r e s o u r c e s stone :
Stone Quarry;
preassembled metal doors :
laminates :
Abet Laminati (Kenmark);
Overhead Door Company; tile : DalTile; acoustical
ceilings : Certainteed; special ceiling surfaces : USG; laminate flooring : Centiva
(Flooring Specialties International); bamboo flooring : Smith & Fong Plyboo (Tech Product Specialties); acoustical treatments : Auralex; paint: Sherwin Williams; decorative finishes : 3Form; wall coverings : Wall Talkers (Wallcover-
sessions. It then encloses private offices, support spaces, and collaborative areas. Open offices are situated between the interior partition and perimeter walls. This not only affords views for everyone through the space toward the outside, but allows natural light to shine deep within the space. The layout takes full advantage of the east-west orientation of the lease space. The literal meets the decorative with the use of bamboo veneer for pathways that helps organize the office plan. The design team worked with Logica to understand the collaborative relationships and the way in which groups interact, as well as work with clients during on-site training sessions. These paths define interrelated work areas – or “neighborhoods,” as they are referred to by Logica and the design team – while both figuratively and literally revealing interoffice connectivity. These relationships are expressed in a material way, yet the design device is transformed to become decorative element. Once again, a double-functioning element created by the design team that is literal in its formulation and then becomes decorative and more abstract in the final design. The pathways cut across the core of the space, disappearing and reappearing at various points within the plan, and underscoring the importance Logica places on connectivity among groups. As COO Lewsley put it, “We wanted to create a space that inspired our employees to innovate, yet also conveyed a sense of trust, professionalism, and longevity to our clients.” Such qualities are expressed through the use of stone and wood, materials that symbolize permanence, which Logica wants to convey to clients and staff. Hovering above the work areas are light clouds that help define the various neighborhoods within the space, a scheme reinforced by a blacked-out ceiling at the plenum. Lighting is used in various ways within the space, from recessed cans to light strips hung in the plenum or mounted on dropped ceilings within closed offices. Task lighting and accent lighting strips further mark the work spaces while becoming more decorative in the lobby. These same decorative strips, set along painted reveals of similar width and length, are carefully inserted into the curved wall and illuminated in the corporate yellow. They run throughout the space to provide a sense of motion, activating the space with a lively ambiance. Custom bamboo furniture complements the architecture. Bamboo, selected for its renewable qualities, also speaks to the designer’s and the client’s mutual desire to convey a sustainable image. The furniture pieces are clipped along the curved wall, performing various functions from work surfaces to seating. Custom bamboo-clad headers float above conferencing and private offices. Simpler, painted gypsum headers of a similar design float above the entries to more public areas. This device is meant to give a sense of the hierarchy of spaces, according to project designer Breneman. The organic quality of the millwork design is further evidence of a strategy intended to extend the Logica brand and thus reinforce its corporate image. Again, as with the curving wall and the bamboo pathways, the millwork becomes another double-functioning element that ties together work neighborhoods. Millwork in the support spaces – such as the break room, coffee bar, and lounge – are finished in a red and white highgloss laminate. Bench seating – most notably in the lounge – gently curves and enhances the organic theme initiated by the design parti. “We listen so we can speak your language” is Logica’s tagline featured on its webste. Much is the same charge of the architect in all types of design, be it interiors, master planning, or a corporate office building. Powers Brown has succeeded in listening and crafting a space that is an interesting, elegant, and functional echo of the Logica’s mission to “Be Brilliant Together.”
ings International); kitchen and bath cabinets : Environment Ltd; wall products, doors and furniture :
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2 0 1 1
Haworth (Furniture Marketing Group)
Dan Searight, AIA, is a partner and design director for designLAB3 architecture in Houston.
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