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Projecting Precision Swagelok focuses on the future with new Global Headquarters and Innovation Center

By Doug Bardwell | Photos By Lauren Davis / Feinknopf

B

efitting the founder’s quiet humbleness, passersby will most likely never know that adjacent to Swagelok’s new Global Headquarters and Innovation Center at 29500 Solon Rd. in Solon, people are producing products that have gone to the moon and back.

That was back in 1969 when their fittings and valves were selected for the astronauts’ breathing packs aboard the Apollo 9 Lunar Module. The following year saw their products used for Alvin, the world’s most advanced deep-sea submarine of its time. Yet again, in 1975, when the Viking 1 spacecraft landed on Mars, Swagelok valves and fittings played a part.

From humble beginnings

in 1964. As manufacturing doubled in size in 1981, and as a new order fulfillment center was added in 2006, their

that we provide solutions versus just supplying components,” says Doljac. “We also wanted to bring all 270 of our customer-facing associates and executives together in one location to enhance collaboration.”

“For the new facility, we wanted to showcase our innovation, showcase our focus on the customers, and showcase that we provide solutions versus just supplying components. We also wanted to bring all 270 of our customerfacing associates and executives together in one location to enhance collaboration.”

Nicholas Doljac, director of facilities for Swagelok, explains that the new 125,000-square-foot headquarters opened in time for the company’s 75th anniversary, replacing the former corporate offices that stood where the new Global Headquarters stands today.

The old 10,000-square-foot office, attached to the company’s main manufacturing facility, was built on the corner of Solon Road and Cochran Road back

Preliminary to design

In 2014, Swagelok interviewed multiple design firms, ultimately selecting Vocon to begin a series of workplace studies. Their instructions were straightforward – make it stand “humbly proud” on the corner, make sure it’s as looking forward, make Nicholas Doljac viewed it feel timeless and make sure it Swagelok looks like it was always there, not just an addition. associates were spread amongst various “We developed a selection of four key buildings and remote locations. precepts to guide our design – timeless, “For the new facility, we wanted to precision, fluid and quiet confidence,” showcase our innovation, showcase our recalls Jason Burick, architectural design focus on the customers, and showcase director for Vocon. “For their image, www.propertiesmag.com 23

CLADDING COMBINATION Three different treatments of the building envelope occur around the new headquarters, including white aluminum composite panel on all four elevations, dark corrugated metal panel used where the new building meets the original manufacturing area and curtain wall glass at the entry lobby and the corner cafés.

they wanted to make a statement with this new headquarters, but without shouting and calling excess attention to itself.”

With Swagelok producing highly technical components for customers around the globe (and beyond), the design team focused on straight, taut lines to emphasize the precision employed therein.

“The other element we tried to emphasize was that of fluidity,” continues Burick. “To relate to the fluids that flow through Swagelok’s products, we intentionally tried to simulate that

movement discretely in the white composite aluminum panels surrounding much of the building.”

Interiors playing a significant role

“The old building didn’t have access to natural light,” explains Matt Heisey, principal at Vocon. “In their former building, offices were located on the perimeter, with workstations on the interior, without any view to the outside.

Here, we took that paradigm and completely switched it so that everyone has natural light.”

“One of the other biggest drivers for this new headquarters was the idea of collaboration amongst their associates, and providing several different ways for them to come together,” states Ann Marie Krol, interior design director for Vocon. “That idea drives innovation and continuous improvement, and supports their core values.”

Coming from other buildings, associates typically only experienced meetings in conventional conference rooms. Now, meeting rooms can be an enclave room for two, a huddle room for

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REACHING OUT With many visitors arriving from foreign countries, the entire headquarters is designed to feel like an intercontinental hotel in both fit and finish.

four or five, or a conference room for a dozen or more.

More collaboration can occur in open areas or closed rooms, from traditional conference seating to high-top tables, to comfortable sofas or mobile upholstered seating. Lightweight whiteboards are in ample supply and can be quickly set up on movable felt-covered stands to function as either six-foothigh or six-foot-wide idea generation or explanation surfaces.

The other big transition was the intentional placement of cafés in the most scenic corners of the building and providing multiple types of seating, as impromptu meetups might end up being protracted collaboration sessions.

“We have provided all types of seating with great views, so some people might hang out there for much of the day, while others might just come there to continue working through lunch,” expounds Krol.

“It’s the old idea of collaborating around the watercooler, but now in a different and more efficient manner.”

