Creating A Contemporary New Building
SSOE was selected to provide a campus evaluation, and building and interior design for McKenney’s Mechanical Contractors’ existing site.
The existing building was a 1960s office warehouse building that had been added onto over the years as the size of the company grew. During that time, a more contemporary three-story building was built to the east, while both buildings were connected to the existing large shop building to the north.
Creating A Better Work Environment
The goal was to renovate the existing building to create a campus feel alongside the pre-existing three-story building and adjacent shop building. In addition, the design team was tasked with bringing the building up to code, as the work previously completed spanned a number of years. Lastly, and most importantly, the company knew they needed to change their work environment to hire and retain great people in order to better address the needs of a changing workforce.
The desire was for the building to be more open, with views to the exterior from all work areas, while storage and support areas moved to the center of the building. The team successfully addressed this by removing several of the exterior tilt-up concrete panels in order to open the building to the exterior while taking advantage of several existing skylights that opened the building between floors.
Encouraging Collaboration
Working closely with the Owner to select sit / stand units for all employees, each of the new collaboration areas, as well as the open break spaces, are only a few of the examples of space planning, and furniture selections that the team provided. The challenge in many of these areas was the low floor-to-floor heights available. In order to address these specific challenges, the SSOE team created an open environment by eliminating ceilings and using light to create a feeling of height.
The lobby was resized to provide a comfortable space for groups that travel to the building for training. The number and location of meeting rooms was an important consideration, as was the number of enclosed offices, which were reduced and located so as not to block any daylight access. An executive suite with a new board room was established in an area that would provide a high ceiling for a spacious feel.
