Do you guys do _______________?  That’s one of the questions I get more than any other.  The blank is usually filled with all kinds of projects…bathrooms, kitchens, new builds, office tenant finishes, decks, leaky faucets…We love it all because our real passion isn’t a certain type of project, but more a certain type of client.  Once we find a client that is a good fit, we want to do whatever they need to make their spaces work better.

With that in mind, I usually feature a monthly project.  I hope this will be informative about what other people are doing, what it is costing, and what may be possible.  So, here we go…

Project of the Month:

The Office

Location: In an undisclosed office building somewhere in the greater Kansas City area.  

Designer: The clients did their own design because they are all licensed engineers

Budget Range: Between $40 and $50 per square foot

Project Description:  Add some new offices in a company headquarters

What it was like before:  

So, before it was a lot like an office.  You know what I mean.  You remember the movie Office Space?  TPS reports?  Some cubicles, some ceiling grid, some copy machines, the whole thing.  

What it is like now:  

Now the office is…well…still pretty office-y.  But let’s face it, we can’t all work in Google headquarters, right?  Sushi bars and indoor skate parks are expensive!  

Let’s be honest, this project wasn’t sexy, but we are still proud of it because we gave our clients the space they needed.  And they were happy.  

Cool features:

This time there really aren’t cool features like you would find on Houzz or Pinterest, but I still think they are interesting.  

• We installed sound insulation in the walls to help cut down on all the outside noise.
• We used occupancy sensors instead of light switches so the lights just come on automatically when someone is in the room, and turn off at a pre-set time after they leave.  Cool, huh?
• Those are really the only cool features I can think of.  It is just plain ol’ good space where people work hard every day.  

Interesting detail:

Time is money for our commercial clients.  This means that when their office is down, they are losing money.  Losing money: bad.  So many times we end up working really weird hours.  On this project, that meant starting at 4:00 a.m. and ending at 8:00 p.m.  Makes you appreciate coffee!

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