abercrombie and fitch distribution center dining

abercrombie and fitch distribution center dining

The three-jury panel recognized the Abercrombie & Fitch project for bringing the building “down to a human scale” through architecturaldetails, including a focus on identifying the entry into the office portion of the complex. “It’s hard to do big projects well,” the jurors wrote, “and this one is truly a success.”

The three-jury panel recognized the Abercrombie & Fitch project for bringing the building “down to a human scale” through architectural
details, including a focus on identifying the entry into the office portion of the complex.


“It’s hard to do big projects well,” the jurors wrote, “and this one is truly a success.”

a wood fire welcomes you to work most mornings

a wood fire welcomes you to work most mornings

marker

marker

authentic transparency

authentic transparency

a building that speaks the same language as the company culture

a building that speaks the same language as the company culture

afternoon meeting

afternoon meeting

a&f building ‘r’ We were presented with the specific and unique programmatic needs of a quickly expanding company; an ecologically sensitive site; and the constraints of an extreme budget and schedule.  We were the architects of the original office campus and were approached by the client to find a solution to house additional departments for new brand expansion, research labs, and retail prototypes.   Expanding on our original master plan, the new buildings were to fit into an existing campus aesthetic, while making statements of their own.  Building R defines the eastern edge of the campus.  It houses materials testing labs, color research facilities, an auditorium, and offices.  Its position in the campus as a back shed in the woods, led to a building form borrowing from local vernacular, yet part of the corporate culture of Abercrombie and Fitch. The building welcomes the public with a carved-out, wood-lined, two-story volume, filled with recycled gravel and occupied by a large sculptural outdoor fireplace. The quest for natural light, views and a ”village in the forest” led to a bent and “broken” configuration that snakes through the woods, cracking open at points where people gather.  This meandering form grips the immediate site and organizes the additional structures that complete the program. Wood surfaces help define where people gather or enter.  Indoor-outdoor spaces suggest that work and play co-exist, and that the outdoor spaces are meant to be used and not just admired. Perhaps the greatest aspect of the office campus additions has been their ability to create spaces that are useful, efficient, warm and friendly while integrating into an existing architectural, cultural, ecological and corporate context.  The original campus infrastructure was well planned for possible new additions.  The sites of the new buildings were idealized for landscape water conservation and site water run-off control.  The new buildings used state-of-the-art glazing, low reflective for aesthetic purposes and low-e for energy purposes.  Abercrombie and Fitch practices a “fresh-air day” system minimizing the use of HVAC.  Accordingly, all campus buildings are equipped with operable windows which are well planned for passive fresh air ventilation.  Basements are also planned with lightwells for natural light and fresh air.  Materials testing labs in building R are outfitted with state-of-the-art fume control and ventilation systems.  Existing woods of deciduous trees were left in place and do most of the seasonal shading work for the campus.  All workspaces are within twenty feet of operable windows for views, natural light, and air.  And all offices are equipped with photo sensors and occupancy sensors for lighting control. Building R shares selected materials with the office campus: galvanized metal panels; t&g cedar boards; exposed steel framing; aluminum and glass curtain wall; wood windows; wood deck; galvanized metal roof; exposed concrete slabs; concrete outdoor fireplaces.  Upgrades were made to the glazing system specs, while other office campus standard material specs were revised as per a building maintenance analysis, such as the substitution of corrugated galvanized cladding for the cement board panels. The typical work spaced of ‘R” follow the system developed for the original campus building, where the interior landscape of the buildings consists of clusters of large worktables in open, light-filled sheds.  Enclosed spaces within these areas are limited to special offices and conference areas, often occurring as tall towers flanking two-story voids.  Storage spaces, small meeting rooms and display areas create a train of “subway cars” that glide through the sheds and create accessible common areas. This is a workplace that promotes interaction and innovation.  It takes clues from the language used to describe the A&F brand: relevance, lifestyle and authenticity.  It is a response to the evolution of the office: now, more than just a place to work.

a&f building ‘r’

We were presented with the specific and unique programmatic needs of a quickly expanding company; an ecologically sensitive site; and the constraints of an extreme budget and schedule.  We were the architects of the original office campus and were approached by the client to find a solution to house additional departments for new brand expansion, research labs, and retail prototypes.   Expanding on our original master plan, the new buildings were to fit into an existing campus aesthetic, while making statements of their own. 

