Last week, SMMA took part in Herman Miller’s 2014 Design Challenge. This year’s event celebrated the work of Charles and Ray Eames, pioneers in the development of aesthetic, functional, affordable furniture. The chosen canvas: the Eames Molded Plastic Chair. Each participating architecture and design firm—21, in total—was tasked with using the Eameses’ work as a template “for expressing their own artistic visions.” Regarding materials, concepts, designs—entrants were limited only by their imaginations.
The Framingham State University McCarthy Dining Commons expansion has been selected as part of the 2014 Educational Interiors Showcase, sponsored by American School & University magazine. The project, designed by SMMA, is one of only six Cafeterias/Food-Sevice Areas projects nationwide to win this honor, and only one of two undergraduate higher education projects to win.
SMMA's Marie Fitzgerald, IIDA, has an article in the Spring 2014 issue of Facility, the official newsletter of the Corporate Facilities Council. The article is a case study of SMMA's long relationship with Waters Corporation—specifically, how SMMA helped the company achieve $100 million in net savings by "reinventing" its Milford headquarters: "The Waters team decided to examine alternatives to building another facility, asking whether a more efficient use of existing space could be devised," Fitzgerald writes.
Six outstanding Boston area high school students pursuing studies in architecture, engineering, and related disciplines have been awarded scholarships from the SMMA Fund. SMMA architect Kate Jessup presented a $1,500 scholarship to Brianna Maggio of Lynn Classical High School. The Fund was established in 2011 to encourage young people to enter and thrive in the design professions.