Nick Kratz Design Portfolio 22.0822

nick kratz design portfolio

tudor with a twist

kitchen and master suite renovation

site superintendant / project manager

leawood, kansas

$500,000 contract

architecture: el dorado inc

Teaming up with long time collaborators El Dorado, Hurst had the opportunity to complete an intricate kitchen and master suite renovation of a tudor house in Old Leawood. I lead the construction team through the project, working directly with the architect, interior designer, and client to ensure the design intent was held firmly intact throughout the multitude of “surprises” that come up when renovating a 100 year old house. A large curtain wall system was designed to span from the kitchen counter up into a reading nook in the bedroom, careful coordination with the structural team and glazing contractor was required to tie together the details. El Dorado fabricated a custom “razzle dazzle” louver system to act a sun and privacy screen for the bathroom windows, meticulous framing and detailing was excecuted to pull it off and make it all feel cohesive.

024119.A SELECTIVE DEMOLITION (RE: STRUCT.) 033000.A CAST-IN-PLACE CONCRETE

STEEL REINFORCING

JOINT FILLER STRIP

STEEL TUBE

STEEL

photo credit: hufft / kevin moravec photo credit: mike sinclair

drawing property of el dorado inc

photo credit: mike sinclair

photo credit: mike sinclair photo credit: mike sinclair

photo credit: mike sinclair

photo credit: mike sinclair

kivett & myers redux

whole house remodel

site superintendant, cabinet shop drawings

leawood, kansas

$950,000 contract architecture: forward design

Another long time collaborator with Hurst, Forward Design approached us with a mid century home in Westwood Hills who’s owner wanted to expand upon the original sensibilities and correct some of the 1980s adulterations. Taking the entire house down to studs, we retained a few original windows and select areas of salvagable claddings. I lead the team on site and quickly became the client’s trusted guide through the process. As these types of projects go, the further in we got the more troubling past construction methods we discovered - everything from a new commercial roof membrane to 14’ deep steel piers to shore up various spots around the foundations. We had the opportunity to provide value with new heated flooring, better energy efficiency, and much improved natural light and flow through the space due to the large glassy addition. The project has moved into interior finishes and is slated to be completed in late October.

mccown gordon hq

custom casework / metalwork / wall cladding for construction company’s new headquarters

commerical office project manager, fabrication

850 main st, kansas city, missouri

$250,000 contract

Working with project client and general contractor McCown Gordon Construction, along with the design architect Helix Architecture, I managed the $250,000+ casework and custom interior component scopes. Managing an internal team to produce shop drawings from the CD set, I worked through multiple coordination issues — from sequencing to material selection and installation method. In addition to the large cabinetry scope, several unique elements — the below lobby feature wall and nearly 2,000 square feet of custom metal wall paneling — were detailed and fabricated from the architect’s schematic-level drawings. Simple, custom brackets were created to modulate large, ash hardwood slats that required careful layout and measurement to ensure proper alignment. Rather than multiple drafting exercises, I produced a Grasshopper script to standardize six rooms of matching aluminum wall paneling, capitalizing on numerical inputs to determine best fit. Due to the integrated nature of the scopes, I worked closely with members of all teams to ensure successful delivery; my unique position as designer-fabricator allowed me to seamlessly flow between often disparate worlds.

bldwn

design assist, detailing, shop drawing

high end retail t.i.

project manager, fabrication melrose place, los angeles, ca

$260,000 contract

concept sketches

Growing pains with new management and a subsequent new design direction led a staple client to pursue another design architect (Montalba Architects) for their new flagship store in the upscale Melrose shopping district of Los Angeles. Approached to bid on the fabrication of all the store’s custom millwork and metalwork scopes, I led the team for what ended up being equal parts design assist, construction administration, and high-end fabrication. My experience as an architect allowed me to facilitate communication with a multidisciplinary and new design time, ensuring tact was used to help turn the new designers intent into build-able pieces through smart detailing. Coordinating many aspects with the general contractor, including a pre-install field verification and selective demolition trip to install hidden brackets in the wall, I personally oversaw a dozen vendors and joined in weekly calls with BLDWN’s new president and the many representatives of the design team to ensure project success. From shop drawings, to MEP coordination, to custom hardware specification and change orders, what started as a seemingly simple fabrication bid became a broad and multifaceted collaboration.

photo credit: bldwn

photo credit: bldwn

photo credit: bldwn

custom shelf shop drawing

fixture strength testing for client peace-of-mind shelf layout process rendering

art fabrication

design assist, detailing, documenation, installation

art installations / sculpture project manager, fabrication various location in US

+/- $150,000 total contracts

During the summer of 2018, Kansas City was host to a new public art exhibition which took place across all parts of the city — the inaugeral Open Spaces. Artists, both local and international were approached to produce installations for public viewing, along with musical performances and other theatrical events during the 3 month exhibition. I had the opportunity to collaborate with three artists to take loose concepts (sometimes no more than a napkin sketch) and turn them into constructable realitites, in many cases working hand in hand with the artist from fabrication through installation all while coordinating a team of craftsmen, vendors and suppliers.