Time to bring it to life

“After board approval, we took the strategy and began to bring it into reality,” says Julie Trott-Heisey, project director for Vocon. “In January of 2019, we began design and interviewed construction managers.” Donley’s, now Independence Construction, was selected as construction manager.

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OPEN ENTRY The two-story atrium provides an immediately welcoming environment for visitors, with a spacious seating area and clear views to the café above, as well as the adjacent Customer Collaboration Area and Innovation Center.

“By May 3, we were under contract,” says Nathan Heitner, senior project manager with Independence Construction.

Four packages of bid documents were produced, allowing Independence to start demolition and site work in July 2019. The last package went out to bid in February 2020.

Since the campus of Swagelok includes the corporate offices tied to an expansive manufacturing facility, which is connected to a fulfillment center, some serious engineering challenges presented themselves.

From a mechanical standpoint, pressurization was critical to prevent the odor of cutting oils from permeating the office portion.

“Improving their energy performance was a big priority for Swagelok,” states Trott-Heisey, “so a lot of effort was made to minimize electrical requirements. Similar to all our projects, we are always concerned about incorporating sustainability.”

“That included lighting systems,” adds Karpinski Engineering’s Matt Nutter, PE, who led the electrical design. “A networked lighting control system and LED light fixtures allow both control and energy savings. The project was

able to attain a lighting power density of approximately 0.4 watts per square foot – more than a 50% savings of the code-allowed 0.9 watts per square foot.”

“Continuous power was another priority,” continues Nutter, “and a new 1,250 kW generator serves the new headquarters. Given the need to maintain

operations even during a power outage, the generator serves not just coderequired loads but select office spaces and laboratory areas.”

“One of the biggest stressors, as we began work, was relocating the fiber line and the water line that looped around the campus,” explains Heitner. “It was

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SETTING THE STAGE A museum-style exhibit space showcases various products and technological advancements achieved by the Swagelok team over the decades. Featuring dramatic down-lighting and customizable display areas, the area is designed to easily accommodate future additions or updates.

one of our biggest hurdles, and we hit it early on.”

“And, since the factory runs 24 hours, seven days a week (even through COVID-19),” adds Doljac, “you can’t have metal cutting operations without a fully functioning fire loop.”

“That made for lots of coordination when we did switchovers, determined by what was going on with plant operations,” recalls Heitner.

Along with the new fire loop is a new 150hp, 2,000gpm fire pump. It replaces the 50-year-old pump in the existing 29500 building. Its capacity matches the other fire pump on site. That means if one pump is down, the other can support the needs of the entire loop.

The arrival of COVID-19 generated an entirely different layer of complexity. “It was a new experience for us,” recalls Olga Krauss, project engineer for Independence Construction. “We had to quickly learn Microsoft Teams to keep the collaboration going. While our foreman and our superintendent were on site the entire time, all our support staff were working from home.”

“We had communication calls every two days with the design team, so we were able to set priorities and to make sure we had materials released early to arrive as needed,” says Krauss. “I don’t think any materials caused delays to our schedule.”

“We managed to keep everyone in our plant working throughout the entire

pandemic. While orders slowed down, we just increased our inventory,” explains Doljac, “and we can proudly say that we kept everyone, from our staff to our contractors and consultants, safe during the entire process.”

Construction detail

The building is steel-framed with wide flange beams and metal decking. The roof is white, single-ply EPDM (ethylene propylene diene terpolymer).

Three different treatments of the building envelope occur around the new headquarters. A white aluminum composite panel was used wholly or partially on the four elevations of the building. A dark corrugated metal panel was

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SPOTLIGHT ON SWAGELOK Thoughtfully designed display areas and signage help to convey the company’s story to visitors, from the Heritage Wall (top) and connecting corridors (middle) to the plant floor itself, where a historic piece of machinery is displayed (bottom).

used where the new building met the original manufacturing area. The third type was glass curtain wall.

Curtain wall glass was used at the entry lobby and the corner cafés. All remaining glazing occurred as punched openings. “We helped the team across the finish line in the late stage with window-to-wall integration detailing,” says Mike Kotheimer, enclosure consultant with Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates. “It was a collaborative group effort.”

According to Doljac, it was essential to have large windows in the café areas so passersby could see the activity within the building.

Mechanical systems consisted of rooftop units in two clusters on the main building and other smaller pieces on the tie-in to the manufacturing area.

Entering the building

Doljac explains that while they weren’t exactly short on office space, the new headquarters was envisioned to serve both internal and external goals. “The impetus for this building was getting our customers and end-users to see how we can provide solutions. We do that by combining our Customer Collaboration Center with our Innovation Center, both of which are right off the lobby area.”

