Friday, July 17, 2015

Week 8: The Final Week

Hello!
Sadly, this is my last post! I'm finishing up little projects here and there and I've been thinking about how much I've done this summer. Over the past 8 weeks I've worked on the following projects:

-C Spire
-ServisFirst Bank
-PMOA
-Morgan Van Lines
-REEL
-Stephen L Klimjack Law Office
-Dean Waite Law Office
-Bishop State 
-911 Emergency Center
-Eglin Airforce base
-Fort Detrick Dental Clinic
-Dr. Trey's Children's Dental Clinic
-City of Mobile Conference Room 
-iSpice
-Mobile Airport Authority 
-Palmer's Hyundai 

All of these projects were so eyeopening! I was talking to Josh this morning and he asked me if the internship was anything like I expected...Well, yes and no. I did not know I would attend soooo many client meetings. I realize working with the end user is important, but since I have no one other than my professor to consult in the classroom, it's just something I've never had to account a lot of time for. Here I went to meetings every week with multiple clients--which I LOVED doing. The people are the best (occasionally the worst) part of the job! I loved meeting new people, learning about their profession, and figuring what they needed in their space based on their individual  needs. 

Another thing I didn't realize about this job is how much time I would actually spend alone. When I'm working on AutoCAD I spend hours and hours alone at my desk, and that's hard for me sometimes! I'm an extreme extrovert and the thought of spending an entire day alone on the computer makes me squirm. But, I do work with other people here so I'm never just stuck in an office alone. 

It's definitely something to consider when the real world comes my way. But I do love the industry. I love all the options and decisions I get to make every day that impact someone else's life every day for a long time! 

It's been a great experience and I'm thankful for my Innerspaice Crew!

Haworth love and mine, 

Emily the (no longer) Intern 

Thursday, July 16, 2015

Week 8: The Final Week

Hello, hello!

     My instruction is to summarize my intern experience. Wow. Tall order. Being an intern has been a learning curve to say the least. It's been stretching, exciting, eye-opening, rewarding, discouraging at times, but a very good experience overall. I've learned soooo much about the furniture industry that I couldn't possibly learn in the classroom. I basically re-learned AutoCAD, became acquainted with Project Spec, which is a finish and pricing software, and used Excel and Photoshop occasionally.

     My experience at Innerspaice has been really crucial in helping hone my professionalism skills. Because I've worked so much with the clients on the projects I've been involved in, it has pushed me to be professional from my attire to my handshake to email correspondence, phone manners, and more! Being in the workplace, rather than the classroom, has affected me more than I originally thought. I've had to be professional in all my communication and learn to double check everything before giving it to the client. Being thorough in my work is something I've always taken pride in, but Bonnie (one of the designers here) has taken it to a whole new level. She checks and triple checks everything and even gets someone else to check it for her if needed.

Teamwork and communication are two other skills I've been able to develop this summer. In the classroom, for the most part, I work as an individual entity. Here, I always work with a partner and have to be really intentional about communicating with them about what I'm working on and the same for them.

Below are some projects I've helped with! (most of which I won't be able to see completed, unfortunately..they are only in phase 1)

The first one is for an engineering company called REEL and the bottom two are for Stephen L Klimjack's law firm.



Haworth love and mine, 
Emily the Intern

Thursday, June 25, 2015

Week 7

Collaboration:

Collaboration in the workplace is one of the things I've learned a lot about since I've been here at Innerspaice. I collaborate a lot with sales reps to get quotes for furniture pricing, etc. One very important aspect of our collaboration within the office is our weekly staff meetings are on Wednesdays at 9AM. They are laid back, but very efficient and never last more than an hour. Jim gives a report of what needs to be done and what projects have been completed the week before, the sales team gives their reports, the design team gives their report, and then the project managers give reports on what is being installed and what needs to be installed.

That's all for now--I'll be gone on vacation next week! Try not to miss me too much. :)

Haworth love and mine, 
Emily the Intern



Monday, June 22, 2015

Week 7

Collaboration:
     Bonnie and I are working on adding acoustical products to a dentist office in Fairhope. While there we field measure for wall covering and I've had the joy of estimating the wall covering. Woohoo. ;) However, we had to collaborate with an acoustical specialist to see what the best product would be and how much of the product we need!
     I also do a lot of collaborating with sales reps. I contact them to get pricing for different jobs and for more information on a product. They also come by the office and give us presentations on new product lines and features. Sales reps include textile reps as well. I've had to call and reserve fabric for projects multiple times so I collaborate with them to see how much they have in stock and how long they can reserve it for me.

