Fishtech, one of Martin City’s newest local businesses, has a rather unique appearance. An impressive facade with contrasting colors, multiple layers, and a distinctive stylized touch serves to catch the eye of a passerby.
The Martin City Telegraph spoke with Zach Sumada, director of design at BRR Architecture, part of the architectural team that sculpted the Fishtech job. He spoke regarding the concept, history and construction behind the design that lead up to the striking new edifice in Martin City.
To start, Gary Fish approached BRR with an idea for a new Fishtech building, and the architecture team and Fishtech remained in close contact throughout the process, Sumada said. “At BRR, we utilize a design process that focuses on client involvement and communication throughout the project… we relied heavily on video conferencing and screen sharing software to show the 3D model to him [Gary Fish] and simultaneously make updates in real time.” With this strategy, BRR kept Fishtech abreast as they fleshed out the design plan. They communicated together to engineer ideas as they progressed toward the final distinctive appearance.
For this design, Sumada says modeling software was used to study form and spatial relationships in the nascent phase of design on Fishtech.
Regarding aesthetics Sumada said “Fishtech’s new headquarters is a balance between display and work. The first floorserves as a showroom space with a large display area, conference room and kitchen to demonstrate the company’s technology, while the second floor is an open work environment. The exterior form was developed around the concept of contrast – light versus dark, warm versus cool.” Further themes of contrast throughout the building include pristine smooth panels against grooved panels with ridges and the manner in which colors contrasted in the building during nighttime.
“It is always exciting to come up with a new design concept for a potential project but without a doubt the most satisfying part of the job is the client’s reaction to the built project.” The Fishtech job was particularly enjoyable for Sumada and the BRR team as it was a “…local project with a local client,” and a community focus is important for BRR Architecture, he said. He stressed the importance of the team effort that BRR put forth and, through a design philosophy that accentuated contrast, they formulated the blueprints that became a visually unique building in the community.