Making Healthcare Facilities Work

“Healthcare has become an extremely competitive business. It is critical for facilities to be as cost effective as possible while providing a wide range of services and state-of-the-art environments for both patients and staff.”

-Rob Courter, AIA, LEED AP
Project Manager

Today’s challenging economy, combined with the current trend of consolidating health systems,has left small community hospitals struggling to survive. More than ever, administrators are working to make every dollar count. As hospital facilities usually represent the largest investment a healthcare organization will make, achieving a solid return on that investment - through careful design - is more important than ever.

Click here to read the full article, or view additional white papers on other topics at our website.

TowerPinkster and Google

Recently, one of TowerPinkster's newest memebers of the Mechanical Engineering team, Jonathan Rumohr, LEED AP, was one of 20 people, worldwide, invited to attend Google's "Super Modeler Conference" in Boulder, Colorado.

“It was a user’s conference, where the top Sketch-Up geo-modelers [those who model buildings with Sketch-Up, and then locate them on Google Earth] from around the globe were invited to share their experiences,” said Jonathan. “We also shared all of our tips and tricks with the entire group...it was a great networking opportunity, and we remain in touch through a Google Group set up for us.”

During Jonathan's undergrad work at Western Michigan University (where he earned a BS in mechanical engineering last April), he was also part of a seven-member team that placed ninth out of about 350 entries from across the United States and Canada in Google's Build Your Campus in 3-D Competition. He played a key role in the addition of WMU's high-resolution imagery, which can be seen on the Google Maps and Google Earth applications.

Most recently, some of his acquantainces at Google worked on the 2010 Winter Olympics Games website to give it a complete 3D perspective. They embedded a Google Earth viewer directly into the website, so users can get a complete 3D view without ever opening Google Earth. Check it out:

http://www.vancouver2010.com/olympic-spectator-guide/venues/pacific-coliseum/3d-view/

TowerPinkster Named Best Firm to Work for in the Country!

TowerPinkster is proud to announce that it has been selected as the best mid-size firm to work for in the nation for 2009. Management consulting and research firm ZweigWhite and engineering media specialists Stagnito Media, have identified the top architecture firms to work for in its annual ranking of more than 100 top industry firms. TowerPinkster was selected based on their commitment to provide a positive work environment and challenging and interesting work opportunities for employees.

Transforming Space

Matt Slagle, AIA, NCARB, LEED AP
Design Architect

In this time of recession, our role as creative professionals has become even more important. We may not have as many opportunities to develop new architecture, but the challenge of transforming space is ever-present. We will always have the opportunity, and responsibility, to inspire our clients with creative solutions!

This is well evidenced by our recent work at Thornapple Kellogg High School, Van Buren ISD Technology Center and Reeths Puffer Middle School. Wayne Norlin (TowerPinkster Sr. Project Manager) has since coined these transformations as “TK-ing” a project. It is certainly appropriate, as I have often likened that project to a heart transplant. I have never seen a building completely cut-in-half and transformed so dramatically. The Van Buren project also breathes new life into a building that needs it desperately. We are creating inspiring spaces full of natural light along a new Main Street in this building. Similarly, Reeths Puffer Middle School is getting a new 8,000 SF, two-story Student Commons in the core of the building.

These are some of the toughest projects to build, but also some of the most rewarding to be involved in. By holistically rethinking project challenges, TowerPinkster has created dynamic solutions that will inspire students for years to come. Let us continue to transform space into places that inspire human beings to achieve their goals, interact with their peers, and celebrate the environment.

Do You Know What Your Building Energy Cost Is?

...Do you know how to reduce it?

Being a part of a firm committed to design integrity and environmental responsibility, we continually explore new strategies to create sustainable and cost-effective designs. Most recently, we've been using a design approach that consistently and effectively achieves energy-efficiency. We've designed buildings that are operating as low as $0.77/SF/year and only as high as $1.13/SF/year. Read more about our approach in an article we recently published in The StoryPole magazine.


Perry Hausman, PE, LEED AP
Mechanical Engineer