In 2019, I collaborated with Art Prize for their new public art initiative, Project One, which takes place for two months in various public locations throughout Grand Rapids, MI. Working with Brooklyn based Olalekan Jeyifous (Lek) I designed, detailed, implemented and installed his sculpture “The Boom + the Bust” on a extremely tight deadline, working with many local tradesmen and vendors to pull it off.

“fractured horizons” - carlie trosclair “burn out” - shawn bitters (2 of 25 pieces shown)

photo credit: hufft / kevin moravec

photo credit: hufft / kevin moravec

photo credit: hufft / kevin moravec

photo credit: hufft / kevin moravec

photo credit: hufft / kevin moravec

“meat and music” - alexandre arrechea

photo credit: hufft / kevin moravec

nick kratz

design portfolio

peel-away wall section rendering west elevation at fab yard; photo credit: bnim / tim hursley offices overlooking main fab lab; photo credit: bnim / tim hursley

31 levy

renovation, addition and new construction of a former cold storage warehouse in martini corner

mixed use multi family project team member (el dorado inc)

A new developer to Kansas City purchased the seemingly forgotten Velvet Freeze buliding and adjacent property with hopes to restore it and add new use by converting it to market-rate apartment units. The project expanded with a 100 unit new construction “addition” in the lot to the North, which resulted in an activated alley and street edge along Gillham. A large private courtyard was designed atop the parking garage as an amenity for the residents while also providing much needed greenspace on a busy boulevard.

31st + gillham rd, kansas city, missouri

rendering looking NE on gillham toward velvet freeze building

concept sketches

rendering looking SE on gillham toward new building entry

ground and first floor plans

tech retail experience

customer tech support, retail, lounge prefab installation design project team member, el dorado inc various locations throughout US

Approached by a major tech company to help them rethink how they interact with customers, we explored a variety of solutions to integrate a “genius bar” with a lounge space and conferencing center. The intent was to design a modular package that we could fabricate and deliver ready to install in several locations around the country to coincide with a product launch and help put a new face on the tech company. Innovative use of materials, modularizing wall systems, integrated lighting and technology combined with a refined, recognizable furniture created and exciting new prototype for the work-while-you-wait model.

interstate flats | fabrication

historic preservation and renovation of interstate bakery building built in 1950s multi family residential design, documentation, build + management of fabricated components, el dorado inc

12 e. armour blvd, kansas city, missouri

2018 aia kc honor award

As part of the preservation and renovation of the historic Interstate Bakeries Building on Armour Boulevard, I lead the effort to design the exterior and interior railing, gates, fences, and screening package that would help tie the project together while making nods to historic pieces of the original design.

After documenting the package, I coordinated with vendors, the general contractor, and other sub-contractors on site to perform selective demolition, fabricate and install our components.

A key element in preserving the facade- an aluminum panel system was designed and installed to match the historic masonry. Extensive reworking of private courtyard provides new furnishings and security for residents.

egress stairwell, guardrail + handrail system; photo credit: el dorado / mike sinclair

primary facade along armour blvd, showing sunscreen and signage; photo credit: el dorado / mike sinclair nick kratz

axonometric of aluminum panel design

smp observation tower

110’ obersvation tower concept for johnson county parks + rec project team, el dorado inc

shawnee mission park, olathe, kansas

Shawnee Mission Park has been an important part of Kansas City’s culture for generations; the observation tower built in the 70s being no exception it had recently been declared unsafe and plans for a replacement began. We were tasked with analyzing the entire park to narrow down potential new sites, and create a compelling conceptual design for a new and improved tower. The exisitng site was chosen, with a new concrete tower (including an elevator) replacing the hisotric heavy timber construction. A light weight mesh skin, wooden elements and integral lighting soften the experience, while precast modules streamline construction and add cost savings.

site analysis: viewshed

night time rendering looking south east

rendering looking north from top plateform

rendering looking down to groundplane from top plateform

roof ground water

winning proposal for a national design competition in collaboration with

greenspace/ mixed use outdoor theater overflow team: el dorado inc, urban rain design, jack booton, jake baker, cory meyer omaha, nebraska

2014 aia central states honor award

2014 aia kc chapter merit award

This winning entry for Omaha By Design’s “Green in the City” competition to complete the site for the Bluebarn Theater group’s new building was a joint effort by KSU Design + Make studio, el dorado inc., and Urban Rain Design. We were both reacting to and meshing with the already designed theater—how can an exterior greenspace with a nebulous program help to revitalize an up-and-coming arts district in Omaha, Nebraska? Our solution ties the land to the Bluebarn geometrically as well as spatially. We viewed the landscape as an extension of the theater’s stage, forming a backdrop and alternative seating area. A service infrastructure bar was embraced to house the water basins, trash, and utilities— creating a mass that extended the building’s attitude toward the ground plane. Artfully moving water through the site was a primary goal; we used the faceted landscape to channel storm water toward planting and retention basins as well as collecting roof water in a visual display of sustainability.

geometric origins

A series of diagrams were created to maintain the concept, narrate the design moves to the client, and as a tool to study various aspects of the project.

responding to exisitng building design

view looking from street corner toward rear of theater extending the roof

el dorado inc.

manipulating planes

pulling the outside in, landscape as backdrop

using infrastructure as a friend defining spaces with light

pushing the outside in, creating a new outdoor performance area

defining a neutral ground, architectural time-out

final proposal aerial

pushing water through the site