OPN + Ryan Companies honored for collaboration on Krause Gateway Center

OPN Architects and Ryan Companies were honored by Building + Design magazine with a Gold Award in this year’s Building Design+Construction Building Team Awards for their work on the Krause Gateway Center in Des Moines, Iowa. The program celebrates excellence in team collaboration and design/construction solutions.

The four planes of the new Krause Gateway Center fly above downtown Des Moines’ Western Gateway. Lightness, simplicity, and openness define the corporate headquarters, which houses several companies under the same ownership, offering opportunities to co-mingle and capitalize on collisions. Renzo Piano Building Workshop designed the 160,000-square-foot structure in collaboration with OPN Architects.

Wall-to-wall expanses of glass are protected by deep overhangs, avoiding direct sun while allowing natural light deep into the building, offering 360-degree views of the downtown skyline.  The focal point of the modern design is its light-filled lobby encased by 29-foot-tall glass panels, which were the second tallest in North America at the time of installation.

The building required a high degree of precision, down to the details in the construction documents and the project’s schedule management. Planning and coordination contributed to the success of this three-year project, for which more than 1,000 tradespeople and 90 designers and subcontractors were involved.