Workplace Design - ROIDESIGN

Trailer X-Press Explodes into New Facilities in Caledonia

by Rayanne Rzepka | Sep 26, 2023 | Branding, Design News, Interior Design, Workplace Design

After buying a new blue car, do you see blue cars everywhere? Working for Trailer X-Press was like that. After we met them and understood that they had over 6,000 semi-trailers somewhere, we realized why we kept seeing their logo on trailers and mudflaps everywhere.

Trailer X-Press is in its second generation of leadership and thriving. They moved from a sliver of property in southeast Grand Rapids to an expansive 83,000 SF building in Caledonia. This move allows them to improve all parts of their business, planning for growth and raising the level of performance.

We welcomed the invitation from Daniel Zilzer, Project Lead and Architect at Wolverine Building Group, to provide interior design services for this group. Working with Trailer X-Press leaders Mackenzie, Julie, and Scott was energizing as their passion for their business was addictive.

While we were mostly involved in the office building and parts store, the project included an extensive repair and maintenance “barn” and lots of parking for semi-trailers in process.

When we joined the project, there were already so many great things about the building, especially the two-story entry with a prominent spiral staircase that leads from reception to executive offices. The color red was a clear choice in all parts of the design as it is at the core of their brand and marketing.

Combining maintainable services with great aesthetics was part of the brief. The lobby has a beautiful porcelain tile that transitions to polished concrete for some open offices. Concrete-look vinyl flooring and carpet were used for closed offices and conference spaces.

Designing within their brand inspired the team to use diamond plate dimensional paneling on the reception desk, the staircase half walls, and in the parts store.

The two-story entry allowed for interesting uses of decorative lighting, suspended at different heights based on the staircase and overall lumen needs. The result is fitting to the space.

We will be happy to see the Trailer X-Press logo on trailers and mudflaps for a long time, and hope our readers do too!

Dykhouse Construction Demonstrates Their Construction Excellence in Their New Corporate Office

by Rayanne Rzepka | Sep 26, 2023 | Construction, Design News, Interior Design, Workplace Design

It is of the highest compliment to be asked by a construction firm to provide interior design for their own office. Ryan Dykhouse asked r.o.i. Design to work with them on the design for their new office in Wayland, MI. Their building houses their offices and their tenant, Kent Home Services, a specialty residential concrete flooring supplier. We followed the terrific architectural planning of Dixon Architecture and provided interior design oversite for both spaces.

Collaboration with Ryan was thoughtful, and we really appreciated running alongside his vision. That vision included forward-thinking design, but without unnecessary “flashiness”. Instead of trendy details, the design brief included a desire to create relatable and classic finishes in an unexpected way. The two-story space off the lobby was a great opportunity to use a Chicago Brick veneer finish that rose 20 feet, and to clad the open staircase structural wall with wood planks. In the main conference room, a prominent wall is dressed in a porcelain tile that looks like stone but doesn’t have the real stone price tag.

r.o.i. Design did ask for some “not-so-expected” details. The reception desk has the appearance of stacked timbers highlighted by LED strip lighting. And over the reception desk, where there is a wood ceiling with wood joists, we suspended a black Unistrut canopy that incorporated LED strip lights. This feature is interesting in appearance but costs much less than a fancy chandelier. The rest of the decorative lighting mimicked the black Unistrut theme to create a unified appearance. Overall, the finishes are simple with spots of color in the backsplash tile and accent paints, serving as a backdrop to the operations and activities that happen there.

The new furnishings were supplied by Enwork, a quality custom furniture supplier in West Michigan whose spaces were recently built out by Dykhouse Construction. Their interesting designs added to the overall appeal of the space. We especially like their table bases and table designs.

The space has the classic details of brick, wood, and stone with innovation in lighting and furniture. We look forward to seeing many shared clients in this curated space.

Cedar Animal Hospital Expands with New Emergency Wing

by Rayanne Rzepka | May 24, 2023 | Interior Design, Medical Design, Workplace Design

Drs. Larry and Judy Nauta have built a landmark veterinarian office in Cedar Springs, and as their practice grew, they knew their facility also needed to grow. Cedar Animal Hospital needed to accommodate patients and pet owners who need 24/7 emergency services.

r.o.i. Design met them through Pinnacle Construction, who created the building’s architectural design as well as constructed the building. We were engaged by Pinnacle to provide the interior design that met the practical and aesthetic requirements of the space: highly cleanable and comforting, with a touch of their Northern Michigan style.

Some of our favorite elements of the design include the new reception desk with a “wood” canopy that was built with acoustical materials, the lobby/waiting lighting, the large-scale porcelain floor tile, the interior wood walls in the lobby and staircases, and the warm color scheme.

Kudos to Pinnacle on the design of the emergency wing. Its modern approach, while different from the main building, is still “Northern Michigan” in its use of wood and metal on the exterior.

The design process with Dr. Larry and Dr. Judy was a great experience. Dr. Judy made cookies, their dog Rocket joined meetings as a consultant, and they expressed their appreciation for the whole design and construction team on a regular basis. We would like to think that some of the success of this project was their passion for what they do, coupled with r.o.i. Design’s love of pets.

