by Ryan | Sep 26, 2018 | Design News
We welcome Stacey Udell as r.o.i. Design’s Office Administrator. This is a new position and supports all aspects of our business. She will be working in the areas of design contract administration, accounts receivable, accounts payable, and operational vendor relationship management. Stacey will support Ronda Geyer, Products and Procurement Manager, as she continues to manage the purchasing and receipt of furnishings we provide for customers. Julie Kleinjans, in Finance and Marketing, will continue to coordinate any financial reporting to accountants and municipalities but plans to shift a good part of her time to marketing efforts.
Stacey comes to us with more than 20 years’ experience in office administration and small team management. Her methodical, persistent and organized style is adding business support for our creative team. The hope is that with her arrival, others at r.o.i. Design can spend more time with customers and developing new opportunities. We also love that she knows a great deal about Facebook and is already a raving fan of all things r.o.i. Design!
Stacey left a very busy office before deciding to make a change to work with “small but mighty” r.o.i. Design, where she hopes to have more time for family and personal interests.
By the time Stacey shows up to work every day, she has already been to the gym. She is an avid cyclist, both on solo and tandem bikes with her encouraging husband, Chris. Her love for her Golden Retrievers, Nellie and Bru, is surpassed only by her love of family, including her new grandbaby, Leland.
by Ryan | Sep 26, 2018 | Branding, Design News, Graphic Design, Interior Design, Medical Design, Procurement and Purchasing
© Image Courtesy of First Companies
Van Haren Dentistry needed a new home, outgrowing their office after 10 years of dental practice, and reached out to First Companies’ Craig Baker for help. First Companies put together the team of r.o.i. Design and r2Design Group, architect Jon Blair to create a space to meet Ryan Van Haren’s needs.
r.o.i. Design was eager to provide a warm and friendly space for this team who uses the word “kind” to describe their practice. We found Dr. Van Haren to be a very caring professional with a love of family and desire to serve his patients and wanted him to feel at home in his new space.
© Image Courtesy of First Companies
The new office has improved patient spaces, including waiting, consult, and hygiene/operatory. It also has more efficient space for staff, including reception, lab, sterilization, and break room.
One element from the old office was brought along: photos of Grand Rapids’ sister cities are displayed in the lobby, consult room and hygiene/operatory rooms. These colorful photos of people from around the world are a bright and refreshing accent throughout the space.
© Image Courtesy of First Companies
Our favorite features in this design include the pop of the color orange, use of a panelized wood tile, lobby and corridor ceiling details with edge lighting, as well as a friendly hospitality area with full height tile walls.
© Image Courtesy of First Companies
Not only did r.o.i. Design provide complete interior design services, we designed their new logo and designed the signage for the outside of the building. Again, a friendly and welcoming use of the “V H” hopes to reflect the nature of the practice. We also supported their process of procuring furniture, working with Custer Office.
© Image Courtesy of First Companies
First Companies delivered the space by the 4th of July. Congratulations to Josh Reynolds and the whole team from First Companies.
For more information about Van Haren Dentistry go to vanharendentistry.com.
by Ryan | Sep 26, 2018 | Branding, Design News, Graphic Design, Interior Design, Workplace Design
r.o.i. Design has been supporting Ryan Ogle and BluHouse with interior design for many years, and we were part of the team for their recent expansion. Along with interior design, we provided graphic design and product procurement to assist in getting their space operational in time for the busy 2018 real estate season.
We worked with architect Tim Allspach, builder Kevin Cook, and BluHouse’s own team of builders, Mariani Construction, to complete the project. The complete remodel included almost 4,000 square feet of office space.
The office includes a combination of private offices and open office space supported by tiny private areas for team members to use for calls and focused work. The reception wall makes use of reclaimed wood, which was locally sourced from Grand Rapids Pallets. Throughout the space are accents of “BluHouse Blue” and the inclusion of some of Ryan’s key “finds and treasures”. A dynamic team photo wall makes a bold statement at one end of the space.
Ryan Ogle started BluHouse in 2007. He has grown the company to include an active team of realtors, property managers and remodelers, and marketing consultants through a variety of privately held and related businesses.
Their first offices on Wealthy Street in Eastown became cramped and impractical, so over a few years, business segments were relocated to other facilities. BluHouse Properties, the real estate business, moved to East Paris in 2016 but expanded their presence there in 2018.
