KEM STUDIO believes better design equals better living

Q&A with KEM STUDIO’s Jonathon Kemnitzer

MWM: Tell us how your partnership began?  How did you meet and what brought you together to form KEM STUDIO?

JK: My son just went through college orientation at the University of Kansas and it made me nostalgic about my orientation at the same university 30 years ago. At my orientation, I met Nicole Satterwhite (now a principal of Willoughby Design and KEM co-founder, Brad Satterwhite’s wife). Nicole and I became good friends going through the design program together (Nicole studying graphic design and I was studying industrial design) and when she met Brad (an architecture student), he and I discovered that we shared a mutual respect for each other's disciplines and a common appreciation for thoughtfully good design.

MWM: Can you expand on your unique discipline of fusing architecture and industrial design? Where did this concept originate and why do you think it gives you an edge in your industry?

JK: We do believe it gives us an edge. Because we have diverse talents and areas of expertise, it allows us to bring a unique perspective to every project.

At KEM STUDIO, we believe there are three scales of things we all interact with in life... the things that we manipulate (example - phone), the things that we're equal with (example - furniture), and the things that manipulate us (buildings). By fusing architecture and industrial design, we uniquely understand these three scales in ways that can enhance people's lives – from the spaces they are in, to the technology they hold in their hands. Firms that don't have that fusion of disciplines tend to fall short because they don't have that understanding of how a person interacts with something differently at a scale of mm to a scale of feet. 

MWM: How has your firm evolved since 2004 when you first started?

JK: For us, designing and running the business is something that is always evolving. When we started KEM STUDIO, our strength was being good designers and over the last seventeen and a half years we've evolved into better business owners. It's become a balance between doing the thing we love with the parts that we've learned to love.

MWM:  How do you keep yourselves and your team inspired?

JK: We are always trying to humbly improve as both people and designers. It starts by creating a team at KEM STUDIO so that we are all surrounded by talented people that we enjoy being around and can learn from. We also have a simple mantra “today is better than yesterday.”

We are active in our local design community, including AIA KC, and take part in school and university programs as mentors and ambassadors for the profession.

Another source of inspiration is our office, which is designed to foster collaboration, inspiration, and excitement and is a blend of a living laboratory, showcase and art gallery. It’s a place where we can test spaces and furniture concepts on ourselves before implementing them in projects.

MWM: You recently acquired the Stockyards Building and moved your new office into the building as well.  Are you enjoying it? 

JK: We love the history and the trajectory of the Stockyards District. We feel like it represents KEM STUDIO very well and we hope to continue the stewardship that Bill Haw established and continues to have in the area. We’ve been in this building (that we designed) for six years and are excited that we were able to invest in staying here.

MWM: Tell us about a few of your favorite projects to date and why they are your favorite?

Just a couple of weeks ago we completed a showroom for the NeoCon design conference in Chicago for one of our clients, Loftwall, that we're really excited about. We've been designing all of their new products for the last three years; so not only did we design the showroom, but we also designed all the products in the showroom. Similar to other projects like Charlie Hustle + Sporting KC and Upfit for Landscape Forms, it's just another example of how fusing architecture and industrial design creates solutions that are more approachable, livable and necessary in our lives... BETTER DESIGN, BETTER LIVING.

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Jonathon Kemnitzer, IDSA, is a co-founder and principal of KEM STUDIO. His close observation of everyday life and the way people interact with space and objects constantly informs his work. He is a collaborative designer who builds global brands through innovative solutions to make people's lives better through design. His work has been recognized in numerous national and international design competitions and publications.

Jonathon has an eclectic interest in music, film (he was once in a movie with Paul Newman) and the culinary world (he has a cocktail named after him). Additionally, he enjoys giving back to the community and is currently serving on the Product Design Professional Advisory Board for Kansas State University.

Pulse Design Group moves into Plaza high rise

Pulse Design Group has moved into their new office space on the tenth floor of the 46 Penn Centre building.

Custom-designed by their own team, Pulse’s new, 10,000-SF headquarters feature unobstructed views of the Country Club Plaza, an open floor plan and plenty of space to safely collaborate and accommodate anticipated staff growth.

The finished product is a welcoming environment that fosters collaboration, innovation and creativity - the perfect stage for a team of healthcare forward-thinking architects, interior designers, medical equipment planners and virtual reality developers.

“The move to the Country Club Plaza provides a larger footprint for firm growth, adds increased visibility, creates a central locale for employees, clients and industry partners, and offers additional amenities for associates,” said Rick Embers, managing partner for Pulse.

The open kitchen and dining spaces provide an area for the entire firm to meet and further encourage employee camaraderie. Multiple meeting spaces, varying in size, provide areas throughout the office for employees to work individually or in small groups.

“The new space is also great for entertainment. The central location and open-floor concept caters to hosting industry events,” said Lindsay Hampton, Pulse principal.

Pulse is optimistic that the move across the state line - from Lenexa, Kan. to Kansas City, Mo. - will catapult the firm’s goals; which include recruiting and developing talent, increasing brand awareness, identifying new business to diversify the firms portfolio, expanding the firms geographic reach and adding areas of focus within healthcare design.

“Employee morale is at an all-time high. Everyone is so proud of our new space,” said Pulse president, Dennis Burns.

It was important for the leadership to have all hands on deck while creating their new office, which even served as a learning tool for younger staff who were included in design charrettes, an integral part of the creative process.

“Many Pulse employees were involved in the creation of our new space and it is was amazing to see the employee excitement while creating their new home. Our new office space is collaborative, open, modern and caters to innovative design,” said Basil Sherman, Pulse principal.

Pulse leadership is also dedicated to employee professional development, encourages community involvement networking with industry professionals and assists and advises in employee growth.

“Whether that requires advising intern architects on licensure, helping staff achieve accreditations, suggesting outlets to obtain continuing education credits or mentoring a summer intern, Pulse Design Group leadership capitalize every opportunity to assist employee professional development,” said Mary Moore, Pulse associate principal.

Providing cutting-edge, solution-driven design solutions are at the core of the firm as exemplified in one of their recent projects at Lawrence Memorial Hospital (LMH) West Campus.

Representing the largest single campus expansion in it’s history, the LMH Health West ambulatory facility is a new, 243,000-SF medical office building designed to guide the organization for the next 20 years. Pulse Design Group provided full architectural and interior design services in addition to complete scope of services for medical equipment planning. This design-build project featured a constant collaboration between architect, contractor and owner that resulted in a cutting-edge facility to serve Douglas County.

Pulse Design Group was originally founded in 1980 as Wilson Johnson Associates. In 1997, Rick Embers joined and the firm became known as Wilson Johnson Embers (WJE). In 2011, WJE rebranded to Pulse Design Group, zoning in on their healthcare industry focus. Today, Pulse Design Group is celebrating over 40 years in business.

“Many of the firm’s employees have been with Pulse Design Group 10+ years, a true testament to positive employee satisfaction,” said Michael Andracsek, Pulse principal.

From a COVID-19 standpoint, Pulse is maintaining a safe and operational office space with safely-distanced workstations, staff mask requirements and room occupancy limits.

To learn more about Pulse Design Group, please visit their website at www.pulsedesigngroup.com.