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StudioJAED New State-of-the-Art Learning Facility Recognized by AIA Delaware
3.16.10
StudioJAED was presented a Merit Award at the 2010 Design Awards of the American Institutes of Architects (AIA) Delaware for the design of the new Providence Career and Technical Academy.
This new high school for 816 students combined modernization of an existing high school, a new 60,000 SF indoor Physical Education Facility, and new high-tech construction, to become the City of Providence Career and Technical Academy. The school offers a full range of academic courses along with a robust technical educational program. The facility also contains distance learning laboratories, a 400-seat auditorium and a3,000 seat athletic field house capable of hosting statewide and regional high school and college track and field events.
The existing 72,000 square foot high school features exposed reinforced concrete structure and brick infill. The remaining 212,000 square feet of new construction is designed to drastically contrast the existing building through a combination of form and material application that trends toward the contemporary and highly technical flavor of industrial design. “The design has a strong presence on the street, with a façade that’s varied and interesting,” commented the 2010 Design Award Program Committee.
This high performance project was designed to Northeast Collaborative for High Performance Schools (NECHPS) certification and includes: efficient mechanical systems with energy recovery, low-flow and waterless plumbing fixtures, daylighting sensors and natural light optimization combined with high efficiency light fixtures, solar heating of domestic hot water, re-use of existing building-recycled content materials used in construction, and zero discharge of stormwater from the site.
Program requirements, in addition to academic core facilities, include vocational laboratories and related theory rooms for the following strands: Carpentry, Electrical, HVAC, Plumbing, Cosmetology, Culinary Arts, Graphic Communications, and Automotive.
The Design Award Committee went on to comment that “The interior spaces respond very well to the functional requirements but the true beauty is in the careful selection of materials that harmonize and bring texture and scale to every space.”
StudioJAED wins ASID award for Potstickers Asian Grill & Sushi Bar
9.23.08
StudioJAED recently received the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) Pennsylvania East 2008 Silver Design Award for its PotstickersAsian Grill & Sushi Bar project. StudioJAED representatives James R. Nelson, FAIA, NCARB, and Pamela Babuca, ASID, IFMA, received the award on Thursday, Sept. 18, at the ASID Annual Dinner & Awards Celebration at Adventure Aquarium in Camden, NJ.
Potstickers Asian Grill & Sushi Bar is located in Centre PointPlaza II in Newark and was designed by James R. Nelson, FAIA, NCARB, Pamela Babuca, ASID, IFMA, and Philip Conte, AIA, NCARB.StudioJAED worked very closely with Owners Li and Elizabeth Shih to create an upscale, metropolitan atmosphere for their restaurant from conception to completion.
The team was challenged to blend the spatial requirements of a shopping mall fit-out with the stand-alone environment the owners were looking to achieve. Several different types of materials were used for the restaurant’s finishes, including an indoor rock wall featuring a waterfall, a rock wall with candlelit niches, and two indoor pagodas which serve as a sushi bar and seating area. The different textures chosen for the interior draperies and the overall usage of warm colors also contribute to the feng shui appeal of the eatery. Lighting was critical to the design of Potstickers Asian Grill & Sushi Bar due to the limited available light entering the building. Five different types of lighting fixtures were incorporated into the design. In fact, the Team personally hand-built ten different 2’x4’x4’ lanterns created from fire-rated Plexiglas and hand-stained oak.
“We are extremely honored to have received this prestigious award from the American Society of Interior Designers,” Nelson said. “We know that the judging was critical this year and the competition was vast and couldn’t be more pleased to be recognized for our unique work on Potstickers.”
Employees donate efforts to non-profit community design center
9.23.08
Edward R. Lupinek, CPE, Vice President of StudioJAED, and Dr. Richard D. Moretti REFP, LEED™AP, Educational Planner, are part of the volunteer force working on a pro bono basis with the Community Design Collaborative of Philadelphia and AIA Philadelphia.
The Community Design Collaborative, a 501(c) 3 nonprofit organization, is a community design center which provides non-profit organizations access to pro bono preliminary design services and raises awareness about the importance of design in community revitalization. In 2006, nearly 40 design firms and an additional 95 individual design professionals donated more than $570,000 in preliminary design services to 46 nonprofits and initiated 44 new projects. The first project that Ed and Dick will be working on with The Community Design Collaborative is a design charette for the Masterman School in Philadelphia.
Employee works with Schools for the Children
of the World (SCW)
06.27.08
StudioJAED Mechanical
Engineer Jason Parish recently returned from his trip to Honduras where
he volunteered with the Schools for the Children of the World (SCW)
program. Jason spent July 12 through July 19 assisting with building
a new school in a small city of approximately 40,000 called Santa Cruz
de Yojoa.
Jason spent the first two days on the school's design team. The team assessed a 1,000 - 1,200 student school to help determine program and facility needs. The school he assessed is so overpopulated that two sessions are held and the school still has 35-40 students per classroom. In addition, Santa Cruz currently does not possess the water pressure to provide the whole city with water, so the school only receives water from 7 a.m. -1 p.m.
Jason also measured the mayor's former office and produced drawings to turn it into a physical therapy center and a special needs clinic for children with speech and hearing problems. Plans to create a youth center with computers and internet access are underway in an adjacent building in order to provide older students with an opportunity to get online degrees. Jason's team offered suggestions to help maximize the center's use. Jason explained that Santa Cruz is the center of an area of about 80,000 people, yet there is no hospital or emergency center nearby.
Jason spent the rest of the trip working on the construction of a new elementary school in a small town called Pina Blanca. He planted trees, dug trenches for footers, and helped pour concrete. When the contractor in charge didn't have enough work for everyone, they snuck off and played soccer with the kids!
"More than anything, this trip reminded me of the most important part of our work with school districts doing our part to provide the children of our community an education and an opportunity to pursue a career, Jason said. "The majority of the kids in Honduras and other similar parts of the world do not receive an education past the sixth grade. I would like to thank StudioJAED for offering me such a rewarding opportunity and also for their contribution to a charitable organization like Schools for the Children of the World."
SCW is a non-profit, volunteer-based organization, which, since 1998, has built six schools in Honduras and one in Nicaragua. In addition, more than 50 school renovations have been completed in Honduras and Belize. SCW is also currently planning and designing three schools in East Africa.
StudioJAED opened an essay contest to each of its employees to describe why he or she should be selected to win the seven-day trip which included airfare, ground transportation, food and lodging.
Junior Achievement project featured on ABC Action News 6
StudioJAED's experience includes designing the first "Educational Village" for Junior Achievement of Delaware, Inc., a organization which uses hands-on experiences to help young people understand the economics of life. Junior Achievement's Enterprise Village and Finance Park captured national attention when ABC Action News 6 featured the project during a broadcast. Junior Achievement of Delaware is a regional destination point for many schools and we are proud to have designed this one-of-a-kind, modern learning environment.