“Cedar Animal Hospital is a great place to work because we are all on the same mission—to make a difference in the lives of people and pets.” Dr. Larry Nauta.

Nicolai NA Moves their North American Headquarters

by Rayanne Rzepka | May 24, 2023 | Interior Design, Workplace Design

Miller Ganapini, CEO and President of Nicolai Diamant NA, reached out to r.o.i. Design after seeing the interiors of Pennell CPA, which r.o.i. Design had just completed at the time.

Nicolai Diamant is a world leader in the production of tools for polishing and finishing stone materials and marble slabs, with facilities in Italy, Russia, and the U.S.

Ganapini purchased a building on 44^th Street in Grand Rapids, and it required a complete interior remodel. Unique to this space was that the walls were all a cabinetry system that went up to the ceiling. The goal was to open the space completely and create a modern, European look.

A key partner in the remodel was Haworth, the office furniture giant, whose president, Franco Bianchi, is also a friend of Ganapini’s. Bianchi gave us personal tours and advice on the Haworth products that would provide a forward-thinking, modern look. Working through Haworth’s dealership, Interphase, the new headquarters uses full glass wall systems for offices and the conference room, and a new introduction of moveable systems furniture that allows rotation of desks to provide options for collaboration or independent work.

The interior design was intended to be minimalistic: white, gray, and black. This is seen in the carpet, case goods, and framing selections. The lounge seating added a touch of the new “turquoise”. A few accent colors can be found along with the artwork.

The overall lighting was created by strip lighting hung 8 feet above the floor in a 10 feet tall space. There are a few decorative feature lights. All light fixture selections were inspired by styles by FLOS and other European designers.

We learned a great deal working on this project with Ganapini. There was never a final selection until the best pricing and sourcing were confirmed. We coined a phrase for Ganapini, “No worries, I got a guy!” We did help them find a project manager who worked alongside his trades and staff to complete the project.

Congratulations Nicolai NA and Miller Ganapini!

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Commonwealth Engineering: A Partnership in Design

by Rayanne Rzepka | Feb 28, 2023 | Design News, Interior Design, Workplace Design

r.o.i. Design works for a variety of architects and contractors who need interior design at a variety of levels. Robert Pomeroy, Senior Vice President and Principal of Fishbeck Architects and Engineers, reached out in 2021 during a reorganization of their interior design department and asked us to finish up three projects for them.

“Finishing up” meant working with the architects and project managers to assist in delivering the project as designed. This included answering questions, working with vendors, reselections of materials for budget or lead time issues, responding to submittals, managing FFE (Fixture, Furniture, and Equipment) taking meetings, and overall holding the thread and integrity of the design. And, since this was during COVID when most of us were working remotely, it was especially challenging.

One of those projects was Commonwealth Engineering in Jackson Michigan, which was completed in late 2022. This was a remodel of a historic bank into their corporate office. In this project, we worked closely with their facility manager and senior management in selecting furniture and furniture finishes along with coordination of construction details with Fishbeck.

The first floor of this project has many mid-century features that Fishbeck’s designers embraced and complimented with metal, leather, and wood details along with beautiful architectural finishes. The lower-level houses meeting and conference spaces, one of which is in the old bank’s vault.

Congratulations to Fishbeck and Commonwealth Engineering on a successful remodeling project.

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Vos Glass Moves into New Offices and Fabrication Plant

by Rayanne Rzepka | Jan 26, 2023 | Interior Design, Retail Design, Workplace Design

Vos Glass started making plans in 2020 to build a new headquarters that would allow them to grow their business, expand their showroom, and improve their fabrication and distribution center.

Our previous relationships with Vos Glass, as a designer and customer, and with the architect Ken Watkin of Architectural Concepts, made for a smooth integration to interior design. We worked directly with John Turner, President of Vos Glass, and Dennis Moomey, Prefabrication Leader. Dennis was also the construction manager for this project.

The design criteria for this project could be summarized as clean, contemporary, flexible, inspiring, and within the Vos Glass Brand.

The finished product delivered these criteria with some notable features:

Polished concrete floors throughout.
Very well-lit spaces.
Tall ceilings.
Showcasing glass everywhere. Their office area is on display for customers to see a variety of glass installations.
Mindful use of Vos Glass’ brand red color in paint, carpet, and acoustical baffles.

r.o.i. Design visited Vos Glass shortly after they moved in and spoke with Dennis about the process and outcome. He was kind enough to say, “It was fun working with you folks.” We can say, “Vos Glass it was great to work with you, too.”

– Edit 8/29/24:

In June 2024, the entire r.o.i. Design team took a “field trip” to visit some of the completed jobs we designed. One of the stops was Vos Glass. It was enjoyable to re-engage with the customer and see in person how the project turned out. We toured the facilities with John Turner, the President & Owner of Vos Glass, and he gave us a great customer testimonial:

R.O.I. transformed our new building into an inviting, functional space that perfectly meets our needs. Their attention to detail and creative vision exceeded our expectations, making the entire design process seamless and enjoyable. We couldn’t be happier with the results and highly recommend R.O.I. for any commercial interior design needs.

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