Helping a manufacturing team connect, collaborate and create something meaningful through a shared creative experience.
Solupak wanted to bring their team together in a way that felt different from traditional team-building activities.
Working alongside the team, we designed a bespoke creative workshop centred around collaboration, communication and shared ownership. The outcome was a large-scale River Calder-inspired artwork made up of 18 individual canvases created by the team themselves.
What started with a little scepticism quickly became energy, laughter, teamwork and genuine pride in what they had created together.
Because when people are given permission to relax and create, conversation tends to happen naturally.
The challenge
Solupak wanted to energise their internal culture and create something meaningful for their Peter Minister Training Room.
The leadership team wanted an experience that felt inclusive, engaging and genuinely worthwhile — not another awkward team-building activity that people felt forced to participate in.
With different personalities and job roles across the business, the challenge was creating something everyone could connect with.
And yes, when the team first heard the words “painting canvases”, there were a few slightly nervous faces.
Our approach
We designed a bespoke Create & Connect workshop delivered across three relaxed sessions of six people.
The sessions included:
- Creative warm-up activities
- Guided sketching and painting
- Collaborative creative exercises
- A shared artistic goal across 18 canvases
The final artwork was inspired by the nearby River Calder, with each participant contributing to a larger connected piece.
The focus wasn’t artistic ability. It was collaboration, communication and creating something together.
Behind the scenes
To minimise disruption to production, the workshops were split across the day in smaller groups.
Sketching and painting took place in the boardroom, while the mezzanine area became a temporary drying space.
Nobody saw the complete artwork until the very end, which made the final reveal even more powerful.
The result
What began with hesitation quickly became enthusiasm.
As the sessions progressed, people relaxed, supported one another and became fully engaged in the process. Conversations flowed naturally and the energy in the room noticeably shifted.
The completed artwork now hangs proudly within Solupak’s training room as a lasting reminder of what the team created together.
But the real outcome went beyond the artwork itself.
People left feeling energised, connected and genuinely proud of what they had achieved as a team.
“The minute the team sat down and got involved in the activity it was evident that they were all very engaged and very involved.
Everything that I’ve wanted out of the project has been listened to, it’s just been a fantastic team building event that has been so different and we’ve ended up with such a buzz coming from the team afterwards.”
– Helen MacDonald, Managing Director, Solupak
Time for your team to be part of the bigger picture?
Create & Connect workshops help teams communicate more openly, collaborate more naturally and create something meaningful together.
If you’d like to explore a session for your organisation, let’s have a conversation.
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