4.28.08| Kimball Office and chiropractors see eye-to-eye: alignment can be a good thing. In 2001 Kimball Office started developing its Select Dealer program, and this, of course corresponds to Kimball’'s expansion into a full-line contract furniture manufacturer, building – significantly –on its wood casegoods roots.

4.28.08 | Chuck Saylor had an idea for a little cute company using his granddaughter’'s nickname, also cute: izzy. (See officeinsight 05.07.07) izzy (formerly called izzydesign is now a brand name within this growing conglomerate). It was founded by Mr. Saylor in 2001 (nice timing), but even then he was shrewd and had a lofty vision.

4.28.08 | This year's Calibre Awards was a bit different and included a 20 year retrospective of all the worthy, proven partners on the design team. Calibre Awards were given in seven categories.

4.28.08 | In 1994, the Northridge earthquake caused such significant structural damage to the highly acclaimed UCLA Medical Center that the cost to repair the damage and retrofit the building was more than double the cost to replace it, so replace it they did. On March 7th 2008, the brand new Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, the most technologically advanced medical center in the world, held one of its first pre-openings: a tour led by Lynnette Tedder, Perkins + Will (founding member) and other members of the design team for AAHID (American Academy of Healthcare Interior Designers).

4.28. 08 | Spring in New York is more pleasant than many would envision, The smallest bud and a few rays of sunshine after a long winter mean so much more in this giant gray city than they do on the plains. And so it was on the evening of April 8^th the spirits were buoyed as we looked forward to the ELF, (Educational Legacy Fund) Ten Years of Giving annual Interior Design student scholarships.

4.21.08 | If you haven't been to the NYC Leaders Breakfast, it's worth the trip just to see everyone all suited up. But for the bright sunlight and gorgeous water views, it could have been a semi-formal cocktail party affair.

4.21.08 | There are generally two significant ways in which building design can impact occupants. The first area is the science of building performance; this describes the process of maximizing variables that influence occupants' perception of comfort such as acoustics, lighting, daylighting, temperature, and indoor air quality. Other variables that affect the perception of comfort in a more peripheral way include human factors and ergonomics

4.21.08 | During NeoCon 07, an alarm was sounded for the interior design profession. The warning was loud and clear: a serious decline in the pool of interior design educators was and is putting our profession in jeopardy. We realized we need to do something fast to continue fostering future generations of interior designers with the ever increasingly complex skill set demanded by our clients. The original Call to Action Dialogue at NeoCon 07 to address the declining pool of interior design educators, sponsored by Kimball Office, was well attended by interior design educators and practitioners. It became clear that the problem has many challenging and disparate components.

4.21.08 | A year ago, I had never heard of IFI- The International Federation of Interior Architects/ Designers but this august organization was formed when interior design was still in its infancy in the United States. IFI was founded in Denmark in 1963 to unite and provide discussion of interior design issues within a handful of European countries. Now, the organization has membership representing 52 member associations, institutions and schools in 45 countries on every continent and, through its membership associations, represents over 25,000 practicing interior designers worldwide. In the U.S., the American Society of Interior Designers is a full member, and several interior design schools are members. Shashi Caan, as an ASID member, is the president-elect of IFI.

4.14.08 | Teknion’'s new Boston showroom opened on April 4^th to a crowd of hundreds. The area’s A&D community came out in droves to welcome the company and all of its heavy hitters to celebrate the opening of the space.

4.14.08 | You don'’t have to be a designer to get excited by the variety and quality of Luna Textiles’ offerings. It used to be, and for many still is, the case that fabric is an afterthought. But who would design a fantastic interior without considering the aesthetic of color and texture? In that way, Luna, known as “the Armani of textiles,” is a designer’s dream.

4.14.08 | Imagine you were a state legislator and some folks asked you to pass a law making it a crime to give advice about paint colors and throw pillows without a license. Well, that‘'s pretty hard to imagine, but it’s how Clark Neily, Esq., of the ironically named Institute for Justice, a libertarian organization, began his opinion piece in the April 1, 2008 Wall Street Journal.

4.14.08 | As Modern architecture ages to a point where preservation is necessary, the methods and technology used in this preservation have to be carefully considered to maintain the design integrity of the building. Theodore H.M. Prudon’s (PhD, FAIA) Preservation Of Modern Architecture (published by Wiley) provides useful guidance, with many case studies, for the professional architect interested in a broad background in preservation as a field as well as specific material and technology issues in preservation.

4.14.08 | Benjamin Moore presented its annual HUE Awards on March 27 in New York City.This year’'s honorees competition winners were:

• STUDIOS Architecture, San Francisco, for Contract Interiors
• Donald Lococo Architects, Washington, DC, for Residential Exteriors.
• Danielle Bokor, of Bokor Consulting, Inc., Woodmere, NY, for Residential Interiors

4.14.08 | Last month, officeinsight went to the exhibition of the 2007 International Design Awards at the Museum of Design, Art, and Architecture in Culver City, CA. The International Design Awards is a new competition whose mission is to “recognize, celebrate and promote legendary design visionaries and to uncover emerging talent in architecture and interior, product, graphic and fashion design.” IDA was founded by the Farmani Group, the same minds that created the Lucie Awards for Photography.