FIRM: CollinsWoerman, Seattle, WA
PROJECT: Software Company @ the Bravern

What is Design?

Design is the process and outcome by which experiences, environments and emotions are engaged.

How is design best illustrated?

Design is best illustrated through the project by utilizing materials, place and stories to connect individuals within a larger context than just the floor on which they happen to work. Design played a vital role in creating spaces and experiences that engage the individual as well as guide them through the buildings.

What was the biggest challenge and how was it solved?

The challenge was to create an identity for the spaces that would connect individuals to the global presence of the company and entice them to break away from campus life. Our team developed a philosophy around connections. Connection to the campus, connection to each other and connection to the world. We selected 4 international cities in which the company has presence and developed palettes based on the distinct characteristics of the cities. Materials played a large part in conveying the traits of each palette and identified focal points on each floor.

What was innovative or unique about the design process?

Each process is ultimately unique, but for this project what we believe was innovative was the way in which we captured the spirit of the brand and used physical spaces to embody that brand all the while meeting our design challenge of creating connections on a global scale. We did this creating a narrative of the day in the life of an employee visiting and developing our material palettes around these stories.

How did design make a difference and what are the measurable impacts?

Through our design philosophy and process, we were able to convey the brand of the company in such a way that employees were excited to be a part of the urban experience. Spaces reflect the characteristics of the 4 cities and provide energizing, modern spaces that are highly functional. The connections that we created by way of cities, colors and textures, have proven to be highly effective in creating energizing spaces but also in assisting with wayfinding.

FIRM: BraytonHughes Design Studios | San Francisco, CA
PROJECT: Venture Capital Firm

What is Design?

Design involves listening carefully to the client's requirements and creating a well–engineered design – a unique and highly productive environment that will surpass their expectations and that will elevate both the client’s work product and their company image.

How is design best illustrated?

Construction of the building had not begun when we began the interior design, which allowed us to shape several aspects of the building to help meet the client’s needs. The central staircase was originally intended to be enclosed. Instead we were able to create an open and bright 'sculpture' of terrazzo and glass that anchors the reception lobby. We were also able to add exterior doors to the side of the large boardroom and incorporated terraced patios into the landscape design, allowing occupants to break from meetings onto the outdoor patios. A set of exterior stairs was added to the landscape plan to connect this new exterior patio with a lower courtyard, offering a decorative water feature.

What was the biggest challenge and how was it solved?

We were asked to provide a light–feeling, California aesthetic, bringing natural light as deeply into the building as possible. This was solved by using a light palette of carpets throughout the offices and circulation, bright terrazzo flooring in public areas, and through the use of light window treatments, indirect lighting, and a combination of hard lid ceiling soffits and large format ceiling tiles throughout. Medium toned wood and clear glass office fronts and wood and glass doors allow natural light to penetrate into the office space. The use of thick, partial–height wood walls punctured with glass between the conference rooms and prefunction retains an open and light feeling while allowing maximum privacy within the conference rooms.

What was innovative or unique about the design process?

The popular Employee Lounge – hospitality design brought into the corporate environment, a combination of hard and soft flooring types, unexpected lighting types, and a variety of seating types allows this room to serve as the heart of the office – a room with its own personality. Wood and stone surfaces are used at the tables and bar to provide a high–end feel to the space, while a central warm wood ceiling soffit grounds the environment. Rich upholstery is used to provide subtle pattern and a textural experience to all who need a break from the office environment.

How did design make a difference and what are the measurable impacts?

The design of the space has impacted the way the client does business by creating a fully functioning conference center portion of the office, which is open to guests, and a well appointed office environment that is strictly for use by staff. Where these two areas intersect – the lobby, employee lounge, and conference areas – you can find a mixture of staff and guests taking advantage of the unique environment which flows from indoors to out.

FIRM: Westparks+Associates Inc | Thornhill, ON Canada
PROJECT: Cara Corporate Headquarters

What is Design?

Transparency in design can refer to the client’s objectives, the process itself or the end result. In the case of our design of the head offices, transparency was the key overall. Founded in 1883, our client has become Canada’s leading branded–restaurant and airlines services company with over 1200 locations. We were charged with moving 350 employees from an existing six–storey hierarchical plan to this custom design/build, one–and–a–half storey, 100,000–sq–ft building. The CEO wanted a collaborative, open, transparent, light–filled workplace that would reflect their brand and the excitement of the food services industry.

