BH 92 Trucking Inc.

440 W Boughton Rd Suite 200c
Bolingbrook, IL 60440

Returning Customer FCC Construction and their project manager, Beau Byerly, contacted r.o.i. Design to work with their customer BH92 Trucking to make selections for their new building in Byron Center, MI.

This 20,000 sq. ft. building houses its operations, which include corporate offices, dispatch, fleet maintenance, leasing, and LAV truck repair. An adjacent duplicate space was built for another tenant or future sister company.

All finishes needed to be very maintainable but BH92 didn’t want to compromise style. The overall palette is a sophisticated blend of warm grays and blacks.

Interior features include:

• Decorative wood wall in the lobby
• Durable luxury vinyl tiles in varied colors and patterns
• Black doors and trim
• Concrete-look porcelain tiles

Click on the thumbnails below to enlarge.

Notions Marketing Offices

517 Crofton St SE
Grand Rapids, MI 49507

Notions Marketing is the World’s Largest Creative Arts Distributor.

We worked with them to create new administration offices within an existing distribution center. When the Notions Administration team began working from home in April 2020, Notions leaders saw an opportunity to achieve a long-term goal to bring all employees together to a single campus. The relocation of the Admin team also opened new opportunities for the broadening of cross-functional team collaboration and value creation.

The vintage warehouse selected for the new office area had wood ceilings and joists, concrete floors as well as all exposed sprinkling, plumbing pipes, and electrical conduit. Working with Architectural Concepts, the space was planned for closed and open offices, as well as an area to receive vendors and customers.

Elements that assisted with that look include Herman Miller mid-century pendant lights that were reclaimed from the former building, painting the existing wood ceiling, using linear lighting within the wood joists, adding white wood baffles under an accented blue ceiling, accenting walls with bold colors from their brand, and the reuse of some classic occasional furniture from their former offices. To help manage acoustics and to add to the overall interest, carpet tile patterns were added along with the use of reclaimed concrete floors.

Notions owns a variety of art, collected over the years, that will also be used in this new space as a reminder of their foundation and love of the creative process. Notions also enlisted the help of talented internal creative team members to create a 22-foot-wide mural for the lobby that celebrates their neighborhood, their products, and their legacy.

Longtime friend and furniture vendor West Michigan Office Interiors worked with Notions to create furniture solutions for sales, finance, HR, merchandising, and creative team members. The new open office furnishings use several of their brand’s colors as accents in the systems.

Click on the thumbnails below to view larger images.

Wilkast, Inc.

9100 Byron Commerce Dr. SW
Byron Center, MI 49315

This world-class die casting company has created parts for the automotive and motorcycle industries since 1979. Tom and Kurt Wilkerson are the second generations of Wilkast owners and they saw the need for facility and tooling expansion to meet the growing demand for their services. 

First Companies introduced r.o.i. Design to the Wilkersons, and along with Dixon Architecture we were engaged to design a new building that would house the corporate office and expanded plant. 

Like most manufacturers, their processes create dust and debris, so the offices had to be planned using materials that were durable and cleanable. To aid in the effort, the Wilkersons decided to borrow from a ranch-lodge style using rustic woods and natural stone throughout. The floors are all concrete and the corridors and conference rooms have wood panels. An elkhorn chandelier greets you in the lobby. The overall feel is very welcoming, and the shiny Harley Davidson in the vestibule is a nice touch. 

Click on the thumbnails below to view larger images.

Total Fire Protection

5385 Patterson Ave SE Suite C
Grand Rapids, MI 49512

Most of the new buildings that r.o.i. Design has designed have fire suppression systems installed. It was not until First Companies introduced us to the Goossens at Total Fire Protection that we understood how technical and innovative fire suppression is!

Working with Dixon Architecture, we worked through space planning and lighting design for Total Fire Protection’s new office. The ceiling plan offered some opportunities for creativity in lighting and sound. The floor plan gave this group a lot more opportunities for shared and collaborative spaces that they were missing in their old office.

The interior finishes are straightforward and clean, with the carpet patterns offering a lot of interest. This is especially true in the large conference room where we incorporated hexagon carpet tiles. Other features we like include the lobby lighting, the open staircase, the interior brick walls, the second-floor break room/bar, the use of staggered 2×4 ceiling tiles, and the executive patio tile treatment.

Click on images below for a larger view.

Images © First Companies