That's all for now!
Haworth love and mine,
Emily

Friday, June 19, 2015

Week 6

Hello everyone!
Today I've been working on Morgan Trucking Lines project! Justin, the manager, is opening  a new branch in Spanish Fort, AL and his space is on large open room which he wants to turn into a nice, workplace including 6 workstations, a hospitality area, a touchdown area for potential employees to fill out job applications, a kitchenette/break area, a collaboration area, and a nice lounge area with his logo right when you walk in the door. And...I have to fit allllll that in a 40'x18' space? Whaaaat? So, this is what I came up with... The walls are a Haworth movable wall that can be reconfigured. It doesn't mar the floor or walls yet it's durable enough to withstand shelving, and pretty much anything else you would want to hang on the walls! All the other symbols should be self-explanatory.
Bonnie and I went to view the space and interview the client about his needs and his expectations for the space. We then field-measured and I drew up the shell in AutoCAD. From there, I began space planning based on the info he gave us during our interview. We sent him all the options and now we're waiting to see which option he chose, or what revisions he wants to make to his criteria. I'll keep you updated.
Here are the options--hope you enjoy!


I hope you enjoyed this little tid-bit into my life! 
Haworth love and mine, 
Emily the Intern 


Thursday, June 18, 2015

Week 6

Hi, hello, hola!

     I have been super busy this week with multiple projects from banks to dentist offices to trucking line offices! And other little things in between. My most time-consuming project so far has been Servis 1st bank in downtown Mobile, only a block from our office! We are working with the designer from the bank, Sarah McCoy. Erin and I specified all the furniture for the first and second floors and Sarah, Erin, and I spent hours over the course of a few days picking out the finishes for the furniture.

      I then gathered all the furniture symbols and began space planning. I put all the furniture into the space and had to incorporate some of the existing furniture in the upstairs offices. I then helped Erin get the pricing together and create binders and a finish board for Sarah to present to the board of trustees at the bank for final approval. She said the meeting went well, so we'll see what the verdict is next week!


This is Sarah, our client. In this photo we are going over the
furniture plan and agreeing on layouts for the conference room and break room. 

This is the finish board I created for their board
 meeting on Monday!


























Stay tuned for more! I'm sharing about my experience 
at the trucking company tomorrow!
Haworth love and mine, 
Emily the Intern

Sunday, June 14, 2015

Week 5

Hi friends!

      Another post about collaboration-- CIDA says so. Hehe..However, collaboration is one of the most important part about my job as a designer. and it's not just collaboration among my colleagues who are designers, it's collaboration between all the professions that work together to make up a space-- from the architect to the designer to the engineer to the electrician even down to the installers, communication is key..
     Innerspaice helped design Palmer's Toyota dealership in Mobile, AL and I was able to go with Bonnie to the installer visit. We collaborated with the installers to make sure the furniture would be delivered and installed in the correct place at the correct time next Monday.
      I listened intently as Bonnie explained to the installer what to do. She prepared the space and worked out the logistics of where to park the 18-wheeler, what items needed to be moved in first, what items would be stored for Phase II, and how the install drawings would be laid out. Thankfully, she works with the same installing company often and has formed a good relationship with the company managers, so they know what she expects and she trusts them to do a good job.

That's all for now. Night night

Haworth love and mine,
Emily the Intern

Thursday, June 11, 2015

Week 5

CIDA Standard 5: Collaboration

I’ve seen a lot of collaboration between the employees of Innerspaice both within the firm and with other disciplines. I’ll start with collaboration within our firm and then expand out. Every Wednesday morning at 9 AM we have a staff meeting to discuss projects that are ongoing as well as the project we’ve completed. Erin and Bonnie tell the staff about their sales and what is shipping when, so that our project managers will all be on the same page. Then, the design team gives a report on what they’re working on and when certain deadlines are. Today I gave my report: Servis1st Bank CAD drawings due Monday, Servis1st finish board due Monday, REEL office drawings due Friday, 911 Call center drawings due ASAP, Morgan Van Lines drawing options due next week, acoustical wall covering estimate for Dr. Trey’s dental clinic, acoustical furniture specs for the dental clinic, and…blogging twice a week on top of a research paper.