How is design best illustrated?

This freestanding design–build facility was truly designed from the inside out. Acting as prime consultants, we undertook transparent, consultative programming to determine optimum adjacencies and relationships. Our space planning and direction regarding skylights, fenestration and stairways guided the architectural form. Two axes divide the 80,000–sq–ft, 18–foot–high ground floor, the north–south one defining the major public entrance, reception area and central boulevard, while staff entrances, coat rooms and services are along the east–west axis. The axes converge at the striking 28–foot high central atrium, with its floating stairway and two–storey–high stacked stone wall with reflecting pool and integrated waterfall.

What was the biggest challenge and how was it solved?

Key to project’s success: creation of transparent workplace while supporting independent work/collaboration. TRANSPARENCY: There are no private offices. CEO’s desk is a standard open workstation with sightline through to the glazed reception area. Access to daylight for 75% of interior. All meeting and board rooms have glazed walls so everyone can see who meets with whom. COLLABORATION/INTERACTION: Honeycomb workstations, low–height files and small tables encourage meandering circulation/short–term meetings. Central boulevard for meetings/town hall sessions. Coffee bar for impromptu interaction. Coordinating carpet products differentiate zones in open plan, adding texture and sound control while working well with other finishes such as polished concrete.

What was innovative or unique about the design process?

Design excellence represented by elements that reflect the food industry while designing to LEED Gold standards. We developed dinner plate/cutlery graphics for reception glazing. Glass–enclosed development kitchen/cafeteria (by others) is visible from the exterior and reception. Ingenious mosaic of notepads depicting menu options and branding shots wall–mounted near meeting rooms. Graphic art panels and numerous flat screens promote brands and restaurant experience. Furniture standardized for cost, inventory management and LEED contribution. Lighting eliminates need for desk task lighting. Daylight harvesting automatically turns off perimeter lighting when not required. All lighting dimmer/sensor controlled. Shaw carpet is cradle–to–cradle environmentally–guaranteed product.

How did design make a difference and what are the measurable impacts?

With staff previously on six floors in a hierarchical facility, the new design facilitates cooperation and collaboration as well as wisdom transfer from experienced to newer employees. Promotes pride in working together across the various brands, while plug and play technology communicates idea that work can happen anywhere, anytime. Environment supports destruction of silos, and communicates a smarter, faster, leaner attitude. Feedback regarding the bright, dynamic, flexible space has been unanimously positive from both associates and outside clients.

FIRM: Legorreta+Legorreta and Dekker/Perich/Sabatini | Mexico City, Mexico and Albuquerque, NM
PROJECT: Thornburg Campus

What is Design?

Design is the collaborative intent to create meaning. It is familiar. Provocative. Nurturing. Engaging. Design is expressed possibility. Having control over one’s environment. Thoughtful use of resources. Sophisticated regional design. During ideation, shared principles and methodology drove the design and created unique solutions. Outside–in, inside–out concepts responded to the site and to the interior experience.

How is design best illustrated?

For this project in Santa Fe, the client directed the project team, consisting of two architectural firms, to design one of the most employee– and environmentally–friendly buildings in the Southwest. The team worked collaboratively to create a distinctively designed space while additionally allowing three co–located, but separate, corporate identities to work independently with customized flexibility to address future needs. Utilizing customized modular walls on an under–floor air system created the platform to allow maximum flexibility to explore ideas during the design process. A modular approach, such as a custom Shaw carpet tile, allowed for a complete vision to be realized.

What was the biggest challenge and how was it solved?

The biggest design challenge was to distill our client’s corporate essence into 100,000 square feet of physical space within the highly regulated architectural mandates of the city of Santa Fe. This building–as–tangible–marketing–tool for 350 people, 27 years of corporate history, 3 distinct corporations, and our client’s multiple client base created a complex malange of issues to address. Exhaustive programming, continual conversations and reviews with the client during the progression of the design, specification of non–traditional building elements, and constant collaboration of the client, the design team, and the contractor, led to the creation of meaningful corporate identity and space.

What was innovative or unique about the design process?

