New York, N.Y. (March 16, 2021) Perkins Eastman and Pfeiffer Partners Architects have announced their pending merger.
Perkins Eastman, a global architecture and design firm with more than 1,000 employees, has worked on projects on five continents in 60 countries. Its portfolio reflects expertise in multiple practice areas: healthcare, senior living, large scale mixed-use, higher education, K-12, hospitality, and workplace design as well as planning, urban design, and strategic consulting.
Pfeiffer Principals will lead key practice areas in the arts, libraries, and renovation/preservation, complementing Perkins Eastman's work in higher education, science & technology, healthcare, senior living, large scale mixed-use, K-12, hospitality, and workplace design.
Pfeiffer, a successor firm of Hardy Holzman Pfeiffer Associates based in Los Angeles and New York City, is known for its depth of experience in the arts, libraries, historic preservation, renovations, adaptive reuse, and interior design.
The merger provides a platform for collaboration across disciplines and offices, combining the opportunity to draw on the market credibility, resources, and geographic reach that Perkins Eastman provides with the design expertise in programming, planning, architecture, and interior design that Pfeiffer offers. The two firms share a strong commitment to client service, mentoring, research, and design innovation.
'AN IMPORTANT MILESTONE IN OUR LONG-TERM PLANS'
“This merger is an important milestone in our long-term plans to build a firm that can offer the breadth of design and thought leadership our clients are seeking,” says Bradford Perkins, FAIA, Chairman of Perkins Eastman. “Pfeiffer brings internationally recognized experience and skills in key areas—all of which complement Perkins Eastman’s established capabilities.”
“Joining forces with Perkins Eastman will allow Pfeiffer to continue to focus on our core areas while expanding our geographic and typological reach,” says William Murray, FAIA, a Founding Principal of Pfeiffer. “For some time, our principals have discussed how best to grow our practice on both coasts as well as internationally, while retaining our identity and commitment to design excellence.
"When Brad approached us about a potential merger, the idea very much aligned with our long-term goals," said Murray. "Perkins Eastman, like Pfeiffer, offers a broad range of architectural solutions; not choosing to practice a particular architectural style but instead creating dynamic new environments that respond to the physical, cultural, and social context in which they’re located. The firm is also committed to a process of collaboration, client service, and professional growth of its staff. They are the perfect fit for us."
Pfeiffer, now known as Pfeiffer—A Perkins Eastman Studio, will lead key practice areas in the combined firm, including in the arts, libraries, and renovation/preservation/
ABOUT PERKINS EASTMAN
Perkins Eastman is a global design firm founded on the belief that design can have a direct and positive impact on people’s lives. The firm’s award-winning practice draws on its 1,000 professionals networked across 19 studios worldwide. By keeping the user’s needs foremost in the design process, the firm enhances the human experience across the spectrum of the built environment.
Since November 2019, the firm has completed three state-of-the-art healthcare facilities, Stanford Hospital in Palo Alto, CA, The David H. Koch Center for Cancer Care at Memorial Sloan Kettering Center in New York, NY, and MarinHealth Medical Center in Greenbrae, CA. Perkins Eastman’s Chicago studio was recently named the first project in Illinois, 1 of only 6 in the U.S., and 1 of only 35 worldwide to become WELL certified at the Platinum level under WELL v2 pilot. For more information: www.perkinseastman.com.
MORE ABOUT PFEIFFER
Pfeiffer is a U.S. design firm whose projects for cultural and educational clients marry smart planning with unusually effective client and team engagement for imaginative architectural solutions. Pfeiffer’s professionals—architects, planners, and interior designers, have been drawn together by a shared philosophy regarding the built environment. The firm is about Architecture, Planning, and Interior Design realized in a cross-disciplinary process to design human experience in places that bring people together.
