by Ryan | Oct 26, 2016 | Construction, Design News, Interior Design, Workplace Design
Triangle Associates has been keeping up operationally with its rapid growth over the last few years. And most recently that meant updating their corporate office interiors.
“Who we are as a company, our values, and our attitudes need to be represented in our workplace. It was time to make our office a more transparent and collaborative space to match our culture,” explains Mitch Watt, President of Triangle Associates.
Triangle has long offered design-build services for their customers and have in-house design, led by architect Aaron Jenks, but wanted interiors help. They called longtime friends and collaborators r.o.i. Design to work with them on interior concepts and finishes.
r.o.i. Design also provided recommendations for material selection that delivered design but offered opportunities for budget savings. Triangle Associates also consults with r.o.i. Design on procurement for their customer projects.
“We were very pleased to work on this team,” says Mary Witte, r.o.i. Design. “Triangle has always been a company with a strong foundation in design. Craig Datema and Mitch Watt are both architects and their leadership has made design one of their core values.”
Other things to know about Triangle Associates:
- Triangle Associates is a client-centered construction company that provides construction management, general contracting, design-build, development, and sustainable building/LEED consulting services across a wide variety of market segments.
- While they have been hiring and training to fill positions that have been created to manage the growth, they managed to already be recognized as a leader. Last December they were named one of the Best and Brightest Companies to Work For® in the country for 2015 by the National Association for Business Resources (NABR). For 12 consecutive years, they have been named one of West Michigan’s 101 Best & Brightest Companies to Work For by the Michigan Business and Professional Association.
- Triangle’s newly constructed Richard DeVos Graduate School of Management was recently awarded at the AIA 2016 Honors Awards. Triangle thanked both the AIA Grand Rapids and their partner TowerPinkster for the keen eye towards quality workmanship on their Facebook page October 18, 2016
- Triangle received a 2016 Excellence In Construction Award for Hudsonville Public High School Project from the Associated Builders & Contractors West Michigan
- Triangle received a 2016 Excellence In Construction Award for Standard Lifters from the Associated Builders & Contractors West Michigan: New Construction $1 – $5 Million
by Ryan | Sep 21, 2016 | Design News
We at r.o.i. Design like to explore the fabrication of decorative elements for our design customers and their environments.
We were recently inspired by the Starbucks at UNIQLO in Chicago, and wanted to create our own art using wood panels. (Image: Abel Uribe / Chicago Tribune)
This summer we created our own “art on wood”. This is a very popular decorative trend and there are a variety of options to get your design on wood. But after budgeting options, we thought there had to be a cost effective, local way to achieve this. So with some patience, testing and research we were able to deliver two projects.
Campus View Apartments, Allendale, MI
Campus View Apartments had an entry hallway of painted concrete block. They wanted to get rid of the look and thought the only way to do that was drywall the entire corridor. Based on other elements in our redesign of the lobby, welcome center and offices, we introduced the idea of a plaid pattern on birch panels to cover the block. Plaid is popular now in interior design, so by using one color – black – on the birch we aimed to create a classic finish.
Wolverine Power Supply Co-op Custom Service Map Wood Print
Wolverine Power Supply Cooperative completed their new offices using our interior designs. One design criteria was to bring the outdoors in, and another was to foster more inter-company communication. So, as part of the overall art design, we created a custom “map” of the areas they serve, rendered artistically and then executed on wood. The impact met the customer’s expectation for “art”.
We love creating custom elements by using all of our skills. Ryan Bright, our creative executive, can graphically design anything – from playbills, to signage, to original art. Doug Pettinga, our resident “jack of all trades”, is up for most projects that require lumber and fastening. Mary, Mary Jane and Ronda introduce ideas to customers. We have a small shop, a warehouse and a creative-curious culture.
Custom Scrabble Wall Art, Spin Dance, Holland, MI
Custom Painted Mural, Crystal Center, Crystal Mountain Resort, Thompsonville, MI
Custom Wall Mural, Hutchinson, Grand Rapids, MI ©Tiberius Images
by Ryan | Sep 20, 2016 | Design News, Interior Design, Meeting and Conference, Workplace Design
Advantage Label says they “label with a purpose”. They work with their customers to create labels and packaging that present a quality product and promote sales. r.o.i. Design’s experience of Advantage Label was just that, they perform with purpose and wanted their office to show them as a place of quality, efficiency and pride.
Wolverine Building Group contacted r.o.i. Design to support their design process and we were asked to review lighting plans, select finishes and lighting, and help make the break room more of a restaurant than a cafeteria.
Using the red of their logo colors (which was also an accent color on the exterior of the building), r.o.i. Design added charcoals, blue gray and orange to the overall scheme to create depth and variety. The use of planked modular carpet tiles allowed accent colors to be introduced within a consistent field of carpet, without added costs.
For more about Advantage Label, CLICK HERE
by Ryan | Sep 13, 2016 | Design News, Interior Design, Meeting and Conference, Workplace Design
Wolverine Power Cooperative is a bold company, with big goals and a humble history. While r.o.i. Design enjoyed every aspect of our time with the group, what is lasting for us is their commitment to their customers, their hopes for their employees, and their desire to do the right thing.
Those values translated into a desire to make their new work place a space where collaboration, communication and innovation would thrive. That meant their new offices and employee culture would be making landmark changes in how they work. Their directive was to allow the space to be as transparent and as inclusive as possible, but also provide an inspiring environment for their business.
Rick Skendzel of Architecture Technology in Traverse City, MI, engaged r.o.i. Design to provide interior design services that included interior details, lighting design, light fixture selections, specialty millwork design and finish selections. Our close work with Skendzel, Wolverine’s Dawn Coon, and construction manager, Apex Engineering’s, Steve Steimel, was a dream team. We all were focused on the same goals, compromises were almost effortless.
Highlights of our design contribution include:
- Bringing a natural rhythm to ceilings in open areas with planes of wood and color, helping to organize a large space without adding walls.
- Highlighting the sense of innovation with a curved entry wall, LED lighting, textural surfaces and recessed niches to display historical elements.
- Using a “birds nest” pattern (symbolic of nature) into details at reception, café and board room.
- Adding dramatic lighting in café and open areas.
- Creating intimate arrangements of furniture to foster collaboration and interdepartmental socializing.
The history of their cooperative is inspiring and you can learn more about that here.
by Ryan | Sep 13, 2016 | Design News, Procurement and Purchasing, Project Management
So much of what r.o.i. Design does is deliver the products that complete the design. We want to fulfill the promise we make during the design process. That is a full-time job for a patient, persistent, inquisitive and organized person.
Ronda Geyer joined us this year in the role of Products and Procurement Manager. She describes her job as the “Manager of Stuff”. She comes to r.o.i. Design with experience in product sales, interior design, landscape design and project management. Her challenge is to juggle the totally unique nature of each job and their corresponding variety of suppliers and vendors. No two jobs are alike, nor use the same resources, or have the same budget.
“Last month I was shipping product to Virginia, Indiana and Michigan,” Ronda described. “I want to make our customers happy and we work very hard not to disappoint them, which most often comes down to managing expectations and real time communications. I am getting better and better at it.”
