By: Erin Jimenez, IIDA

For SHI, our goal of design was to create an atmosphere that accurately represented the company, and reflected its unique personality. The use of color, texture, shape and lighting allowed us to convey a design character unique to SHI; one that makes a statement and reflects the company’s image. The initial inspiration for the design at SHI was the headquarters of Google.com. The multiple colors and open space plan seemed to capture much of what SHI was looking for in a direction of design. The fun, collaborative atmosphere was appealing and well suited for this fast growing software company.

The overall design and the flow of the space were to encourage teamwork and collaboration. The open office design of the space keeps the employees feeling connected, collaborative and in touch with one another. The bright colors and fun patterns that are accented throughout the building reflect a friendly atmosphere and a happy and productive work environment.

The intention of the reception area was to give a first impression that was accurate to the image of the company, which we were very successful at conveying. The use of several colors and shapes, as well as textures and surfaces, allowed us to create a techy yet sophisticated reception and lobby area. 

Since the reception area is a mezzanine open to the atrium below, there was a need to address some acoustical issues, due to the fact that the Atrium will be used as a gathering space once the cafeteria is completed.

Each floor consists of two pantry areas, which give the employees an opportunity to bring their lunch or daily snacks, and not have to waste time in leaving the building to eat. The random floor pattern and warm colors of the space make the pantries an inviting place to eat and collaborate. We made sure to provide ample storage with both cabinets and drawers, so as to house the paper products and cutlery that SHI provides for the employees. Each pantry is also equipped with vending machines, water coolers, and microwaves.

Each floor also consists of this conference room prototype. The intention of this room was to provide each quadrant of the office space with a formal conference room. The storefront design allows for the space to feel open and collaborative to the rest of the work area, while the frosted striping on the glass offers just the right amount of privacy for the meeting attendees. The full glass walls allow for natural light to flow through the space, which would normally not receive the benefit of natural sun light with traditional walls.

The open office space was designed with the intention of keeping the space as open and collaborative as possible. The low work stations promote communication and collaboration amongst the employees. This set-up also allows for natural light to travel through the space, to the benefit of every employee. The offices in this building were intentionally designed to be located in the center of the space, instead of along the perimeter of the building, so as to free up the window area for all to enjoy.

Because of the vast size of the space, we used color accents to differentiate the different areas and make it easier for employees to recognize where they are at a glance. The accent colors on each floor provide the employees with way finding and allow them to easily determine what area they are in, which can prove challenging in such a large environment. Accent colors were also used in alcoves to distinguish the types of services that are located there. Restrooms, mechanical rooms, stairwells, IDF and janitors closets were color coated to equip employees with at-a-glance way finding. All of this is designed in an effort to increase productivity and decrease wasted time.

The intention of the color scheme in the stairwells was to keep them fun and inviting, so as to encourage the employees to travel via the stairs, rather than the elevator. The stairs could be especially discouraging to those employees that need to travel 5 floors at a time. So, our focus was to making these stairwells as appealing as possible.

 

The building is a successful interpretation of the personality of a successful company. The design will continue to inspire and encourage employees and begin to brand the company with a unique look to a productive environment.



By: Donna M. Miller, Associate AIA, LEED AP 

The new world headquarters for SHI International Corporation has been an exciting and significant project for both the client and for Cornerstone Architectural Group. This project signifies tremendous growth for our client and a physical representation of their dedication to sustainability with their first Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified headquarters. It is also the first LEED project designed by Cornerstone Architectural Group. 

Cornerstone Architectural Group has been involved with the LEED process for SHI International’s new headquarters since the beginning, sparking the client’s original interest in LEED. The initial presentation made by the design team included a list of achievable points based on the Cornerstone’s design standards and characteristics inherent in the existing building. 

The project consists of building infrastructure upgrades and a 220,000 square foot interior alteration that anticipates LEED Commercial Interior (CI) Silver certification. The design includes sustainable strategies such as: an energy efficient lighting design, naturally lit open offices, occupancy sensors, water efficient plumbing fixtures, low VOC finishes, zero irrigation landscaping, and a 500 kW photovoltaic array that will be installed end of 2011/ beginning of 2012. The team took sustainability and air quality even further and instituted construction waste recycling, a paperless submittal process, and the creation of a tobacco free campus.  

