Design is an evolution of thought that starts with an idea and grows into actuality. I believe that the design process should involve everyone, from the design team, to the users, and even the community. When designing, it is important to use a holistic approach, which considers not only the physical, but also the experiential and environmental context of the entire project. These fundamental layers create successful designs.
Workday - Boulder
Workday Boulder was a multi-phased project with big goals and a conservative budget. We worked closely with their leadership and global design team to understand their company goals and evolving standards as well as their local team to understand current successes and challenges with the existing space.
For phase one, they were expanding to into the remaining two floors of their existing building to accommodate Boulder’s growing staff. The team and leadership had diverse goals and ideas with what they wanted to achieve with the additional space. After meeting with various panels and focus groups we identified common challenges, and desired outcomes: to create connection, flexibility, improve focus options, and an environment that supports a hybrid workforce.
They had an ambitious program, needing to fit 100 seats within 10,000 SF and maintain a 1:5 meeting space ratio to fit their global standard. We achieved this by providing smaller meeting rooms of different types that better fit the needs of the Workmates.
Workday - Boulder
Phase 2 included relocating and redesigning their break and game room to be a more centrally located hub and all hands space, while maintaining a usable break space for the Workmates throughout construction.
The existing break room and game room were on the second floor and Workmates would gather around a grand stair for all hands gatherings. Leadership’s goal was to create a more functional all-hands space and an environment the Workmates can ‘break bread together’.
This phase had a lot to achieve on a tight budget, including infilling a stair. We were able to meet the program and budget by coordinating closely with the engineers and reusing a significant amount of materials and lighting. This project will be WELL certified and while LEED was not pursued, we followed many of its guidelines.
Workday - Boulder
The final result is a Boulder office space optimized for hybrid work, with a focus on smaller meeting rooms and flexibility. The design fosters an inviting atmosphere where Workmates can thrive, catering to both their professional needs and creating an environment they genuinely enjoy.
Working Spaces - Denver
Working Spaces is a commercial design partner and furniture dealer moving to an office in the Ballpark district. They want their new space to be a destination; a space that is inviting, engaging, innovative and inspiring. They want the space to support different functions from focus work to entertaining. With this in mind, we developed our design concept: ‘As energy flows, our thoughts shift’.
Our space plan is based around work modes, locating the entertaining and meeting spaces towards the entry and stepping down into more focused spaces as you move through the office.
The concept is also reflected in the lighting. In active spaces, the light fixture is winding and energetic, as you move through the space it calms and straightens.
Working Spaces - Denver
Working Spaces collaborates with various brands they want to showcase in their new space. We worked with them to identify which products to highlight and where. We incorporated all these specifications into our drawings, clearly defining responsibilities for procurement between the GC and Working Spaces, to ensure an accurate budget. We have also coordinated closely with both the Working Spaces designers and the GC to ensure seamless integration of the products within the built elements.
Westin Hotel at DEN Airport
The addition of the Hotel and Transit Center to Denver International Airport (DEN) included three independent, yet physically integrated projects: The 519 room Westin Denver International Airport Hotel, which includes a conference center, restaurant and Grab N’ Go cafe; a public transit center with new check-in stations and security hall for travelers arriving by train; and an open air public plaza to serve as a connection to the existing Jeppessen Terminal, a venue for performances and exhibits as well as a location for relaxation and dining.
I worked with designers at Gensler to model Revit families, design and document the guest rooms, suites and bathrooms, pool and fitness areas, Grab N’ Go Cafe and main entry of the hotel. I also contributed to the designs for the employee back-of-house spaces and the new security floor.
Westin Hotel at DEN Airport
One of the many challenges was determining how to configure the eight different suite types that are located on the slanted edge of the hotel. Due the angle of the east and west facade, the suites on each of the hotel floors vary in size and layout. The varied needs of each room required critical thinking and creative design solutions.
Westin Hotel at DEN Airport
When designing the pool and fitness center on the eleventh floor, we wanted to highlight the amazing views and its unique location in the building. Since it is located just under the crest of the roof’s dip, the ceiling is sloped, accentuating the curve of the roof when viewed from the street and adding drama to the space while in it. The space above the sloped ceiling was very limited, so finding recessed lights that would fit was one of several challenges we encountered while designing this space. Another challenge was fitting two single stall restrooms and a shower in the space while maintaining room for storage. Since the shower would only be for guests to rinse off before swimming, we decided to design the shower as part of the pool area and not its own room. This allowed for a smaller showering space and room for built-in storage. The elevation to the left shows a built-in storage unit I designed for the workout facility. It is completely modeled and detailed in Revit and designed to store towels, yoga equipment and a water cooler.
