When the West Virginia University Alumni Association decided that it was time for a new alumni center, they understood the importance of history, tradition, and “place-making” and hired IKM Incorporated Architects to work with them to incorporate all three elements into the design. The design team was up to the challenge. IKM had a knowledge-base of data and experiences to draw upon for their ideas, having designed numerous buildings on college and university campuses, as well as conference centers, banquet facilities, offices, meeting rooms and kitchen facilities. Utilizing IKM’s signature three step process of Understanding, Exploring and Deciding, the project team produced an award winning facility.

The result is a 44,000 square foot, $12 million iconic facility located less than 400 yards from the WVU Milan Puskar football stadium, on the Evansdale Campus evocative of the main campus architecture.
The project was recently awarded the People’s Choice award from the American Institute of Architects, Pittsburgh Chapter. The building also recently garnered the Associated Builders and Contractor’s West Virginia Chapter Excellence in Construction Award for commercial projects in the $10-$25 million category.

IKM also submitted the St. Clair Hospital Emergency Department Addition and Renovation project and the Oakwood Cancer Center project to the local (Pittsburgh) and state (Pennsylvania) AIA Awards programs. Visit www.ikminc.com for more photos of all of the projects.

About IKM
IKM is a knowledge-based architecture, planning and interior design practice founded in 1911. The firm’s portfolio exemplifies the reputation of excellence in executing high profile, high design commissions including the LEED® Silver renovation and addition to the Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, the University of Pittsburgh’s LEED® Gold McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine, and the award winning projects the UPMC Hillman Cancer Center and Lancaster Orthopedic Center.

MEDIA NOTE: High Resolution Photos of Phipps available (with credit/attribution)

AVAILABLE FOR INTERVIEW: Joel R. Bernard, AIA, LEED AP, Principal Architect

VIDEO LINKS: related to the announcement of sites

What is BIM, and what does it mean for Healthcare Design?

Q & A with local healthcare architect, Roger Hartung, AIA, about BIM.

re-printed with permission from Hospial News, written by Patty Swisher

IKM was selected to design the renovation of the sixth and seventh floors at UPMC Mercy Hospital in support of a planned Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Center of Excellence initiative, part of the consolidation of services between UPMC Southside and UPMC Mercy.

Understanding the needs of the rehabilitation patient guided our design for this project, said Michael McDonnell, AIA, principal in charge for IKM Architects. This unit creates an environment that supports rehabilitation and recognizes the dignity of the individual human condition and builds teamwork between the three primary spokes of recovery: therapists, nurses and physicians.

The two floors accommodate a brain injury unit, spinal cord injury unit, and stroke and general rehab units featuring updated, hospitality-focused finishes. A neutral pallet accented with pale blue, built-in casework, and convenient bench seating complement spacious patient rooms with views of the city's surrounding neighborhoods.

IKM's design creates a new public circulation path to divert unrelat4ed pedestrian traffic around the area. The units are a mixture of existing inpatient semiprivate rooms and new, private rooms designed to meet census demands. The core support areas are reconfigured and additional dining, lounge and therapy/gym space has been developed.

By customizing the therapy/gym space to the specific treatment units, nursing and therapy activities are brought together to create a more cohesive treatment team, said McDonnell. It is a holistic approach, focused on the individual patient's needs.

A decentralized nursing model incorporates nurse workstations adjacent to pods of patient rooms to improve patient observation and nursing response times.

An assisted-walking device takes advantage of the corridor to give the patient therapy opportunities outside the gym space. This also gives the patient change of context as well as opportunities for words of encouragement from the unit's staff and other patients working through similar recovery programs.

   

On-going Lunch & Learn Lecture Series eases Staff Concerns about the Current Economic Situation

 

 

As part of the firm's continuing education efforts and Lunch & Learn lecture series, IKM Incorporated hosted Robert Fragasso, CFP, president of Fragasso Financial Advisers, for a one hour discussion on the current economic situation.

Mark Witouski, vice president and leader of IKM's Continuing Education Cohort responsible for planning and bringing speakers into the office said, Bob's presentation was very informative, we need to know what to expect then position the firm to respond to those market conditions.
With history as the guide, Mr. Fragasso reassured staff that while no economic downturn is pleasant the situation is not that unlike times past, such as the 1970s.

Mr. Fragasso said, No one can predict the future, however, history would indicate we are looking at an economic recovery in the next couple of years. He continued, But here is an important point, the investment markets typically lead the economic recovery and could begin to recover much sooner.

During Q&A, IKM staff asked questions about the healthcare industry and other subjects of interest. The outlook is positive, changes will occur, and these times will spawn innovation and industry to be better. 

 

About IKM
IKM is a knowledge-based architecture, planning and interior design practice founded in 1911. The firm's portfolio exemplifies the reputation of excellence in executing high profile, high design commissions including the LEED® Silver renovation and addition to the Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, the University of Pittsburgh's LEED® Gold McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine, and the award winning projects the UPMC Hillman Cancer Center and Lancaster Orthopedic Center.

 

About Fragasso Financial Advisors
Fragasso Financial Advisors is a full-service, fee-based investment management and financial planning firm located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. As a full-service firm, Fragasso has the capabilities to meet all individual and organization financial planning needs. Additionally, the firm sells no internal, proprietary products, making recommendations only after considering a wide range of investment products, and always with the client's best interests in mind. Fragasso Financial Advisors currently oversees nearly $700 million in assets under management, representing more than 1,500 households, corporations, endowments and retirement plans. www.fragassoadvisors.com

A Good Team Makes a Successful Project

 

Though it is still very much a construction site, IKM Incorporated Architects took advantage of a dry spring day to provide a continuing education opportunity to the graduate/intern architects on staff by re-visiting the new Westinghouse Corporate Headquarters. This is the second visit to the site by the group; the first occurred in October of last year when the building's steel was just being erected.