With many visitors arriving from foreign countries, the entire headquarters is designed to feel like an intercontinental hotel in both fit and finish. There are even lockers with digital locks for visitors to secure their luggage while spending the day at the facility.

Entering the two-story atrium, visitors can see through to the Innovation Center, a glass-walled test lab, where engineers are constantly working on various new projects.

“The vista through to the lab pulls you into the building,” explains Krol. “But also having the Customer Collaboration Center at the entry, it emphasizes innovation and their customers as a focal point. Then, the space also connects back to their associates by being able to see up to the www.propertiesmag.com 29

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TECHNOLOGY + TRANSPARENCY Just inside the two-story atrium, visitors can see through to the Innovation Center, a glass-walled test lab where engineers are constantly working on various new projects.

second level and the activity in their main café.”

Suspended above the lobby is a chandelier-like sculpture of tubes and fittings, in the shape of the company’s trademarked letter “S.” Each suspended line is created with six sections of tubing and six Swagelok fittings – one for each of the company’s six values – a theme repeated throughout the headquarters.

Vocon perfectly captured the brand’s attributes: industrial, very high-end, all about safety, all about flawless quality and performance. High-res monitors rotate a collection of images reinforcing these attributes, with historical photos of Fred A. Lennon, the founder, and his original hand-drawn sketch of the original leak-tight tube fitting.

For less formal meetings, two smaller meeting rooms are located right off the lobby, where customers can drop in and meet with associates without having to sign in or get security badges.

Large, 30- by 60-inch slabs of cinder color porcelain tile flooring define our path as we proceed past the monumental open stairs, back towards the lab, and eventually into the factory. While providing an easy-to-maintain, highquality floor, the cinder color matches the plant floor, blurring any distinction between office associates and manufacturing associates.

Interestingly, every café and break room in the new building was duplicated in the manufacturing plant with the same fixtures and finishes. Similarly, when

“One of the biggest drivers for this new headquarters was the idea of collaboration amongst associates, and providing several different ways for them to come together.”

Ann Marie Krol Vocon heated sidewalks were added outside the headquarters building, they were also added for all entrances on the property.

Proceeding toward the lab, Swagelok’s Heritage Wall displays concrete examples of how the company lives its values today and has always lived them, even back to its founding.

“The labs themselves, totaling more than 13,000 square feet, demonstrate confidence in Swagelok products,” says Ray Hoon, PE, LEED AP BD+C of Karpinski Engineering. “They include specialized piping systems for nitrogen, compressed air, helium and lab gas exhaust. All the piping, fittings, valves and pipe supports are from the Swagelok product line.”

Opposite the values wall, in a curated setting, is the Solutions Spotlight area, with displays highlighting the various systems created by the firm’s engineers to solve customer needs,

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CREATING CONNECTIONS Swagelok’s tubes and fittings are incorporated into the design itself, cleverly utilized as screens between booths in one of the cafés.

from oil and gas hydraulics markets, to semiconductors, to chemical and refining, to alternative fuels.

The large display area utilizes a similar porcelain tile, but with a deeper iron hue, mirrored above with charcoalcolored, two-inch-wide Turf felt linear baffles. Walls are lacquered millwork in gray tones, while display bases and identifying signage are Swagelok blue. With dramatic down-lighting on the actual products created by Swagelok, the design of the space provides for easy future additions or updates in the display area.

Visitors at the same time can peer into the Innovation Lab across the hallway where engineers are working on current projects. Following the cinder-colored hallway and passing yet another display of the company’s culture of quality and safety, visitors can enter the plant where Mr. Lennon’s first five-spindle bar automatic machine was installed in 1950.

It is now displayed as a historic reminder of the past. For over 70 years, that machine produced one-inch Swagelok fittings, and in 2012, it was the last fivespindle machine taken out of service.

Having experienced the breadth and depth of Swagelok’s capabilities, it’s time to actually solve problems and look for new solutions, so visitors proceed back to the Customer Collaboration Center off the main lobby.

Named for former Chairman of the Board, Edward A. Lozick, the Customer Properties | March 2022

GATHERING NEEDS The facility is equipped with a wide range of meeting spaces, from intimate enclaves (top) and collaboration areas (middle) to the spacious executive board room (bottom), with a 24-foot-long boardroom table.

Collaboration Center’s clear glass doors lead to a quiet, carpeted space with multiple meeting rooms and display areas.