We also collaborate in some design projects with architects. I was in contact with the architect for the Servis1st project this week regarding their files for the project. They graciously sent them to me so that I could drop in and specify our furniture.

Our project managers also work with electricians when they are doing install drawings for workstations and movable walls so that we are ensured to have power to each work station.

Okay I need to get back to work now…I’m busy, busy, busy. 

Haworth love and mine,

Emily the Intern 

Monday, June 8, 2015

Week 4

Hi friends!
This week I also worked on Palmer's Hyundai reconfiguration. This is a project where the client already owns the furniture, but they've hired us to reconfigure it for their new space. Now--this may seem like an easy task, but when the reconfiguration includes desking systems, it can be quite challenging. Each piece of the desk is separate and we must also verify the support that will uphold each piece as well as specify new pieces if adequate support is not existing in the project. We gave the client 3 options for the reconfiguration. These are the drawings I did (with help from Bonnie, of course).


These took lots of time and hard work, but in the end the client was very pleased! That's our goal, always. 
Haworth love and mine,
Emily the Intern

Thursday, June 4, 2015

Week 4

Hello friends!
This week has been super busy, thus my late posting, but Wednesday was probably my favorite day since I've been here! I got to go with one of our designers, Bonnie, to a pediatric dental clinic in Fairhope, AL. Their concern is that the clinic is really loud. Innerspaice did not design the space, but the designer called on us to help reduce the noise in the space. If you're unfamiliar with how noise reverberation works, it can be kind of daunting. Luckily, Bonnie has dealt with this before and had lots of good ideas to help Dr. Trey. The space has pretty much all hard surfaces, so the noise from the kids playing, receptionists talking on the phone, machines being used in the back, and just the general chatter of the parents, is just bounced from surface to surface creating an all-around noisy environment.
Bonnie and I came in to inspect the space and decide which walls we needed to apply wall covering to. Eykon and MDC manufacture acoustical wall covering, similar to that used on movie theater walls. The wall covering traps the sound in the fibers rather than bouncing them back into the air. We chose the walls that were reflecting the most noise especially in the kids' play area (see photos below). The designer of the project made panels out of canvas and egg crate in attempt to fix the problem, so that's what you'll see in the photos below.
We are also going to specify some BuzziSpace products which specialize in noise reduction. BuzziSpace makes acoustical panels for walls that simulate artwork and can come in various patterns and colors. We are ordering some of those to hang on the walls that don't have the acoustical wall covering. They also make furniture that is made of a felt material and foam, which traps sound that comes into contact with it rather than reverberating it back into the space.
These are the photos from the dental clinic! Enjoy!



























Isn't it awesome?! A well-designed space is such a beautiful thing.


Haworth love and mine,
Emily the Intern

Friday, May 29, 2015

Week 3

Global Perspective for Design:

"Innerspaice Architectural Interiors – the size, experience and infrastructure to design and manage any type of workplace project, anywhere on the planet."

That is our motto. Innerpaice is quite diverse in its clientele. We do projects all over the country. Last week I was calling and scheduling shipments for a project in Alaska! This week I've been working on a dental clinic in Missouri and the US Army Research Medical Center in Maryland. Jessica is working on a hospital in Kansas and Erin does mostly local sales. 

Josh and Kelly are over our logistics. They make sure the items get shipped to the correct location and hire an installer to put the spaces together. Since we do a lot of renovations, it takes more time and effort to coordinate moving old furniture and decor out and then coordinating all the new items we specified. One of the designers will also travel to the location in order to insure everything is done correctly. 

Innerspaice uses multiple manufacturers to give clients an array of options in order to fit their individual socioeconomic needs. Culturally, Innerspaice designs their clients' spaces to fit their locations. 

Innerspaice also does a lot of GSA projects that require us getting quotes to bid on a government building or renovation. Government departments get a discount on their services, decor, and furniture, so part of my job since I've been here is to get quotes from manufacturers about different products we need for our project. 

