THESIS HEADQUARTERS
Portland, Ore.
Merit Award
Sent by: Swinerton Builders
OWNER: Thesis
LEADING DESIGN COMPANY: Lever architecture
GENERAL CONTRACTOR: Swinerton Builders
CIVIL ENGINEERING: VEGA Civil Engineering
STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING: HOLMES
MEP ENGINEERING: Interface engineering
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT: Lango Hansen
SUBCONTRACTORS: Willamette Construction Services; K&S Environmental Inc.; Whitaker/Ellis Builders Inc.; B&B Tile & Masonry Corp.; Green Mountain Manufacturing; Timberlab
Supported by a cross-laminated timber structural frame, this four-story building offers workspaces with a strong indoor-outdoor connection, including operable openings at all levels. The design team focused on rethinking office design to prioritize comfortable, home-like spaces that bring nature indoors and focus on informal environments for breaks and meetings. Design decisions were made early and quickly to avoid procurement problems.
Using regionally sourced CLT lumber and glulam, the structural frame was prefabricated about 10 miles from the project site. Within four months, Timberlab’s digital construction team provided full MEP coordination for 40,000 square feet of solid wood. Once on site, the installation team completed each 10,000 square meter floor in six-day intervals.
The project’s fiberglass windows required significant field testing after installation, but Swinerton also proactively tested every window in the home. The teams created a spray rack with PVC tubing, vacuum sealed chambers and followed appropriate test guidelines. This allowed the team to identify and resolve any issues prior to installation in the field.
Multiple energy reduction strategies helped the facility achieve LEED Gold. They include the use of abundant natural light and efficient building systems, as well as the facility’s 54.6 kW solar array. The large operable openings on each floor are linked to the internal mechanical system, which automatically shuts down when the doors are open, further reducing energy consumption.