Design excellence is best represented in the design team’s creation of a "new–old Santa Fe style" developed in response to the Hispanic historical context in Santa Fe and strict design guidelines mandated by the city of Santa Fe. Design elements blend the iconic and familiar with the functionality of a state–of–the–art work environment as the wall plane, light, scale, emotion, and subtle Santa Fe color variations give vibrancy to this new style. As our client stated "[this] inspiring architectural marvel is the perfect union of architectural style, environmental design, and workplace functionality."

How did design make a difference and what are the measurable impacts?

The design of this building is making a difference in the workday experience of each employee, who can literally and figuratively breathe easier knowing they are creating minimal impact on the environment. Nearly 97% of occupied spaces are exposed to natural daylighting and floor diffusers improve air quality and provide personal control over temperature and comfort in each workspace. Measurable impacts can be quantified in long–term cost savings, staff retention, and lower energy costs. Additionally, since the space is designed to support specific work processes, there is a resultant benefit of increased productivity, facilitated communication, and greater client satisfaction.

FIRM: Kraaijvanger·Urbis | Rotterdam, Netherlands
PROJECT: Unive/VGZ/IZA/Trias

What is Design?

Creating a functional space or functional product, that fits the user and which meets the needs of the client.

How is design best illustrated?

The vertical organizational structure, without the barriers that come with the different funcyions. The building has a complex situation plan. By vertical organization we were able to connect workspaces dynamically to all levels of the various communication areas. This enables the fading of the boundaries between work and meeting and stimulates social interaction

What was the biggest challenge and how was it solved?

Introduce a new way of working in a very short timespan, creating an interior concept for this development and to apply the appropriate solutions with the implementation of sustainable materials (whereby design and the implementation phase overlapped).

What was innovative or unique about the design process?

Organizational characteristics: a flat organizational structure through an open and informal atmosphere. The appearance of the interior had the be the proprietor of the new organizational structure without a corporate manifesto or advertising. Open structure/transparency/cosy: people are happy and feel at home in the office, like it to go to work and radiate this sentiment.

How did design make a difference and what are the measurable impacts?

The project has the charasteristics of pilot, which experiments with workflow, facilities apects and appearance issues. The aim is to learn and help deal with the firms other establishments where the concept will also be implemeneted and improved where possible. This project is a good example of the growing opportunities in the application and optimization of sustainability in interiors.Bamboo flooring was chosen for the floor finishing in the public areas. For the workplace carpet was deliberately chosen as this was completely Cradle 2 Cradle.

FIRM: id+s Design Solutions | Montreal, QC Canada
PROJECT: Heenan Blaikie

What is Design?

Design is innovative thinking and problem solving manifesting itself in a visual and physical form that satisfies the needs of the users and their tasks in an inspiring environment.

How is design best illustrated?

What was unique about the design process and key to the success of the project was the client’s approach to design. Their appreciation and openness to design and their forward thinking gave us the opportunity to assist them in their own self–expression in a positive and seamless manner. It was a pleasurable process!

What was the biggest challenge and how was it solved?

The biggest and most enjoyable design challenge was the client’s request of injecting color throughout the space and to achieve this without accent walls and colored carpet inlays. Our solution was to introduce color in a simplistic manner while preserving a neutral palette of finishes and materials that will bring them to the next 20 years. The use of strategically placed "colored" furniture such as the primary colored metal credenzas by USM in each conference room showcased these objects in a museum–like quality while creating an element of surprise and humor.

What was innovative or unique about the design process?

Dividing the conference areas on the west and east side allowed us to explore new ways to enclose and open the conference rooms to the public areas. On the west side adjoining large boardrooms separated by movable walls allows for the flexibility to create large gathering areas and continuity of the floor finishes. On the east side, thermally sealed exterior glass sliding doors were used for the boardrooms. Designed to seal you from outdoor elements, they serve well as a seal for sound transference, a sensitive issue to lawyers. Open or closed, these doors offer transparency but also accomplish aesthetically and functionally, a design solution well appreciated by the client.

How did design make a difference and what are the measurable impacts?

"When I wake–up in the morning, I enjoy going to work". A week after the big move, we were approached by a partner of the firm,who was not implicated in the design process. His words encompass the mission and objectives we set out to implement. The use of minimalistic finishes, detailing and color and the sprinkling of whimsical elements distributed throughout, transforms the space into a smart, modern and approachable business environment without evoking luxury and pretentiousness, an image law firms are very careful not to convey.