Hope your enjoyed this CIDA day on the blog!

Haworth love and mine, 
Emily the Intern 

Thursday, May 28, 2015

Week 3

Hello, hello!
I'll have to do this quickly because I am SWAMPED in work this week! Four-day weeks are nice, but I still have 5 days worth of work to get done, so it's also stressful! Tuesday I worked on submitting a proposal for a government project. I had to create spreadsheets of the products we needed to be sent off to get a quote.
Wednesday I had a meeting at ServisFirst Bank downtown and we met with the president of the bank to go over the furniture and finishes we picked out. The meeting went really well, though we still have a long way to go! The client is trying to stray away from super traditional, but at the same time it's a bank, so it still has to be conservative. It is quite a challenge to incorporate both of those things!
Later Wednesday afternoon I accompanied one of the designers to the Mobile Airport Office building that was newly renovated. We looked at the offices and field-measured so that I can draw them up in AutoCAD and get some ideas for the layouts of the desks.
After that, we went to PMOA to field measure their space for 20 new cubicles and movable walls! It was my first one to field measure for an actual project and it's harder than you think!
I'll give you an update tomorrow.
Haworth love and mine,
Emily the Intern

Tuesday, May 26, 2015

Week 2

Hello, hello!
Playing catch up for week 2--longggg, busy week. On Wednesday, I attended a CEU seminar with one of the designers here at Innerspaice. I lovingly call CEUs Lunch-n-learns, which is what we call them in college. I walked in and low and behold my dear, sweet, friend was there! Haley Straub! We were so excited to see a familiar face we hugged for a good 2 minutes. Also...as you can see in the photo below, we matched! Even down to the jewelry color.  How cute is that? While we were there we also got to network with the other Interior Designers in the Mobile area. It was awesome to see so many creative people in one place! I even got to see another designer I interviewed with at TAG. Networking is so important in our field. We heard presentations from Steelcase, DesignTex, Tandus-Centiva, and WilsonArt.

As you probably already saw, I was at the Mayor's office at the beginning of the week...then at the end I went to the Mobile Airport Authority with Erin! Which, in its own right, is a little less exciting, but nonetheless important. We brought chairs for them to test out for the new design of their conference rooms.

{Side story, the woman we were corresponding with, and who tested out the chairs was asking me about my internship and where I went to school. When I told her Southern Miss, she told me she was a Southern Miss alum, which was really cool. And then...she asked me if I was in a sorority and when I told her I was a Chi Omega she jumped up and hugged me because she is a Chi Omega alum too! How fun is that!? Making connections all around Mobile...}

Wednesday afternoon I worked on the Palmer Hyundai business office in AutoCAD and drew up the plan that Bonnie had hand-sketched. After lots of trial and error, AutoCAD and I became friends again and an extended breakup. :)

Thursday we had a meeting with our client from the Mayor's office as well as the client for ServisFirst bank and we went over the plans for the bank to decide what furniture she needed as well as the finishes for the flooring, walls, and task chairs. After the meeting Erin and I compiled binders with the furniture brochures and labeled them so that we know what furniture we've chosen for each room and to keep us organized.

Haworth love and mine,
Emily

Thursday, May 21, 2015

Week 2

Hi everyone!
This week I'm working on the City of Mobile's conference room! (Yes, I was in the mayor's office on my 4th day of work-- cool, huh?!) Erin and I are working with the designer for the city to specify a 20 ft Haworth table. Here is a photo of the existing conference room:

Very traditional and neutral..And blah.We already have new chairs ordered and the table and credenza are in the process of being ordered! I drew up the conference room in AutoCAD today and learned how to specify the Haworth furniture in CAD and export it to Project Matrix in order to get the pricing for the table, electrical boxes, cable box, credenza, credenza top, and how to specify the different leg types and leg placements.
Just for fun...this is the Mayor's office designed by the talented city designer, Sara McCoy! And check out that view! To die for...



















