Wawanesa
A "freeway" of automobile mirrors reflects the community of Wawanesa's customers.
A "freeway" of automobile mirrors reflects the community of Wawanesa's customers.
We see ourselves reflected within the community of staff and customers.
We see ourselves reflected within the community of staff and customers.
Staff can relax under Wawanesa's "prairie sky" made from colorful seat belt material.
A custom ceiling made from seat belts.
Wawanesa offered us two challenges. First: reduce their total area by half. Second: help staff and visitors better understand the concept of “mutuality,” their auto insurance brand message.
Mutuality is how Wawanesa’s customers own the company and support one another. The office space shows how this relationship is woven together. The “prairie sky” is recreated with 5,000 yards of blue seat belt material woven into the break room ceiling. Another installation of auto mirrors “reflects” the connection between the driver, the company, and the entire community. Wawanesa loves the way the convex mirrors change the perception of the space and the people within it.
Recurring themes of intersection and connection are represented with recessed lighting in the walls and ceiling.
Multiple work settings and places to meet are provided.
Intersecting orange ropes symbolize the connections that Aya's recruiters make every day.
"Connecting the dots" in real time.
Intersecting orange ropes symbolize the connections that Aya's recruiters make every day.
The entire installation is made from a single rope!
Our team collaborated with the contractor to develop the installation details. True teamwork.
Aya Healthcare asked us to install some new workstations into an existing small suite. Two years later, we are renovating their entire campus and working hard to keep up with their growth. In a competitive market, great office space makes a difference in attracting the best talent. We updated Aya’s furniture standards which improved functionality and reduced the cost beyond what Aya was paying for refurbished furniture.
Aya Healthcare places traveling nurses in hospitals. Their recruiters create webs of relationships matching the nurses’ capabilities with the hospitals’ needs. Orange ropes on the wall and ceiling represent their incredible success at finding great nurses (each rope) and the right placements (each intersection). The installation reflects the energy with which their team builds these connections.
Access to fresh air to support respiratory health in the workspace was also improved through the design process. Existing roofs were converted to outdoor work environments. The volume of fresh air was increased to levels similar to those at critical care environments. Integral UV sterilization was also added to all new equipment.
The demonstration area includes hands-on demos, history displays and a hospitality area with an ocean view.
A circular carpet pattern focuses attention on the displays at the center of the presentation.
Six fully-functional training ORs demonstrate NuVasive's implants and techniques in a real setting.
NuVasive is the perfect microcosm of what we do: a high-end demonstration area, a super-technical surgery training suite, an operating room, and 100,000 square feet of workstations. The first thing you’ll notice about the demonstration area is how everything revolves around the central hub, all the way down to the circular carpet.
We applied our experience in hospitality to the world of corporate offices to design and custom fabricate 20,000 feet of circular carpet. Without this design decision, the room would not have been as effective or as focused on the central hub.
We also designed a surgery training suite. NuVasive invites surgeons from around the world to visit and train on their products and systems in this space. It is a perfect blend of technology and hospitality. As you can imagine, getting that technology space to work required a tremendous amount of coordination.
For the work area, we were able to redistribute their workstations in such a way that gave them amenity spaces they never had before. We showed them how to get the same number of people into 2⁄3 the space. That gave them 1⁄3 of the area for less programmed space (open meeting areas, lounges, pantries, etc.). We showed them how to do this by making their workspace planning hyper-efficient and then redistributing the leftover space all in one area so they could have a large area we named the “central park.”
CV Sciences etched into an existing concrete shear wall contrasts with custom gold glass details.
Furniture as blue as Elvis' suede shoes.
Architectural volumes define neighborhoods for various teams.
A recreation of the client's favorite bar brings the teams together.
Fun graphics are inspired by the client's personal collection of rat pack memorabilia.
An impromptu meeting space where staff can collaborate.
Office, lab and warehouse work side by side.
Whimsical graphic wallpaper captures the lighthearted nature of the client.
CV Sciences is a wonderful blend of science and design. In this one space, CBD products are developed, manufactured and marketed. The mix of scientists, artists and sales staff make an interesting mix of function and fun. Teams meet and mingle at the Chicago-style cocktail bar filled with the owner’s collection of rat pack and sports memorabilia. Playful touches abound. Architectural forms float within a large volume to create neighborhoods and separate teams that require quiet from teams that are more energetic.
Light-filled meeting spaces.
GreatCall provides life-saving products and services to our grandparents. Few tasks are more meaningful than that.
Agile teams are housed in flexible suites that accommodate visitors and foster quick meetings and group work.
Agile team suites provide solo and group work settings.
Hallways are activated with lighting, graphics and nooks to escape into.
Hallways are activated with lighting, graphics and nooks to escape into.
An office with a view and a point of view.
A new folding door system engages a secure outdoor space.
GreatCall designs and markets the Jitterbug smartphone that allows our aging parents and grandparents to live safely on their own with confidence. This corporate headquarters houses their software and hardware engineering teams as well as general administrative functions and a backup 5‑star emergency customer response center.
During focus groups and on-site observations, it became very clear that GreatCall’s standard office environment was working against the needs of their product teams. By reworking the plan to use semi-enclosed suites rather than rows of workstations, GreatCall became the first of its kind for Agile teams.