Strong in library projects, Pfeiffer designed one of the nation’s first net-zero 24/7 academic libraries, Colorado College’s Tutt Library—an innovative renovation and expansion recognized with several awards, among them the 2019 AIA/LA Library Building Award. The firm has recently completed the University of Colorado at Boulder’s Warner IMIG Music Building Addition and the Myrtle Woldson Performing Arts Center at Gonzaga University.
Related Stories
Multifamily Housing | Mar 24, 2023
Average size of new apartments dropped sharply in 2022
The average size of new apartments in 2022 dropped sharply in 2022, as tracked by RentCafe. Across the U.S., the average new apartment size was 887 sf, down 30 sf from 2021, which was the largest year-over-year decrease.
Government Buildings | Mar 24, 2023
19 federal buildings named GSA Design Awards winners
After a six-year hiatus, the U.S. General Services Administration late last year resumed its esteemed GSA Design Awards program. In all, 19 federal building projects nationwide were honored with 2022 GSA Design Awards, eight with Honor Awards and 11 with Citations.
Transportation & Parking Facilities | Mar 23, 2023
Amsterdam debuts underwater bicycle parking facility that can accommodate over 4,000 bikes
In February, Amsterdam saw the opening of a new underwater bicycle parking facility. Located in the heart of the city—next to Amsterdam Central Station and under the river IJ (Amsterdam’s waterfront)—the facility, dubbed IJboulevard, has parking spots for over 4,000 bicycles, freeing up space on the street.
Healthcare Facilities | Mar 22, 2023
New Jersey’s new surgical tower features state’s first intraoperative MRI system
Hackensack (N.J.) University Medical Center recently opened its 530,000-sf Helena Theurer Pavilion, a nine-story surgical and intensive care tower designed by RSC Architects and Page. The county’s first hospital, Hackensack University Medical Center, a 781-bed nonprofit teaching and research hospital, was founded in 1888.
Project + Process Innovation | Mar 22, 2023
Onsite prefabrication for healthcare construction: It's more than a process, it's a partnership
Prefabrication can help project teams navigate an uncertain market. GBBN's Mickey LeRoy, AIA, ACHA, LEED AP, explains the difference between onsite and offsite prefabrication methods for healthcare construction projects.
Women in Design+Construction | Mar 21, 2023
Two leading women in construction events unite in 2023
The new Women in Residential + Commercial Construction Conference (WIR+CC) will take place in Nashville, Tenn., October 25-27, 2023. Combining these two long-standing events aligns with our mission to create an event most impactful for women in the $1.4 trillion U.S. commercial and residential design and construction industry.
Mass Timber | Mar 19, 2023
A 100% mass timber construction project is under way in North Carolina
An office building 100% made from mass timber has started construction within the Live Oak Bank campus in Wilmington, N.C. The 67,000-sf structure, a joint building venture between the GCs Swinerton and Wilmington-headquartered Monteith Construction, is scheduled for completion in early 2024.
Sports and Recreational Facilities | Mar 17, 2023
Aurora, Colo., recreation center features city’s first indoor field house, unobstructed views of the Rocky Mountains
In January, design firm Populous and the City of Aurora, Colo. marked the opening of the Southeast Aurora Recreation Center and Fieldhouse. The 77,000-sf facility draws design inspiration from the nearby Rocky Mountains. With natural Douglas Fir structure and decking, the building aims to mimic the geography of a canyon.
Architects | Mar 16, 2023
HKS launches partner diversity program to create a more diverse workforce and partnership network
Design firm HKS has launched a new partner diversity program that will work to build a more diverse AEC ecosystem. The HKS xBE program will give xBE firms (a term encompassing all disadvantaged businesses) and their members “access to opportunities to build relationships, pursue new work, and bolster innovation within the architecture and design professions,” according to HKS.
Sustainability | Mar 16, 2023
Lack of standards for carbon accounting hamper emissions reduction
A lack of universally accepted standards for collecting, managing, and storing greenhouse gas emissions data (i.e., carbon accounting) is holding back carbon reduction efforts, according to an essay published by the Rocky Mountain Institute.