John Deere Harvester Works Office and Visitors’ Center

2009 Merit Award – American Institute of Architects – Iowa Chapter

Deere and Company had plans to convert an existing factory, the Harvester Works, into a two story office building and visitor center. Rather than pull off the exterior skin, Deere & Company and the design team devised a more sustainable solution.

The project team agreed that creating an “additive” architecture highlighting key areas would be far more cost effective, sustainable and in the end the most visually interesting solution. The building features and illustrates Deere & Company’s rich agricultural heritage by using weathered steel, wood, a stained “earth-colored” Bomanite floor, and a straight-forward architectural expression of forms. The building is designed to feature Deere and Company’s latest combine inside the lobby, visible through a 36 foot high structural glass wall. Other features include a mural of one of the first photographs of a John Deere combine as well as a conference room designed with slatted wood inspired by the filtered light that passes through a corn crib.

The project includes many sustainable strategies: high performance glass, exterior sun screens, corn-based carpet products and sorghum board case work.