Agile teams are able to work more effectively, with frequent quick meetings, progress-sharing and the ability to make space for visitors. The semi-openness fosters a sense of connection between teams and displays their unified mission: Let’s do something meaningful together. The new suites layout has helped GreatCall substantially reduce their product development time.
We struck a balance between showroom and workspace. A stage was created to feature new products.
A changing vignettes area is displayed between the fixed stage and ceiling.
3,000 chair casters make a map of BKM's customers.
A map of every San Diego customer is plotted with chair casters.
No contractor was willing to install the caster map... so we did it ourselves! To our surprise, others joined in the fun.
BKM wanted to demonstrate multiple furniture systems and work environments in a compressed space.
Customers and staff blend seamlessly in the work cafe.
Half of the showroom is community space.
A custom bar etched with the latest chair fabric pattern sits in front of 200 3D-printed Think chairs.
A variety of working and meeting spaces allow customers and staff to find exactly the right fit.
A bespoke program of local monument photos is printed on magnetic wall graphics.
Customers can play with materials in a tidy materials library.a
BKM is a local Steelcase dealer. We designed a map of their customers that we plotted onto the wall and ceiling in which each customer is represented by a chair caster.
The graphic is beautiful and fun, but imagine the interaction with the client. You’re a furniture dealer. You just sold a new client. You hand them a caster and a drill and say, “Go put yourself on the map.” Now you’ve created an engagement with that client that’s going to last forever.
After our installation BKM’s business grew by 300%, in part because of their new showroom.
The office entrance is designed to mimic Pirch's retail environments.
Pirch's manifesto consists of 23 elements that are carved into the wall and lit from behind.
The phrase "what if..." drives their business and the design of the space.
There is no receptionist. Instead, a barista offers you a coffee. You are deep in the space and engaging with the team before you realize it.
The new indoor/outdoor space is where lunch is served and guests are welcomed every day.
The new indoor/outdoor space is where lunch is served and guests are welcomed every day.
A custom light fixture inspires action.
Supergraphics remind staff to "play."
Quiet meeting areas are within the workspace.
Glass divider panels double as whiteboards.
Project rooms are customized for each team. The marketing team room is pictured here.
A library is available for anyone who needs a quiet space.
A library is available for anyone who needs a quiet space.
The graphic pattern in the light fixtures is derived from Pirch's logo.
Staff gym and showers provide a spa-like experience.
Staff gym and showers provide a spa-like experience.
A chef prepares breakfast and lunch for the entire staff every day.
A personal trainer encourages staff to use the gym regularly.
Pirch is a lifestyle retailer that celebrates the joy of family and home. They asked us to express the four pillars of their business: kitchen, bath, outdoor, joy. Three of the four are easily represented in an interior headquarters. The fourth — outdoor — was a little harder.
So, part of our design was to remove 14 parking spaces and open up the side of the building so that they would have an indoor-outdoor workspace that is connected to the “outdoor” pillar of their business.
We felt it was incredibly important that they incorporate this into their space because it reflects who they are as a retailer and is integral to their business. The two decision makers went away for the weekend and battled it out. In the end, they came back and said, “Okay, we’re going to spend the extra money, but I hope it’s worth it.” We knew it was important, and we knew that it would be game-changing for them.
When it was all said and done, they said it was the best money they had ever spent. They use this space regularly — it became the center of their daily rituals.
We also reconsidered what their reception experience should be and placed a coffee bar where you would expect to see a receptionist’s desk. This turned the whole experience of entering an office on its head. Instead of a receptionist saying, “Whoa, whoa, whoa, you’re not allowed past here until you’ve signed in,” you’re offered a cup of coffee. And by the time you are in the space for a few minutes, you are immersed in their culture.
The new headquarters brought the team together in a way that allowed Pirch to build 10 new stores in the first year.
Soft waves and sandy colors echo the mountains and beaches of San Diego.
Kidder Mathews' logo is reinterpreted as a piece of furniture for their lobby.
A custom graphic wall covering shows local icons against a sunset of Kidder Mathews' logo color.
Glass office fronts encourage interaction between brokers.
The Los Angeles office is branded to represent the downtown vibe.
Maps without names represent brokers' knowledge of the neighborhoods of LA.
One-way glass around the breakroom provides privacy and visually extends the lobby.
Kidder Mathews didn’t tell us in the design brief that brokers hang out out in the doorways of their offices. But we observed it happening regularly. Someone would stop by, but they wouldn’t quite go in because they didn’t want to interrupt. So they would stand in the doorway for a moment to talk. We asked ourselves, “How do you reinforce that behavior in a way that makes the company better?”
Our answer: use glass office fronts and wider door frames to facilitate these casual interactions. Move desks forward and closer to the door so that these discussions can be more direct. And have monitor arms that can spin 180°.
We developed five offices across the Southwest for Kidder Mathews. Each office has its own personality within the larger corporate standard. Featured graphics focus on the brokers’ in-depth knowledge of their market. In the downtown Los Angeles office, a series of street maps visualize the various neighborhoods represented. The brokers don’t need street names to read the maps because of how well they know the area. Colors and finishes are tailored to each location within an overarching color palette — San Diego and Phoenix are brighter; the Los Angeles office is a little deeper.
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