Orion Associates is a successful management services firm serving non-profit human services organizations. Their success required them to double the size of their offices. The design challenge for this project was to make a significant addition aesthetically complementary to the original early seventies office building.

Of the utmost concern to Orion was projecting the appropriate image, including a “green design” philosophy and adding an on-site daycare facility. The company was dedicated to managing its construction budget so that it would be able to continue to fund the many charitable organizations with which they are involved such as the River of Hope. This charity provides relief to areas suffering from natural disasters, like those in Louisiana and Southern Minnesota.

The design met all of these goals using inexpensive metal panels for siding and fascia treatments, glazing for controlled daylighting and other economical building strategies. The resulting building was submitted to the USGBC, and achieved LEED Gold certification, and was a contributing factor to Orion Associates winning the 2008 Psychologically Healthy Workplace Award. Congratulations to everyone at Orion!