The Alliance Center
For this client we re-imagined how an old building functions and created a multi-tenant, sustainable hub that directly links all tenant groups to the advancement of sustainability. To achieve this, we created an open, flexible space promoting the cross pollination of ideas while encouraging spontaneous interactions among tenants and visitors.
Because The Alliance Center’s focus is sustainability, we highlighted that mission by using many natural materials and practices. I chose to use a wool felt rug in the main lobby seating area becuase its contents is rapidly renewable and recycleable. I also chose to use carpet tiles that mimic the appearance of grass and we designed planters throughout the space to incorporate Biophilic design.
This a unique project for a Aerospace Engineering and Manufacturing company in Rockford, Illinois. Before the design process began for this client, we completed a Workplace Analysis of their existing office space, which was very traditional and disjointed. The analysis revealed inefficiencies in the work flow between department groups and that the employees were generally unhappy with their work environment. We used this information and worked with the client to develop a new workplace strategy and create a floor plan for their new ground up headquarters campus. Our client fully embraced our suggestion of providing an open office plan to promote collaboration and integration of department groups. Our design offered a completely open plan with small groupings of various sized conference and focus rooms throughout the office space.
To fulfill our client’s desire for integration, we created a floor plan that offers many opportunities for cross pollination between engineering and manufacturing groups. The second floor office space forms a ‘T’ with the trunk running over the center of the manufacturing floor. At each end of the trunk are ‘Exchanges’ which include clusters of conference rooms, huddle spaces and the pantries. The idea behind this strategy was to provide visual transparency between engineering and manufacturing employees and to encourage interaction.
When designing and documenting this project, everything needed to be accurately modeled in Revit. My biggest role on this project was modeling the different design elements, one of the many elements was the Exchange stairs. We wanted to make the stairs an extension of the Exchanges and saw them as an opportunity to become a design feature. I sketched and modeled multiple layouts and design options of the stairs for the team and the client.
Fortis Private Banking
Fortis was one of my favorite clients to work with because they were open to creativity and unique design features. After completing their retail space, they came to us to design their new office space on the floor above. They wanted their office space to coordinate with their sophisticated retail space, but also reflect the playful and competitive spirit of their team.
The client desired a casual feel to their office space while maintaining a professional appearance. We started by taking some of the materiality from the retail space and using it as a base to build our new palette, then incorporated color and texture inspired by our concept
We wanted to play up the details of this space and give it a tailored feel. The pantry is designed to look like a piece of furniture, instead of millwork, with a pin-striped tile backsplash and matte black hardware. They were also in the process of re-branding, so I designed a bookcase that resembled the company’s new logo.
We also wanted to showcase their competitive spirit. After seeing a new linear pendant that could be connected, I created a lighting plan over the open office space that resembles a sports bracket and the client loved it.
Confidential Analytic Firm
This client wanted to incorporate some of the industrial feel of its surrounding neighborhood. A challenge was the space and budget were relatively small so we had to be strategic with our design. Our solution was to keep the majority of this office simple and add interest to the spaces where we felt it would be most enjoyed, the reception and the break room.
The reception area is where they will meet clients and share presentations. There was not a large space for guest seating, but we still wanted to provide a ‘living room’ feel like we had in the previous projects for this client. In order to achieve this, I extended the conference room carpet out into the seating area to soften the space and make it feel more like an area rug. The reception desk provides architectural interest with a clean contemporary line. To add texture and depth to the desk, I angled the transaction counter and selected material that gave it a modern, industrial feel. Similar angles are used in the break room to make it feel more open and ample color was used to make it a fun place to be.
National Oceanic & Atmospheric Association
This is a project that I participated in while working for Iron Horse Architects. It was a modernization project for several facilities on the client’s campus in Maryland. The project scope consisted of assembling a design intent package to re-configure and re-design the spaces in order to make them function more efficiently and meet their modern needs. The spaces we worked on included the main vestibule, health care unit, credit union, fitness center, cafeteria, childcare center and science center.
All of the drawings were generated in Revit, and I modeled families for each of the spaces and applied finish information so elevations could be tagged properly and renderings could be generated.
