a private residence, "House on a Rias Coast" (KUKAN DESIGN AWARD 2025 Shortlist), a comprehensive project that involved working on everything from architecture to interior design.

Ando: "It was rare for NOMURA Co.,Ltd. to be entrusted with the design of a house, and the opportunity to be involved from the architectural stage was also valuable. In this project, we made full use of BIM (Building Information Model)* and managed data consistently from design to construction. It is like building an entire building in a digital space, and we consolidated all the information, including materials used, floor and wall specifications, and details of facilities.

We also sought to address the regional characteristic of the strong north winds that are unique to the Japan Sea coast by incorporating the city's alleyway structure into the architecture.

Ando: "The most enjoyable thing was being able to design not just the building itself, but also the relationship with the surrounding topography and streetscape, and the scenery as seen from the residents' perspective."

By leveraging digital technology and extensive experience, Ando realized design administration that reflected the perspective of the people who would actually live there. For Ando, this project allowed him to mobilize all of his past learning and perspectives, and it went on to win awards both domestically and internationally.

*BIM stands for Building Information Modeling. It is a system that streamlines operations by assigning "attributes" such as floors, walls, and ceilings, as well as "management information" such as finishes, costs, and schedules, to a 3D digital model and utilizing that information in design, construction, and maintenance management.

A philosophy of spatial concept design that is close to people and envisions the future.

Ando has pursued concept design that are close to people's lives, working on everything from architecture to interiors. He says that the most rewarding part of his work is the moment when he sees his clients happy.

Ando: "In architecture, it's difficult to see the big picture until completion, so it's a process of repeated hypothesis and verification. In that process, I feel a great sense of accomplishment when I realize that my hypothesis was correct, or when someone empathizes with my attention to detail. Above all, there is a joy that cannot be replaced by anything else, when I feel that I have contributed even a little to people's happiness."

When asked about his vision for the future, Ando expressed his joy at seeing the dreams he has had since his student days come true.

Ando: "I studied architecture during my student days, but I joined NOMURA Co.,Ltd. because I wanted to do concept design that is closer to consumers and their daily lives. At the same time, I have always had the desire to be involved in architecture from a people-centered perspective."

Recently, I've been given more opportunities to work on architectural projects, and I feel like I'm getting closer to the ideal I envisioned during my student days. In the future, I want to continue pursuing concept design that always put people at the center, expanding my scope from aspects close to people, such as living spaces and interiors, to architecture and urban development."

Nearly 20 years have passed since I joined the company, but my feelings towards my work at NOMURA Co.,Ltd. remain unchanged.

Ando: "Looking back, NOMURA Co.,Ltd. provided an environment where you could have many opportunities if you had the motivation to learn and take on challenges on your own. I was very grateful that I was able to work on things that interested me and that I wanted to challenge myself with at each turning point, such as the introduction of digital tools or a change of department. I am thankful for the opportunities I was given."

From architecture to spatial design, and then to experience design. "Space has the power to change people's behavior," is Ando's belief, and he continues to take on new challenges on site today.

*The information provided is current as of May 2025.