For more about BluHouse Properties, Rent Blu, and 7thRow Creative go to thinkbluhouse.com, rentblu.com, and think7th.com.
by Ryan | Aug 28, 2018 | Design News
r.o.i. Design has been a registered Woman-Owned Business through the State of Michigan. That designation has brought General Contractors to us, who either are required to gain a percentage of bids from minorities or their company has made it their own requirement to engage minorities.
This year we were introduced to the West Michigan Minority Contractors Association (WMMCA) through Dante Villarreal, Vice President of Business Services of the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce, and Amy Floyd, Office Manager at Wolverine Building Group and board member of the WMMCA. We presented at their June meeting, introduced ourselves, and hope to meet new friends in minority businesses.
We were so impressed with the group, we decided to join and will continue to attend meetings and learn more about these companies that we might not have known about otherwise.
From the WMMCA Website:
“The West Michigan Minority Contractors Association (WMMCA), a program of the Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce, aims to provide opportunities to cultivate corporate relationships and new business partnerships among members.”
“The WMMCA membership is made up of ethnic minority-owned, women-owned, and general contractors. Annual membership benefits include monthly meetings, bid announcements, networking, and the Wish List/Mileage Program, which is a platform designed to generate prospective business and collectively team with others for contracting opportunities.”
For more about the West Michigan Minority Contractors Association, tap here.
by Ryan | Aug 28, 2018 | Design News
After 16 years of service in the United States Air Force, Dr. Ryan Freeland returned home to Michigan to open a dermatology practice with his sister, Kristen Tungate, as Practice Manager. Kristen leveraged Ryan’s love of the University of Michigan to influence his decision to name the practice Wolverine Dermatology and to use maize and blue as the basis for interior design.
Image ©First Companies
With a diligent review of the real estate market, the team decided to build and own a new facility to guarantee they had room for growth and leasable space. That process brought them to the experienced team at First Companies, who have expertise in new medical development and business start-ups. r.o.i. Design and R2Design were brought on as interior designers and architects.
Image ©First Companies
The 7,500 square foot office was designed not only to reflect Dr. Freeland’s love of U of M but the state of Michigan as well. The Michigan-themed design includes an upscale lake house look complete with crisp white trim and nautical light fixtures. Other items include a stone wall inspired by Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore and accents of actual Michigan Petoskey Stones. The site’s landscaping includes the Michigan State Tree, Eastern White Pines, and Michigan’s State Flower, Blossoming Apple Trees.
Image ©First Companies
The architectural design was heavily influenced by bringing natural light through the entire space. This made for some interesting opportunities in ceiling and lighting details, including floating ceiling planes in the lobby and skylights in the staff clinical den.
“Mary Witte, interior designer at r.o.i. Design saw our vision from the very first meeting. She created our space with distinct elegance and many incredible details. Architect Jon Blair of R2 Design was a perfect fit, he brought our dream to life, creating a building with class and functionality.”
– Dr. Ryan Freeland
Image ©First Companies
Some of r.o.i. Design’s favorite elements of the design include the custom light fixtures in the lobby (large scale brass harbor lights), the dark wood siding and half log siding that was stained dark gray (Pine and cedar), the large-scale graphic wallpaper in Kristen’s office, the use of carpet insets and stripes throughout, the stand-up desks in the clinical den, and the colorful upholstery in waiting areas.
Image ©First Companies
Many congratulations to Ryan and Kristen, and job well done First Companies.
by Ryan | Aug 28, 2018 | Design News
When going to the orthodontist doesn’t feel like a medical appointment. Meet Dr. Kathryn Swan.
Swan Orthodontics’ vision for their new space was to create a happy, bright, and professional space that families enjoy coming to. Dr. Kathryn Swan is committed and energized by how their work shapes people’s lives, not just their teeth, and wanted the interior design to reflect that.
Image ©First Companies
r.o.i. Design developed a “crisp” and reflective design that used pops of color and graphics. LED lights were strategically placed in bulkheads and engineered so staff could change the light colors as part of the celebration when patients completed their treatments.
The lobby and reception area is a fun space with lots to look at. A slushy machine was installed in the lobby area and the flavors are changed through the week.
Image ©First Companies
The open clinic was separated by custom dividers that used simple acrylic with an applied decorative film to create patient privacy without full walls.
The brushing area sported fun graphics and blue glass pebble wall tile along with colorful benches and ottomans.
Image ©First Companies
First Companies executed the space with great care and attention to details with a special shout out to Jordon Irish, project manager. Dixon Architecture was the architect of record and worked alongside r.o.i. Design to fulfill the vision. Thanks, Ken and Patty for a smooth design ride.
For more about Swan Orthodontists tap here.
