Two global design firms focused on interiors are joining forces via a strategic partnership. IA | Interior Architects, which BD+C’s 2019 GIANTS list ranked 11th for architectural revenue, will share resources with Space Matrix, with project experience in over 80 cities, in a Global Studio that connects over 1,400 professionals across 37 locations worldwide.
This partnership will allow the firms—which continue to operate as separate entities—to jointly serve clients in more than 60 countries and over 500 cities. The firms will be completing projects, sharing research, and hosting joint think tanks to expand their expertise and drive innovation.
The two companies had been working on this partnership since last July. “It was important to spend significant time with each other to ensure that our values, culture and business were aligned before formalizing our agreement,” David Bourke, Co-CEO and president at IA, states in an email response to BD+C’s questions. The partnership was scheduled to launch earlier this year, but got postponed by the coronavirus outbreak.
Bourke explains that the partnership, and the global reach it provides both firms, make even more sense because of the pandemic. “This is extremely powerful during a time when international travel, and travel in general, is restricted but projects continue to be designed and delivered for clients. Even in more normal times this will still be true, as there is no substitute for local knowledge and data. Project delivery is complicated, and we believe that by engaging IA Space Matrix, clients will gain a more sustainable and satisfying product.”
From left: David Bourke, Co-CEO and President, IA | Interior Architects; Arsh Chaudhry, CEO, Space Matrix; Tom Powers, Co-CEO and President, IA | Interior Architects.
THE ALLIANCE SPANS THE GLOBE
IA | Interior Architects was founded in 1984, and is employee owned. It claims to be the world’s largest architectural firm focused on interiors. Space Matrix, founded in 2001, has a three-pronged business model that encompasses workplace strategy, interior design, and design-build.
Through the strategic partnership, the firms wanted to create a different delivery model “where we were highly invested in each other” and not just a “loose alliance,” says Bourke. IA has a strong presence in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Space Matrix has similar strength in Asia Pacific, “so there is no overlap in geography or ambitions” that might impede the goal of offering clients an organized delivery process, says Bourke.
He adds that the firms are aligned in other ways: shared clients, a commitment to design excellence and R&D, and complimentary market portfolios. Both firms have also invested in reimagining design technologies, “which we believe provides enhanced value for our clients creating a competitive advantage,” says Bourke.
Related Stories
| Dec 29, 2014
New mobile unit takes the worry out of equipment sterilization during healthcare construction [BD+C's 2014 Great Solutions Report]
Infection control, a constant worry for hospital administrators and clinical staffs, is heightened when the hospital is undergoing a major construction project. Mobile Sterilization Solutions, a mobile sterile-processing department, is designed to simplify the task. The technology was named a 2014 Great Solution by the editors of Building Design+Construction.
| Dec 29, 2014
Startup Solarbox London turns phone booths into quick-charge stations [BD+C's 2014 Great Solutions Report]
About 8,000 of London’s famous red telephone boxes sit unused in warehouses, orphans of the digital age. Two entrepreneurs plan to convert them into charging stations for mobile devices. Their invention was named a 2014 Great Solution by the editors of Building Design+Construction.
| Dec 29, 2014
Spherical reflectors help spread daylight throughout a college library in Portland, Ore. [BD+C's 2014 Great Solutions Report]
The 40,000-sf library is equipped with four “cones of light,” spherical reflectors made from extruded aluminum that distribute daylight from the library’s third floor to illuminate the second. The innovation was named a 2014 Great Solution by the editors of Building Design+Construction.
| Dec 29, 2014
Hard hat equipped with smartglass technology could enhance job site management [BD+C's 2014 Great Solutions Report]
Smart Helmet is equipped with an array of cameras that provides 360-degree vision through its glass visor, even in low light. It was named a 2014 Great Solution by the editors of Building Design+Construction.
| Dec 29, 2014
Clayco lends operational support and financing to construction services startups [BD+C's 2014 Great Solutions Report]
Design-build firm Clayco has launched an investment arm called Treehouse Adventures to provide financing and operational infrastructure to startups, including those serving the AEC industry. The new venture was named a 2014 Great Solution by the editors of Building Design+Construction.
| Dec 29, 2014
Reef Worlds to build world’s largest underwater theme park for luxury resort [BD+C's 2014 Great Solutions Report]
Dubai is known for its gargantuan commercial building projects. The latest to be proposed is the world’s largest underwater theme park, designed and built by Reef Worlds. The project was named a 2014 Great Solution by the editors of Building Design+Construction.
| Dec 29, 2014
New data-gathering tool for retail designers [BD+C's 2014 Great Solutions Report]
Beacon technology personalizes smartphone messaging, creating a new information resource for store designers. It was named a 2014 Great Solution by the editors of Building Design+Construction.
| Dec 29, 2014
Leo A Daly's minimally invasive approach to remote field site design [BD+C's 2014 Great Solutions Report]
For the past six years, Leo A Daly has been designing sites for remote field stations with near-zero ecological disturbance. The firm's environmentally delicate work was named a 2014 Great Solution by the editors of Building Design+Construction.
| Dec 29, 2014
Wearable job site management system allows contractors to handle deficiencies with subtle hand and finger gestures [BD+C's 2014 Great Solutions Report]
Technology combines a smartglass visual device with a motion-sensing armband to simplify field management work. The innovation was named a 2014 Great Solution by the editors of Building Design+Construction.
| Dec 29, 2014
From Ag waste to organic brick: Corn stalks reused to make construction materials [BD+C's 2014 Great Solutions Report]
Ecovative Design applies its cradle-to-cradle process to produce 10,000 organic bricks used to build a three-tower structure in Long Island City, N.Y. The demonstration project was named a 2014 Great Solution by the editors of Building Design+Construction.