FIRM: Rottet Studio | Houston, TX
PROJECT: Mattel Design Center

What is Design?

The renovated environment is functional, user–friendly and attractive which are vital matters to the occupants who are designers themselves.

How is design best illustrated?

The building was occupied by the Design Center for more than 20 years, the space was closed in and unorganized. Due to major changes in technology, building codes and design process the building and the space needed to completely changed. Working with a limited design budget and with the mandate that the design Center must continue to function, the project team developed a phasing plan that focused design energy into a few limited areas but assured that all spaces in the center were renovazed.

What was the biggest challenge and how was it solved?

The biggest challenges the design team faced was to maximize collaborative work space, and common areas while allowing enough room for storage space for a vast amount of various materials, prototypes and samples. The design team chose to add a mezzanine system to the center of the building whereby the first floor of the mezzanine could be used for conference rooms and offices and the second floor could be used as additional storage space. With a cafeteria and a toy manufacturing plant under the same roof, air quality and ventilation had to be taken under consideration. Therefore, the design team created three zones with taller walls, doors and special ventilation systems to prevent harmful materials from spreading.

What was innovative or unique about the design process?

The large floor plate, floor plan and organization were seen as key to the project. After an extensive program study, the team was able to identify an underlying structure that would allow for tailoring functions to each groups’ needs, but that allowed for flexibility to relocate groups in the future to accommodate growth and change. The plan is organized around a hierarchy of circulation based on the urban planning approach of major streets, neighborhoods, and conveniently located services.

How did design make a difference and what are the measurable impacts?

The entire project was a great success. The design team was able to figure out a solution that would allow their client to stay in the same building they had occupied for 20 years, bring the building up to code and provide a beautifully remodeled and safe work environment with new private offices, workstations, reception, presentation theater, model shop, chemical lab, Boxology lab, mail and reprographics center, cafeteria and outdoor dining all in one!

FIRM: Perkins+Will | Minneapolis MN
PROJECT: Confidential Technology Company

What is Design?

Design is proposing meaningful solutions and the creative process to realize those solutions. Design is the experience those solutions generate, customer success and business growth for the client. Such is the design for the major campus expansion for this high tech software developer in the great plains of North Dakota. The Vision Building and the Commons are two new facilities totaling 156,000 square feet with interior environments designed to be a warm welcoming place for team members to come together, collaborate and be inspired.

How is design best illustrated?

The work environment needed to support the software developers’ productivity. The office space was co–developed with a user focus group team. The designers worked closely with the team to understand their work process and flow, what was working and the hindrances in their current work environment. Input from the focus group team made it clear: There was a strong desire to minimize disruptions and support concentration while balancing a collaborative, team–centered environment. In response, an innovative zoning system was created. Based on a neighborhood concept, the workplace includes three zones appropriate for concentrative to community based activities.

What was the biggest challenge and how was it solved?

The client had a strong desire to create an environment of regionally influenced tones and textures, creating a haven from the harsh winter months, while still connecting the corporate brand of high tech and energetic design to stimulate innovation. The design vocabulary echo elements found in the state such as shelter belts, the fertile soil of the red river valley, the weathered barns and brilliant sunflowers. Vivid colors drawn from the region bring a sense of place and energy to the workplace. Timber walls and weathered steel panels convey warmth and strength.

What was innovative or unique about the design process?

A major design goal for the client was creating a strong connection between the workplace and the outdoors. Both buildings offer large 2 story spaces with long views reinforcing the connections to the exterior. The connecting Vision Building atrium and the Commons dining room are both punctuated with strong linear wood boxes, reinforcing both sense of place and enclosure for collaboration as well as homage to the east west shelter belts protecting the homesteads from harsh northwest winter winds. These strong elements visually connect the vocabulary of both buildings, while each has their unique program and design elements.

How did design make a difference and what are the measurable impacts?

The Commons serves as a hub by connecting all sides of the campus through indoor and outdoor walkways. The large dining room and meeting spaces are drawing together once silo’d departments reinforcing a sense of community. The office building neighborhoods and team rooms are enhancing the productivity of the development teams, speeding up schedules and product launches. Finally, a great sense of pride among team members is evident by the smiles on their faces and the frequent visits by friends and family to showcase their new work environment.

