Nothing says urban residential chic quite like the wide-open expanses, high ceilings and industrial style of an old factory converted into loft space. And Ateliery Spektrum (Spectrum Studios), a digital printing company that works on billboards and other oversize marketing projects, wants to see more of it in Prague.

What began as an office space search for Atelier Spektrum Managing Director Michal Dvořák ended in design inspiration. When it became clear in 2002 that his company needed more room to grow, an old Škoda factory just a half a kilometer down the street caught his attention.

"When I saw it from the inside, even though it was in very bad shape at the time, I made the decision on the spot," he says. "It was clear that the building was just beautiful and could be converted into quite unusual offices or studios. It had a perfect location and style for this purpose."

Dvořák's original intention was to keep the entire building for Atelier Spektrum. But he soon came up with a plan to add two floors to the top of the building and sell the new space, as well as one of the existing floors, as residential lofts. He purchased the building in 2003 and construction began in 2004. Work on the commercial space was finished by the end of that year, and the first through fourth floors now accommodate bright, open-plan offices and printing facilities.

The residential living space begins on the fifth floor. Though Dvořák attended art school, he isn't an architect or interior designer; his previous design projects are limited to Atelier Spektrum's former office spaces. But with assistance from architects, who cleaned up some of his lines and created blueprints for construction of the lofts, he turned out a classic and impressive urban loft design.

"The vision was to maintain the original 1920s architecture, which was only aimed at work, and to combine that 'cold' style with new, high-tech materials of this century," Dvořák explains. "And to add warming elements, such as wood, in order to create an environment where people can feel comfortable, but still feel the presence of the past, heavy industry times."

The design is classic industrial and draws heavily on the look of the Škoda factory, which was built in 1919. The airy spaces have wooden floors, white walls and a plethora of iron and glass accents. Light switches, door handles and the like are outfitted in brushed steel; blinds are a muted factory gray, and open plans leave loft inhabitants plenty of room for self-expression in their living spaces.

Lofts on the fifth floor have 4.3-meter-high (14.2-foot) ceilings, and each dwelling includes an open living space and an upstairs gallery built over the master bathroom, guest bathroom, walk-in closet, entryway and kitchenette. The galleries, intended to be used for sleeping or working space, are slightly cramped, with low ceilings and even lower protruding beams that make them difficult to navigate. In fact, one has to duck when walking across the gallery space. So Dvořák and his colleagues are designing lowered walkways on their outer edges to help ease navigation.

Construction on the fifth floor is scheduled to be completed by the end of summer 2006, by which time the walls of a brand-new sixth floor will also be up. Interior construction on the new level, which will boast 6-meter-high ceilings and split-floor living spaces, should be finished by the end of the year. Each sixth-floor home will boast a horseshoe-shaped gallery that curls partway around the upper half of the loft, leaving the center space open from floor to ceiling. When all construction work on the building is out of the way, workers will turn their attention to the landscaping around it.

Prices for the 15 lofts, which range in size from 73 to 340 square meters, are 48,500 Kč ($2,011) per square meter on the fifth floor and 55,000 Kč per square meter on the sixth. Perks for buyers include 24-hour security, indoor parking (one space per loft) and wireless Internet.

Over a third of the lofts have been sold, according to Ateliery Spektrum spokeswoman Kamila Kubatová, and clients up to this point have been an approximately equal mix of Czech and foreigners. Spaces such as these, Kubatová says, tend to be of interest to business people, younger couples without children, artists and other people who appreciate a modern style of living.