A rather large challenge I faced on Tuesday was AutoCAD. It's been a year and a half since I've used it and I learned on a totally different version, so I have been struggling through it a little bit. However, Josh and Bonnie have been awesome at helping me and teaching me new shortcuts and tools to use. At our staff meeting this morning (Wednesday) I was assigned the ServisFirst project along with Erin, so I will be doing all of the CAD and specifying/pricing of furniture! Eeeeek. I'm nervous, but excited! Keep reading to see how the project is going! I have a big meeting with our ServisFirst client tomorrow, so I'll post about it on Friday!
Haworth love and mine,
Emily the Intern

Monday, May 18, 2015

Bio and Desk Photo

Hi! My name is Emily Stokley and I am an intern at Innerspaice Architectural Interiors in Mobile, AL. I'm from a small town called Sweet Water, AL and I have two wonderfully supportive parents and 3 beautiful sisters. This blog is an account of my summer as as intern! The picture above is me at my desk. I love my work space and I feel so blessed to be a part of the Innerspaice team! A few of my responsibilities include:
+Organizing and maintaining a functional and clean resource library
 +Assisting the designers in choosing fabrics for furniture
 +Pulling finishes from the library for the designers to view
  +Sitting in on client meetings and taking notes for the designers/sales manager
  +Helping admin assistant complete purchase orders by double checking sales numbers
  +Putting together finish boards for client meetings
+Ordering samples online for designers
+Joining staff members on site trips to assist them in various ways
 +Assisting the team by completing various projects in AutoCAD


Friday, May 15, 2015

Week 1

Wayne showing me how the putting green 
works in the Haworth raised flooring system. 
How cool?! 

C Spire project finish board I designed on my second day! 
(carpet is existing, so Jess had to work with what she had) 
#renovationprobs

This is our vault (aka resource library). It is a very 
neat piece of history and one of my favorite things 
about the office! (second only to the putting green) ;)

Week 1

Hi everyone!
     Emily the Intern here! I am an interior design student at the University of Southern Mississippi but I'm interning for the summer with Innerspaice Architectural Interiors in historic downtown Mobile, AL. Innerspaice has 7 employees and as far as I can tell, this is the set-up:
Jim is our Principal, Josh is the Director of Design (my boss), Bonnie is the sales manager, Jessica is a designer, Erin is a designer, Wayne is the project manager, Kelly is the administrative assistant...and then there's me: the Intern. Innerspaice sells mostly Haworth products, but also uses other lines such as Global, National, and OFS in their design solutions. They do new projects, renovations, and also solely furniture sales.
     On my first day (May 14th) I walked up and was greeted at the door by our traveling rep, Richie (Innerspaice is also in Fort Walton, FL and Birmingham, AL). I walked in, shook his hand and introduced myself saying, "Hi, I'm Emily! The Intern." In return he said, "Hi Emily the Intern." So...that is why I've named my blog Emily the Intern. Kinda catchy, huh?
     On my first day I was thrown right in and started organizing the resource library.You can imagine my thought process when I was told that would be my first assignment. However, there is much joy to be found even in the little things. So..even in my nice 'first day of work' outfit I was on the floor in the vault (our space used to be a car dealership in the 20's so our resource library is a literal vault) organizing the samples, separating them into the correct categories, and filing them away.
     As unimportant and mundane as that task seems, I found  a lot joy in organizing and making our vault functional and user-friendly. And darn if all that organizing didn't come in handy when Jim handed me a company logo color (the brightest shade of blue I had ever seen in my life) and told me to find some fabrics to match it. I literally went through every fabric folder, every box of swatches, and every drawer of memos we had searching for the perfect color and pattern. Knowing where everything was came in really handy while searching for the right shade of blue in a bold pattern for the tuxedo chair going in the C Spire office lobby. I found some Jim really liked so we're going to show the client on Monday!
    My first day on the job I also got to sit in on a client meeting with Erin. We met with an independent designer who is hiring us to do the furniture specifications for the renovation of ServisFirst Bank in downtown Mobile. She brought in the plans and we took notes on what furniture is needed and what the existing building looks like. I'm going with Erin on the site visit Tuesday, so stay tuned for more on the ServisFirst Bank!
     Today was my second day and I actually got to do the finish board for the C Spire project! Jessica, the designer for the project, gave me the list of finishes so I pulled them from the resource library and began mounting them foam core board. Pictures to come!
     That's a wrap on the short, but sweet week one of my internship!
Haworth love and mine,
Emily the Intern