Gould Evans designed the multi-phase master plan for the site, which will cover 4.7 million sq. ft. when complete, to be a centerpiece of Cerner’s strategy to draw top technology talent to the Kansas City area to solve the complex challenges of their health care clients.

“It’s critical that we provide an environment that facilitates creativity and innovation. And it takes a unique environment to make that happen,” said Mike Nill, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Cerner.

The first two towers will host Cerner’s software development, engineering and IT departments. Gould Evans created an environment to fit the company’s engineering culture by studying associate patterns, conducting interviews and testing layouts.

Each level features a variety of differentiated spaces allowing teams to conduct individual team scrums, flex in zones or expand across levels if necessary. Creating variety in working environments allows all Cerner associates to find the correct mix of light, acoustics, privacy, activity and personality to create individually or in a team setting.

In the towers, pairs of floors are grouped into neighborhoods to enable more interactions and to break down the scale of the complex. Each neighborhood is joined by a connecting atrium called a “node”, which is a differentiated area that enables innovation, teamwork and recreation, offering a counterpoint to “heads down” working space. Associates have full access to:

- The Libraries – feature warm wood, comfortable furniture and task lighting all designed to calm and focus associates.

- The Maker Space – provides an area where associates can experiment, tinker, assemble and test prototypes. It comes equipped with 3D printers, tools, Arduinos, and Raspberry Pis.

- Bowser’s Castle – a game room where associates can relax, recharge and socialize. It features board games, vintage style arcade games and a graphic wall depicting a scene from the 1985 classic, Super Mario Brothers.

- Project Rooms and Think Tanks - offer spaces for associate collaboration. They feature white boards, moveable furniture and projectors to provide a creative environment for teams.

Cerner’s leadership is dedicated to providing associates with desirable working environments that reflect the company’s culture and drive for innovation. All design decisions are based on Cerner’s attributes, mission and vision. The company is positioned at the intersection of information technology and health care, which has become a common design thread that visually represents this metaphor and is woven throughout its campuses, from World Headquarters (WHQ), to Continuous, to Innovations.

Innovations integrates numerous visual references to information technology and engineering thematics, from the front entry monument signs, to the street names and building addresses, to the DNA-inspired façade pattern, to the binary patterns in the perforations of the stainless steel panels which combine to represent moments of ‘interoperability’. Interoperability, the ability of different information technology systems and software to communicate, is critical to health care and became the inspirational overlay to the design team’s focus.

“We’re so proud to have partnered again with Cerner to create this innovative, employee-centered, next-generation workplace,” said Anthony Rohr, FAIA, National Managing Principal of Gould Evans. “A project of this magnitude requires a cohesive team working towards the same goals, and we’ve had that with Cerner’s leaders, with Grand Construction, with JE Dunn and the entire engineering team."

Media: Gould Evans architectural staff are available to discuss how Innovations was designed to reflect Cerner’s innovative culture. Interior and exterior images also available upon request. Please contact Megan Krtek at megan.krtek@gouldevans.com or 816-701-5422.

About Gould Evans Gould Evans’ award-winning designs are recognized for their specificity to people and place. Our diverse portfolio of architecture stems from a design process that starts with the client’s goals. We share a passion for regional architecture and design that positively impacts our communities. To learn more, visit www.gouldevans.com.

The studio offers an ideal setting for the competition, as it was designed to cater to students who face similarly intense challenges in bringing their creative projects to life throughout the school year. The versatile space will provide the Make 48 teams with an open, flexible, technology-rich working environment to support the rapid development, prototyping and pitching of innovative ideas.

“Our goal in the design process was to create a clean, blank slate with abundant light that would be flexible, both as a daily work space and over time as educational programming and technology evolves,” said Mark Wise, Project Designer with Gould Evans. “The space needed to provide an efficient, comfortable space for students to work, as well as a home for the cutting-edge technology KCAI offers, so we designed the studio to be scalable, offering ample space around the equipment for students to move and gather in.”

The studio is a central resource shared by all of the Art Institute’s 13 majors, ranging from ceramics and sculpture to fiber and filmmaking. In addition to a gallery and critique room, the new 5,000 square-foot addition to the Sculpture Department’s Volker Building features a fabrication lab equipped with state- of-the art technology. The teams will have full access to an array of digital fabrication tools including:

• Interactive touch screens for digital collaboration

• Laser cutters and engravers

• Eight different types of 3D printers

• Computer numerical control (CNC) routers

• Cameras and scanners

• A digital loom

Gould Evans’ design of the new studio responds to the Institute’s need to create a space that allows students to gain experience and become skilled in using the technology that will continue to be present in the work place for years to come.

“Building a printing and prototyping studio that specializes in digital input and output means that KCAI is preparing tomorrow’s workforce,” said Tony Jones, President of the Kansas City Art Institute. “We’re teaching advanced skills, while providing a valuable asset to our local community.”

The Kansas City Art Institute features a traditional, yet also eclectic, collegiate setting with campus buildings surrounding an historic estate and its original mansion, Vanderslice Hall, now the administrative center for the Institute. The new David T. Beals III Studio is designed as a counterpoint to the 1896 Vanderslice building, expressing KCAI’s currency and tradition, while also celebrating the past, future and present of art. The facade, which is made of black matte metal paneling, and simple shed form of the building contrast gently with the historic building, contributing to the richness of the campus.

Make 48 is a semi-annual, national competition that began in April of 2015. Eight half hour episodes capturing the highs and lows of the competition, from product inception to final design, will air early next year on local PBS stations.

About Gould Evans

Gould Evans’ award-winning designs are recognized for their specificity to people and place. Our diverse portfolio of architecture stems from a design process that starts with the client’s goals. We share a passion for regional architecture and design that positively impacts our communities. To learn more, visit www.gouldevans.com

About the Kansas City Art Institute

Located in Kansas City, Mo. at 4415 Warwick, KCAI is a private, independent four-year college of art and design awarding the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with 13 studio majors. KCAI also offers a post-baccalaureate program in art education, certificate programs and continuing education courses. Founded in 1885, KCAI is Kansas City’s oldest arts organization. For more information, visit www.kcai.edu.

Gould Evans Media Contact

Megan Krtek

(816)701-5422

megan.krtek@gouldevans.com

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