The entire space lends itself to focusing on solutions with movable tables and seating, a variety of acoustic ceiling treatments, and the latest in technology for presentations and remote meetings. Views from the full-height glass curtain walls are intentionally limited by the pleasingly mounded landscaping outside.

The balance of the building

Taking the grand staircase off the lobby, associates arrive in the main café area overlooking the two-story lobby below. Seating is available with upholstered booths, round tables, and chairs, or high-top seating at a long rectangular table. Snacks and beverages are available 24/7 from self-serve shelves and dispensers. In warmer weather, associates can exit to enjoy an outdoor rooftop terrace with multiple seating and lounging options.

The balance of the second floor is devoted to training and collaboration spaces for primarily the Marketing and Sales Support groups.

Open offices occur along both long window walls, with restrooms, copy rooms and coat rooms occurring in the core of the building. Multiple enclave rooms, huddle rooms and conference rooms are sprinkled throughout the various departments.

All building areas share the latest technology for video conferencing, whiteboarding, projection, and display. Six- by eight-foot workstations are standard for the open spaces, while offices are typically 12- by 12-foot.

Entering each department, one wall is accented with three-dimensional white-on-white lettering, with various inspiring quotations from Fred A. Lennon.

Floorcoverings are typically textured modular carpet tiles in an 18- by 36-inch ashlar pattern. Diagonal cuts and darker toned tiles, strategically placed, denote changes from one www.propertiesmag.com 33

Photo provided by Swagelok

CENTERING ATTENTION Named for former Chairman of the Board Edward A. Lozick, the Customer Collaboration Center is accessed through clear glass doors from the lobby, leading to a quiet, carpeted space with multiple meeting rooms and display areas.

carpet pattern to another within the same open area.

“This is quite a change for us corporately,” states Doljac. “One of the goals was to provide a variety of spaces with different color palettes, textures and seating positions for associates to use.”

On both the second and third floors, there are two more café areas and

breakout spaces at the northeast corners. Floor-to-ceiling glazing offers excellent views, and multiple seating options invite opportunities for impromptu collaboration.

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there are more offices here than on the second floor, finishes are the same throughout.

The executive board room is in the center of the west wall, complete with a 24-foot-long boardroom table and a 10-foot-wide ultra-high-definition video conferencing monitor. Another monitor is mounted at the opposite end of the room for presentations.

A portrait of the founder, Mr. Lennon, is mounted on a feature wall of acoustic micro-perforated wood panels. His painting directly faces a window looking toward the west end of the company’s campus, where a meaningful monumental sign has been installed.

When the original building was built on this campus, it had a decorative stone wall with the company’s logo. It was unique amongst all the other Swagelok buildings located in Solon.

When the 1964 offices were demolished to make room for this new larger headquarters, the stone was carefully removed and set aside, pending a decision on how to reuse it. Day by day, the palettes of stone kept growing smaller, as management discovered that the stone had such sentimental value to long-time associates that they were taking pieces home for souvenirs.

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OUT + ABOUT On the second floor is a café area overlooking the two-story lobby (top). In warmer weather, associates can exit the space to enjoy an outdoor rooftop terrace (middle) with views across landscaped grounds and hardscaped walkways (bottom).

Photo provided by Swagelok

Having to temporarily pick up and hide the remaining stone, it was eventually reused. REALM Collaborative, the landscape architect, designed an angular, stacked stone sign with the logo that everyone sees as they enter the main driveway to the building. Decorative lighting illuminates the sign, and the LEDs can be changed to whatever colors befit the season.

This feature and the landscape design overall are intended to provide a strong identity while creating a compelling experience for employees and visitors, explains Brian Bernstein, principal/co-founder of REALM Collaborative.

“Highly crafted earth berms serve the dual purpose of reinforcing Swagelok’s brand of precision equipment while simultaneously providing strong edges to the campus that shape an intentional entry and arrival sequence,” he says. “While much of the site is occupied by large parking fields, REALM developed distinct campus walkways that provide for a more pleasant pedestrian experience and encourage employees to get outside and walk, even for a short 15 minute break.”

Looking for even more usage

Photo provided by Swagelok

Associates have lavished praise for the new design and some even get emotional when reflecting on how well it conveys the company’s past accomplishments.

“We’ve had a great response from our guests who have been able to tour the facility,” adds Doljac. “We are very much looking forward to increased traffic as the pandemic subsides and customers feel comfortable traveling again.”

Reflecting on the dramatic change from their previous offices, Doljac says, “Vocon provided us with a very sophisticated design, articulating it in a nuanced way. It represents exactly who we are as a company.” P www.propertiesmag.com 37

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Properties | March 2022