Building R defines the eastern edge of the campus.  It houses materials testing labs, color research facilities, an auditorium, and offices.  Its position in the campus as a back shed in the woods, led to a building form borrowing from local vernacular, yet part of the corporate culture of Abercrombie and Fitch. The building welcomes the public with a carved-out, wood-lined, two-story volume, filled with recycled gravel and occupied by a large sculptural outdoor fireplace.

The quest for natural light, views and a ”village in the forest” led to a bent and “broken” configuration that snakes through the woods, cracking open at points where people gather.  This meandering form grips the immediate site and organizes the additional structures that complete the program.

Wood surfaces help define where people gather or enter.  Indoor-outdoor spaces suggest that work and play co-exist, and that the outdoor spaces are meant to be used and not just admired.

Perhaps the greatest aspect of the office campus additions has been their ability to create spaces that are useful, efficient, warm and friendly while integrating into an existing architectural, cultural, ecological and corporate context.  The original campus infrastructure was well planned for possible new additions.  The sites of the new buildings were idealized for landscape water conservation and site water run-off control. 

The new buildings used state-of-the-art glazing, low reflective for aesthetic purposes and low-e for energy purposes.  Abercrombie and Fitch practices a “fresh-air day” system minimizing the use of HVAC.  Accordingly, all campus buildings are equipped with operable windows which are well planned for passive fresh air ventilation.  Basements are also planned with lightwells for natural light and fresh air.  Materials testing labs in building R are outfitted with state-of-the-art fume control and ventilation systems.  Existing woods of deciduous trees were left in place and do most of the seasonal shading work for the campus.  All workspaces are within twenty feet of operable windows for views, natural light, and air.  And all offices are equipped with photo sensors and occupancy sensors for lighting control.

Building R shares selected materials with the office campus: galvanized metal panels; t&g cedar boards; exposed steel framing; aluminum and glass curtain wall; wood windows; wood deck; galvanized metal roof; exposed concrete slabs; concrete outdoor fireplaces.  Upgrades were made to the glazing system specs, while other office campus standard material specs were revised as per a building maintenance analysis, such as the substitution of corrugated galvanized cladding for the cement board panels.

The typical work spaced of ‘R” follow the system developed for the original campus building, where the interior landscape of the buildings consists of clusters of large worktables in open, light-filled sheds.  Enclosed spaces within these areas are limited to special offices and conference areas, often occurring as tall towers flanking two-story voids.  Storage spaces, small meeting rooms and display areas create a train of “subway cars” that glide through the sheds and create accessible common areas.

This is a workplace that promotes interaction and innovation.  It takes clues from the language used to describe the A&F brand: relevance, lifestyle and authenticity.  It is a response to the evolution of the office: now, more than just a place to work.