The most successful design strategies implemented were the energy efficient lighting design coupled with the naturally lit open office space, and the water efficient plumbing fixtures. 

The existing building consisted of open office floor plates with central cores and ribbon windows around the perimeter, allowing natural light deep into the space. The design team took advantage of this and kept the plan open, with private offices into the corners of the plan, allowing natural light into both the offices and open office spaces. The energy efficient lighting design included direct-indirect lighting fixtures that were centered over the open office furniture, as well as a task lighting component. This allowed people to customize the light level in their space. This lighting design was mocked up for the client to ensure them that there would be comfortable lighting levels. The lighting design resulted in a 35% reduction in the lighting power density. 

The water efficient design for SHI International allowed the team to anticipate a 40% reduction in water usage. This was achieved by using low flow toilets, waterless urinals, and automatic sink faucets. This design is anticipated to achieve 12 points toward LEED Silver Certification. 

Outside of the design aspect of this sustainable project, Cornerstone Architectural Group coordinated the design team, set goals for the LEED Certification, and kept the team on task with these goals. We also coordinated the construction staff, and made frequent site visits to ensure that the intent of the design was being carried out. In continued sustainability awareness, Cornerstone Architectural Group will be teaching a course to SHI International’s facilities staff about sustainability and the LEED GA exam.

For the past year, Cornerstone Architectural Group has been an integral part in designing and implementing the fit out of the SHI International Corporation’s world headquarters in Somerset, New Jersey.  In 2007, Cornerstone had been part of the design and construction management team that had created SHI’s previous headquarters in Piscataway, New Jersey.  Since then, SHI outgrew its space and again turned to Cornerstone to help master plan for their current and future growth.    Deemed to be one of the largest fit-out projects in the Tri-state area, SHI wanted a space that was open, employee-friendly, and environmentally sound.  In addition, Cornerstone was presented with the task of anticipating future job force growth within SHI’s workforce and worked closely with each department’s managers to ensure space planning and anticipated growth needs were appropriately met.

Much of the interior space in the new headquarters was set aside to be utilized as open office space.  Part of this design concept centered around keeping the focus on the existing structure’s ribbon window design to allow for natural light to stream into a majority of the office areas.  Cornerstone utilized a revolutionary lighting design that involved spreading the direct/indirect lighting sources to an unheard of 18-foot on center spacing.   This allows the light fixture to be over every spine of the furniture system and allowing light to be placed on the functional work surface.  This design, along with personalized lighting systems, allowed Cornerstone to provide employees with the appropriate lighting but also enabled an eco-friendly decrease in the amount of electricity being consumed.

A majority of the open work spaces were kept in the central portion of the building to allow for the open floor plan, while private office spaces were cut out from the existing saw-toothed areas of the building’s structure.  The Cornerstone design team attempted to utilize and integrate as many of the building’s existing strengths to create a plan that addressed the client’s needs but allowed for the minimal amount of demolition to the building’s original partitions.  One of SHI’s main needs was to have an ample amount of meeting spaces, a need that was magnified as the company has grown.  The demand for formal, informal, and quick gathering places was met by integrating a large number of conference and meeting spaces into the design on every floor.   In addition to adjusting the layout to serve the client needs, Cornerstone completely revamped and replaced the building’s entire infrastructure, including new chiller plants, cooling towers, building control systems, fire alarm system, and roofing system.

As the project architect, Marco Migliaro Assoc. AIA, was involved from start to finish of this nearly year-long process. With this project having many phases, Marco managed the four main project phases which included the infrastructure upgrades, roof replacement, fit out, and SHI cloud data center. He was also intimately involved in coordination of services between the project  manager (Jones Lang LaSalle), building systems engineering firm (Becht Engineering BT), civil engineering firm (The Reynolds Group), as well as the coordination of three different contractors, including Tuner Construction, Unity Construction, and Strober-Wright Roofing.  Marco was on-site for a majority of the project in order to provide site-based problem solving and design coordination, as well as being a continuous resource for the client.

Cornerstone and SHI have had a great working relationship and Cornerstone looks forward to future projects in 2012 and beyond, which include a customer briefing center and future fit outs of the remaining office space.  This project has been a unique opportunity that has allowed Cornerstone Architectural Group to utilize state-of-the art communication, unique design concepts and environmentally-forward building materials to meet the needs of a technology-forward company.


Project Photos by JDN Photography