Our President Featured in "SDC Talks" created by the Sustainable Development Committee

John Mangan, the President of Mangan Group Architects in Takoma Park, Maryland, was recently asked to be part of SDC Talks, an initiative created by the Sustainable Development Committee (SDC) as a "repository for thought leadership facilitated and/or generated by the members of SDC.  The goal of SDC Talks is to provide relevant and applicable pieces on sustainability topics within the context of commercial real estate."

John spoke about a project involving the building of a new law center including classrooms and a conference space in a building that was originally built as an office building. The original building had no street presence on Massachusetts Avenue. The architect’s vision of opening not only the façade, but the floors to create a dramatic entry and gathering space was much easier to understand with the use of the BIM. 

Read John Mangan's full presentation here 

An Architect's approach to kitchens and kitchen renovations - part 4 - lighting

This is Part 3 of our series on Kitchen Renovations. Scroll down or click the links for the previous posts.

When an architect is designing a kitchen in a new home or in a kitchen renovation project they try to make clients aware that this space is best approached by prioritizing what you want both functionally and aesthetically and then working in roughly this order:

  • GENERAL LAYOUT (Part 1, below)
  • APPLIANCES (Part 2, below)
  • CABINETS (Part 2, below)
  • SINKS (Part 3, below)
  • COUNTERTOPS (Part 3, below)
  • BACKSPLASHES (Part 3, below)
  • LIGHTING
    • General, accent, task

Lighting is obviously critical in all design work. In the kitchen it is sometimes helpful to try to break the artificial lighting up into three main areas:

  • General
  • Accent
  • Work

General lighting typically brings the entire room or space into light. This is often achieved with either recessed or surface mounted fixtures that don’t bring attention to themselves. They offer added flexibility when they are on dimmers.

Accent Lighting can bring attention to a specific area as well as itself. Often in kitchens this is done with some type of pendent light over an island or peninsula. They often hang down and are beautiful to look at as well as highlighting a specific area on a countertop or table.

Work lighting can vary based on the aesthetics of the kitchen. Sometimes the accent lighting can double as work lighting, but typically the under counter lighting should be strong enough to allow you to see the food you are preparing.

Generally speaking with lighting we have traditionally worked with Incandescent cans and some form of fluorescent, but in the last 2 years LED lights have made amazing inroads and offer unlimited design opportunities not to mention incredible efficiency.

This was the final post in our series of kitchen renovation considerations. Please let us know if you have any questions, comments or requests for future posts.




An Architect's approach to kitchens and kitchen renovations - part 3 - sinks, countertops and backsplashes

This is Part 3 of our series on Kitchen Renovations. Scroll down or click the links for the previous posts.

When an architect is designing a kitchen in a new home or in a kitchen renovation project they try to make clients aware that this space is best approached by prioritizing what you want both functionally and aesthetically and then working in roughly this order:

  • GENERAL LAYOUT (Part 1, below)
  • APPLIANCES (Part 2, below)
  • CABINETS (Part 2, below)
  • SINKS
    • (at a window or island is nice, do you need a second?)
  • COUNTERTOPS
    • (what material? how hight? do you want a transaction counter?)
  • BACKSPLASHES
    • (standard 4" or full height?)
  • LIGHTING (coming soon)

 

SINKS:

Compared to most if these things sinks may seem less significant, but I would definitely take the time to make sure you are happy with the sink. Sinks are the first component that can be changed relatively easily, but they are also the component that will be used the most. Make sure it is big enough for your biggest pots and pans. Make sure they are deep enough but not too deep. Make sure it accommodates the faucet you like. Will there be an integrated soap dispenser, instant hot water, single handle etc. Finally will they be under mounted or top mounted? Also remember a sink sets up your dishwasher location, so do you load to the right, or load to the left, or does it matter?

COUNTERTOPS

There are a wide variety of counter top materials to choose for your kitchen renovation, ranging from laminate, to granite, to concrete to a myriad of synthetic or manmade composite products. I would pick my cabinets before my countertop, as most countertops offer a flexibility in coloration that will allow you to work with a more finite cabinet color palette.

BACKSPLASHES

 Backsplashes allow for a chance to add some accent color and personality to a highly visible area, while also having the opportunity to make that area that is typically between the countertop and underside of the wall cabinets easy to clean up. Often an accent tile works well here and can be incorporated with a feature behind the cooktop. Keep in mind that you will be required to have electrical outlets in this area so you will want to make sure that those locations and face plates are integrated with your design.

An Architect's Approach to Kitchens and Kitchen Remodels - Part 2 - Appliances, Cabinets & Sinks

This is Part 2 of our series on Kitchen Renovations.  Scroll or click click the link for Kitchen Remodels Part 1 - General Layout.

When an architect is designing a kitchen in a new home or in a kitchen remodel project they try to make clients aware that this space is best approached by prioritizing what you want both functionally and aesthetically and then working in roughly this order:

  • GENERAL LAYOUT (Part 1, below)
  • APPLIANCES
    • (fridge, cooktop, range, oven)
  • CABINETS
    • (make sure you have enough wall cabinets)
  • SINKS (coming soon)
  • COUNTERTOPS (coming soon)
  • BACKSPLASHES (coming soon)
  • LIGHTING (coming soon)

APPLIANCES:

When the general layout is set I would recommend nailing down the large appliances first. The reason for this is that they are fixed in size and limited in color so it is easier to make the other components of the kitchen remodel adapt to them. Primarily the refrigerator, but the cooktop/range issue and the hood locations and sizes are critical. Finally the sink, which I expand on below but is often purchased from the appliance dealer.

CABINETS:

Often times an architect will work with a cabinet designer who sells the specific brand of cabinet you want. The two primary areas of concern with cabinets are Quality and Appearance. Most manufacturers will provide several door styles that can work with both traditional and contemporary designs. The quality is basically a functions of cabinet material and joinery, cabinet hardware and door face finish. Cabinets are a great way to set the tone of the color scheme in your kitchen since they are not going to change.