One of the most beautiful aspects of the Adjust office was the antique ornate vault doors. However, due to the extreme force required to open or close the steel doors, and ADA compatibility concerns, these vault door had to remain open at all times. This posed a large problem for a meeting room as there was no operable door to close for privacy. I proposed a ceiling-mounted sound-dampening sliding door solution for one vault and an external door frame for mounting purposes for the other.

Initially, I created an intuitive fabrication manual for the simple but sound-dampening door. This was created for a sub-contractor so that the custom door could be created accurately and in the prescribed budget.

Flush door handles were chosen to allow doors to slide open past the threshold for full accessibility.

In order to create a sliding door solution for one of the vaults, its threshold had to be removed in order for the door to operate. This presented the challenge of bridging a pair of 2” steel beams in the floor. I proposed a threshold that provided both functional threshold and aesthetic homage to the bank vault’s former utility. I created a painstakingly accurate model combing newly polished, and green oxidized pennies to form the company’s logo.

The design was enthusiastically approved by the CEO in Berlin who wanted to be personally involved in the design process. After research into methods of execution, I personally fabricated the wood and steel threshold and penny design (including elaborate oxidation methods) before sealing with an invulnerable 1/2” epoxy coating.

The Acoustic Problem

The bank vaults-cum-meeting rooms were essentially steel boxes with thin layers of concrete lining the room. This created an echoing effect that became problematic even at speech-level volumes. Consulting Adjust’s corporate style guide and my own observations after visiting Adjust’s Berlin headquarters, I created a style direction and began sketching ideations. Instead of employing synthetic acoustic paneling, I chose to bring in natural sound-dampening elements such as soft wood and moss greenery.

Sketched Proposal

In addition to my hand-drawn ideations, I include imagery from the Adjust style guide and personal photos from the Berlin headquarters to indicate texture and to reinforce design rationale.

As a delivery proposal, I created a model with elements of my sketched concept for a full visual understanding of the space, complete with accurate modeling of the existing furniture. From this point, Adjust’s office team and i were able to mix and match features, and work within a budget to accomplish a the ideal solution.

Rendered Proposal

Using Rhino and Keyshot, I use geometric accuracy to show look and feel of the design concept. I painstakingly model the room and furniture to accurate dimension to help inform size and scale for Adjust’s approval process.

Design Delivered

Adjust and I worked through iterations and configurations of the room’s paneling. This result delivered the best of both worlds of acoustics and aesthetics. The room now features floor to ceiling coverage of reclaimed redwood and preserved moss and provides a sense of both warmth and privacy.