Project Manager/Designer, Edna LaMont, AIA, led the tour. "We work together as a great team," said Ms. LaMont. "The client Westinghouse, Turner Construction the contractor, and IKM with our engineering partners, LLI all appreciate that this huge project is being driven by a move in date."

Joel Bernard, AIA, LEED AP, Principal in Charge of the project for IKM, agreed "We have all made decisions quickly and responded to requests to resolve issues in the field as the project moves toward completion of Phase 1, we couldn't have asked for a better client or a better team."

The more than 750,000 square foot new Westinghouse campus is located in Cranberry Woods, an office park development in Butler County Pennsylvania. The project, shown above in October 2008 and May 2009, will be occupied in three phases with building one completed in Phase 1 with occupancy expected to begin in June 2009. Buildings 2 and 3 are scheduled for completion in 2010.

As part of the ongoing Intern Development Program at IKM, graduate architects working toward their architectural license are provided monthly tours to current IKM projects to understand the challenges the firm’s project managers and registered architects on staff face in the field, as well as to make a connection with their daily tasks and the realization of an actual project.

IKM Incorporated, one of Pittsburgh's largest architectural design firms, hosted students considering studying architecture from the Eastern Mennonite High School of Harrisonburg, Virginia on April 23, 2009. IKM representatives and graduate architects, Annie Smith and Max Waldron talked with senior high school students about what it takes to be an architect including entry-level skills, education and training, and post graduate training and certification required to become a registered architect.

The students toured the PPG Complex, designed by notable architect Philip Johnson, and where IKM's offices are located, beginning with a tour of the firm's mezzanine-level space visiting drafting rooms, seeing a design review in progress, being shown a BIM model and how it can be manipulated to reflect multiple 3-D images, and getting a view of the numerous projects designed by IKM.

"At first, the students were pretty quiet, as we toured the building the ones that were really interested began to open up and ask questions," said Ms. Smith. "The students were curious about the education requirements and what it takes to become a registered professional."

"It's a good opportunity to get kids interested in architecture as a profession," said Max Waldron. "Exposure like this can give them a sense of what is really involved."

IKM sees the benefit in positively informing students about the profession. "Getting young people excited about architecture is the future of our profession," said John Schrott, president of IKM. "We're happy to take a little time to inform and encourage students in a positive direction. We need to show more people how exciting, fascinating and diverse a career in architecture can be. It’s important."

IKM Incorporated, one of Pittsburgh's largest architectural design firms, participated in Junior Achievement's Career Day, April 22, 2009. IKM representatives Stacey Nemcek and Mindy Kalac talked with over 1,200 local fifth grade students about what it takes to be an architect such as entry-level skills, education and training, and what salary a graduate architect might expect in the Pittsburgh area.

"Career Day is a great way for students to be exposed to different options in terms of careers that they might not otherwise consider," said Ms. Nemcek. "The students were fascinated with the physical-model we displayed as one of the items we produce as professionals."

Career Day, is an annual event organized by Junior Achievement of Western Pennsylvania. This year's event took place at Duquesne University.

IKM is pleased to support an outstanding enterprise such as Junior Achievement, the largest organization dedicated to educating young people about workforce readiness through experiential, hands-on programs.

Groundbreaking is scheduled for summer 2009 for a $26 million medical center in Indiana County, a recent venture between Indiana Regional Medical Center and the Center for Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine (COSM). The Indiana Musculoskeletal Institute will be a 74,000-square-foot building located behind the hospital.

Pittsburgh-based IKM Incorporated is the architect for the project. IKM was selected because of their knowledge base of healthcare design, specifically their expertise in orthopaedic center design, having designed more than 250,000 square feet of space for this market sector over the past five years.

The building will contain all service lines associated with outpatient orthopaedic services including an ambulatory surgery center, physician practice, business offices, and facility support including a central two-story atrium; imaging center, rehabilitation center and a wellness center. said John Schrott, AIA, ACHA, president of IKM and head of the Orthopaedic Design practice for the firm. A 17,000 second story tenant space was designed to house various physician practices.

Each of the program areas is located in a discrete building volume, which allows each area to be designed appropriately to its function. This reduces the visual scale of the building providing a more intimate and less institutional experience for users and visitors.

The exterior construction of the building will be a combination of brick masonry, metal panel and glass. The combination of materials reflects the nature of the building's owners and the processes taking place within: an intersection and dialogue between two entities, the natural and the man-made, the high-tech and the traditional,” said John Keelan, Manager/Design Architect for the project.

IKM is working with the Owner investigating opportunities to achieve LEED-NC Silver certification.

The Center for Orthopaedics will be built on an 18-acre site and the service lines will be operated as a 50-50 joint venture with the hospital. The Institute has been years in the planning.  According to a hospital spokesman, the Institute will be the biggest such facility in Indiana and surrounding counties.

       

About IKM

IKM is a knowledge-based architecture, planning and interior design practice founded in 1911. The firm's portfolio exemplifies the reputation of excellence in executing high profile, high design commissions including the LEED® Silver renovation and addition to the Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, the University of Pittsburgh's LEED® Gold McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine, and the award winning projects the UPMC Hillman Cancer Center and Lancaster Orthopedic Center.