When the need for a thoughtfully conceived corporate headquarters with well-being inducing features could no longer be ignored, construction equipment manufacturer Multiquip initiated a search for the right team. After one design team offered an astoundingly high estimate, Warland Investments recommended DRA Architects and suggested Multiquip look to Caliber Construction to bring the plan to reality. Coincidently, Multiquip had prior successful outcomes with Caliber.
In the three decades Multiquip grew it’s business, their facility expansions were efficient as they moved logically into adjacent space. While cost effective and less disruptive, the hidden costs slowly came to light.
“The reality of our early expansions led to staff working on five different floors in three buildings. People had to travel some distance to switch buildings as they dodged traffic along the way,” said Jim Henehan, former Multiquip CFO. “We were struggling with a lot of closed offices, wasted space, duplicative features (like multiple reception areas) and the sinking realization that people avoided face-to-face collaboration because of the distance and the travel required. We realized this impacted our outcomes and profitability.”
Now that construction is done, Multiquip’s team benefits from a 32,000 square foot headquarters that is unifiying, highly creative and functionally relevant with an open environment supported by companion spaces designed for private meetings, quiet working and sequestered conversations. Today the staff actually connects face-to-face in the L-shaped structure that boasts wings protruding from a circular center area with collaboration spaces in each. New efficiencies include one central reception area, a work café to host the entire team for an all-hands-on-deck conversation that doesn’t require amplification, coffee bars for meetings and work collabs, video conference spaces, a board room, and the kind of interaction and joie de work vivre they have never experienced.
“Carrie at DRA really listened to us and then conceived of the color schemes that we describe as, “very calming but vibrant and inspirational at same time’ which is just one of the features we know will add
to our retention and attraction of top quality staff,” said Henehan. “Carrie and her team were fantastic and the Caliber team kept us constantly apprised with continual communication –and delivered the final product they promised. ” In Carrie’s words, “We knew we could count on Caliber to execute on the details and keep them as high end as designed.”
Now the Multiquip team benefits from a facility constructed to serve as the backdrop that supports, rather than detracts, from achieving their strategic business outcomes.