FIRM: EwingCole | Philadelphia PA
PROJECT: AtlantiCare Oncology Center

What is Design?

Design is not the physical manifestation of a client’s vision but rather a process within which expectations and desires are unified to create function and beauty. Design is an active process that is different for every project.

How is design best illustrated?

The client has a strong community focus which was incorporated into the building through locally commissioned artwork. A portion of the construction budget was set aside for the commissioning of original artwork in the building. An art committee was assembled, made up of members of the client organization and the community, to engage the community in the new building. From the beginning the building was designed with the intention that the artwork would have an opportunity to be changing and evolving. The team designed specific areas which highlight these commissioned pieces allowing for this evolution within the building’s set structure.

What was the biggest challenge and how was it solved?

The largest challenge was designing an environment which aided patients in their healing process; an environment which would convey a sense of peace and calming for the patient during what is a physically and emotionally stressful time. The use of natural materials, large amounts of sunlight and access to outside views were utilized to create spaces for patients to go beyond their current environment and focus on positive life affirming elements.

What was innovative or unique about the design process?

The infusion bays encapsulate the entire design intent of the building. Patients inhabit individual enclosed bays for privacy with individual environmental controls such as personal heat panels within custom curved ceilings, lighting controls, heated infusion chairs and personal televisions. Ample room and a recliner chair are also provided for a guest. Floor to ceiling windows facing pineland barrens run the length of the space with an outside roof garden for views. Custom 3form panels incorporated into the partitions have a denser fill between patients to provide privacy with a lighter density at nurse stations to provide views for staff.

How did design make a difference and what are the measurable impacts?

The project’s programmatic elements are organized to eliminate operational inefficiencies and to facilitate optimal clinical processes. Evidence based design concepts were incorporated to help reduce medical errors, improve patient safety and ensure privacy. From a patient perspective, the design of the space directly correlates to the quality of care and exemplifies the organization’s commitment to creating a comforting environment to maximize the patient experience. From a care–givers standpoint, the non–clinical aspect and efficient and comprehensive layout of the project proves the organization’s consideration of clinician and staff preferences and fosters a sense of pride and ownership which contribute to productivity.

FIRM: Bowie Gridley Architects | Washington, DC
PROJECT: Mollie Dodd Anderson Library

What is Design?

Design is helping your client make the best choices for their building. Opening their eyes to new solutions and opportunities to make a great space to learn for their students.

How is design best illustrated?

George School is a Quaker institution with a great stewardship toward the land and a commitment to LEED. The aesthetic of the school was that of simplicity, warmth and neutrality. This aesthetic offered a unique way to bring LEED & nature into the library building. Shaw offered a great product that made it modern, simple and appropriate for high school aged students.

What was the biggest challenge and how was it solved?

The building form itself was made up of three forms – two of which were on the same axis and the third on a slightly skewed axis. The intersection of these opposing axes provided a challenge as to how to resolve the possible collision. The solution was to isolate the change in direction by making a dominant directional statement. We used the Vivid Float product in a brick pattern layout to provide a straight path through the shifted axis grid, which continued on the other side of this layout. It really cut through the overall grid pattern well.

What was innovative or unique about the design process?

The biggest challenge ended up being the best representation of design excellence in the project. The juxtaposition of the two different carpets in different layouts really stands out – in a good way. It helps to define an open library plan; giving it pathways and circulation, without using walls or furniture.

How did design make a difference and what are the measurable impacts?

It’s overall impact is clear yet subtle to the eye. One enters the building and sees out to nature through the large open reading area and out the vast glass expanses – all while in the periphery one can see the floor as a plane filled with a graphic leaf motif and neutral tones bringing nature inside. Situated downhill and away from the main academic campus, the new Library has become a favorite gathering place for students and faculty, serving to extend campus life beyond traditional boundaries. According to Nancy Starmer, Head of George School, the building is having an "extraordinary effect" on students, faculty and visitors alike.

FIRM: Richard + Bauer Architecture, LLC | Phoenix, AZ
PROJECT: Prescott Valley Library + Yavapai Community College

What is Design?