This project offers an opportunity to converse with a magical site and an enlightened client resulting in a constructed story about Abercrombie & Fitch. The story begins with a choreographed entry through the site and a guided tour of its’ innate qualities: a discovered Native American archeological site; open fields and meadows; dense woodland; wetlands and ravines; clear streams. Passing through a translucent and glowing “un-covered” bridge, the office campus buildings reveal themselves through the trees as they adjust to the landscape and topography by bending around trees and stretching towards scenic views. Parking, located behind the office campus, consists of smaller outdoor “parking-rooms” that maintain existing tree-cover and minimize paving. Employees enter the office campus through the forest on narrow paths, the woods acting as a filter to keep cars out and allow people through.   The quest for natural light, views and a ”village in the forest” led to a bent and “broken” configuration that snakes through the woods, cracking open at points where people gather.  This meandering form grips the immediate site and organizes the cluster of additional structures that complete the program. The office campus is unified by an external street containing outdoor workplaces, studio sheds, covered walkways and a fire-circle.  This street is further defined by entrance towers, “flying” dormers, changes in materials and ‘slices’ carved out of the sheds, all of which enliven the relationship of employees to the site and, more importantly, to each other. A wood-clad “tower of power” housing the M/E/P plant anchors the eastern end of the street while an outdoor “design” deck overlooking a ravine marks the western end.  Adjacent to the tower is the rusting steel dining “barn” and fitness center that faces an open “common”. The CEO area, which includes conference rooms and a welcoming ‘meeting’ porch, is located front and center from the main entrance to the office campus, under an elevated “lookout” tower. Wood surfaces help define where people gather or enter.  The main entrance to the office campus consists of a covered wood-clad ‘porch’ while another important entry is located beneath a large “slipping” wooden-framed dormer to provide exterior shelter.  An exterior stair wraps around an outdoor fireplace serving as a theatrical scaffold for meetings, complete with a roof opening.  Finally, a fire-circle suggests that work and play co-exist, that the outdoor spaces are meant to be used and not just admired. The interior landscape of the buildings consists of clusters of large worktables in open, light-filled sheds.  Enclosed spaces within these areas are limited to special offices and conference areas, often occurring as tall towers flanking two-story voids.  Storage spaces, small meeting rooms and display areas create a train of “subway cars” that glide through the sheds and create accessible common areas. This is a workplace that promotes interaction and innovation.  It takes clues from the language used to describe the A&F brand: relevance, lifestyle and authenticity.  It is a response to the evolution of the office: now, more than just a place to work.

This project offers an opportunity to converse with a magical site and an enlightened client resulting in a constructed story about Abercrombie & Fitch. The story begins with a choreographed entry through the site and a guided tour of its’ innate qualities: a discovered Native American archeological site; open fields and meadows; dense woodland; wetlands and ravines; clear streams. Passing through a translucent and glowing “un-covered” bridge, the office campus buildings reveal themselves through the trees as they adjust to the landscape and topography by bending around trees and stretching towards scenic views. Parking, located behind the office campus, consists of smaller outdoor “parking-rooms” that maintain existing tree-cover and minimize paving. Employees enter the office campus through the forest on narrow paths, the woods acting as a filter to keep cars out and allow people through.  

The quest for natural light, views and a ”village in the forest” led to a bent and “broken” configuration that snakes through the woods, cracking open at points where people gather.  This meandering form grips the immediate site and organizes the cluster of additional structures that complete the program.

The office campus is unified by an external street containing outdoor workplaces, studio sheds, covered walkways and a fire-circle.  This street is further defined by entrance towers, “flying” dormers, changes in materials and ‘slices’ carved out of the sheds, all of which enliven the relationship of employees to the site and, more importantly, to each other.

A wood-clad “tower of power” housing the M/E/P plant anchors the eastern end of the street while an outdoor “design” deck overlooking a ravine marks the western end.  Adjacent to the tower is the rusting steel dining “barn” and fitness center that faces an open “common”. The CEO area, which includes conference rooms and a welcoming ‘meeting’ porch, is located front and center from the main entrance to the office campus, under an elevated “lookout” tower.

Wood surfaces help define where people gather or enter.  The main entrance to the office campus consists of a covered wood-clad ‘porch’ while another important entry is located beneath a large “slipping” wooden-framed dormer to provide exterior shelter.  An exterior stair wraps around an outdoor fireplace serving as a theatrical scaffold for meetings, complete with a roof opening.  Finally, a fire-circle suggests that work and play co-exist, that the outdoor spaces are meant to be used and not just admired.

The interior landscape of the buildings consists of clusters of large worktables in open, light-filled sheds.  Enclosed spaces within these areas are limited to special offices and conference areas, often occurring as tall towers flanking two-story voids.  Storage spaces, small meeting rooms and display areas create a train of “subway cars” that glide through the sheds and create accessible common areas.

This is a workplace that promotes interaction and innovation.  It takes clues from the language used to describe the A&F brand: relevance, lifestyle and authenticity.  It is a response to the evolution of the office: now, more than just a place to work.

if abercrombie and fitch were a place, what would it be?

if abercrombie and fitch were a place, what would it be?