Design is a process and a solution. Design seeks exploration, clarity and reality through function.

How is design best illustrated?

This project held three major client agencies as the key stakeholders. The innovation came into play in facilitating the key stakeholders and their decision making process. This process included on–site design charrettes with all key parties involved. It took required some scenario planning to gain complete design consensus with the group.

What was the biggest challenge and how was it solved?

The challenge was seeing the future as an immediate entity. Understanding that the library and community are evolving and that the space must morph and respond with the changes. This evolution is happening in real time and the needs for technology, program space and staff needs must be easily adaptable. Solving these ties back to understanding the problem and building in solutions for easy to add and adaptable technology and proper support for technology. This included the RFID security and book inventory systems, design for automation, and considerations for interactive digital research base and a space to fulfill this need.

What was innovative or unique about the design process?

The linkages arranged between the college, library and City meeting chambers are highly complicated relationships threaded together in a seamless circulation pathway. As users change, this pathway can adjust and change over time. This building is highly sustainable and designed with little need for maintenance. The exterior is clad in cement board, glass and perforated aluminum. The cement board is wrapped inside to create durable wall surfaces which require zero maintenance. The flooring material is ground and polished concrete with a highly durable carpet tile system. The day lighting design is such that can be turned off during the day.

How did design make a difference and what are the measurable impacts?

This library is three times the size of its previous facility and is being operated with fewer fte. The design solution offers clear sightlines for staff, easy to understand way finding and appropriate signage. The concept of community is experienced throughout the design of this library. The design gives light to new concepts in today’s modern library. This includes the following: central gathering space with meeting rooms, a council chamber room, a caf�, a bookstore, an interactive virtual reality research room, a popular library collection, literacy tutor rooms, computer classrooms, and an extensive PC area for easy online public access.

FIRM: Cynthia Urbanik Interiors LLC | Charlotte, NC
PROJECT: Dress for Success

What is Design?

Design is empowering and is a new beginning. Design is the power to create a safe haven for thousands and to conceive a place where many will come to feel like they belong. Design is used to bring families, friends and communities together. Thus, when asked to be the designer for a new boutique for the charity, I knew this was a chance to use my skills as a designer to better the lives of those around me. This charity is a non–profit organization that provides interview suits, confidence boosts, and career development to low–income women.

How is design best illustrated?

Like most non–profits, this one is on a tight budget. While this seemed to be an obstacle, I realized that it would provide me with the chance to broaden my scope as a designer. I changed the process from a "closed–door" approach to a process more inclusive of the community. The design evolved based on donations. I reached out to the community and in no time, volunteers and materials started flowing in. We received the carpet from Shaw Contract Group. All of the upholstery needs were donated by a local upholsterer, and we recycled cabinets from an adjacent vacant suite, helping me put the finishing touches on this ever–evolving project.

What was the biggest challenge and how was it solved?

When presented with the warehouse space, an extremely limited budget and a goal of creating a space powerful enough the change women’s lives, I knew there would be challenges. I knew that bold colors such as red and black could create a feeling of strength and confidence. I also knew that chandeliers tend to make women feel beautiful and elegant, and thus I spread them throughout. And, by adding softness to everything from the draperies, to the lighting and furniture, I was able to top off the space with a welcomed femininity and warmth that would create a sense of safety for countless women.

What was innovative or unique about the design process?

It was important that the women coming to the boutique feel a sense of arrival and importance upon entering. They wanted to ensure the women knew that it was a place where they would feel special and safe. I decided to make the women entering the boutique feel like a celebrity by recreating the glamour and excitement of the red carpet. I placed a large, red, textured wall in the entranceway that would help participants feel warm yet powerful, as if they were on the red carpet themselves. I then placed accent lighting on the wall to heighten the sense of depth, intensify the red, and create an atmosphere of "lights, camera, action."

How did design make a difference and what are the measurable impacts?

There is no better way to measure the results of your work than to meet those you have affected. Throughout this project, I was able to meet and hear stories about many of the women who have used this charity in the past and several who plan to use its resources at the new boutique. Many of the women have been brought to tears after seeing the boutique. It is overwhelming to know that my contribution as a designer would serve to change lives forever. When a woman walks into the boutique, she knows that many have dedicated a great deal of time and love to make it a special place.