In 2009 ESRI completed an extensive upgrade to their corporate headquarters. 9Wood played an integral role in the project and pushed forward the boundaries of innovation and coordination in manufacturing engineered-to-order specialty wood finishes.

The ESRI project was more than just a large job. The variety of products and design solutions 9Wood was required to offer in order to successfully complete the project was the very definition of custom. In all, 9Wood shipped to California 1,965 unique panel types, consisting of 25 distinct products. Among these product types were Acoustic Planks, bullnose trims, countertops, perforated and non-perforated wall and ceiling panels, angled ceiling panels, light cove panels, air diffuser grilles and door trims.

Even more than the varied custom products required for the job, the biggest hurdle to overcome was the requirement that all the wood in the project be sequenced. A full 12,000 square feet of material had to be tracked and coordinated so the veneer leaf sequence would be the same on the installed panels as it was when the leaves came off the logs several months prior. Control points were established along the length of the supply chain, and 9Wood carefully tracked each and every panel as it moved through the systems of six different companies on both sides of the continent.

Another example of the unparalleled project support 9Wood offered were the coordination drawings for the curved proscenium around the theater screen. Because the subcontractor did not want to field-cut the panels, and because the structure would require near-zero tolerances, 9Wood coordinated the exact positioning of the entire framing structure behind the panels.

“It is virtually unheard of for a manufacturer to be this involved on the front-end,” says Joshua of the framing instruction 9Wood provided. “Typically a manufacturer just provides materials. We were designing the entire approach, not just the products.”

The architectural vocabulary for a new state lottery headquarters building is all about angles. Angles on the exterior. Angles in the shape of the rooms. Angles overhead.

“The angular forms evoke energy and excitement,” says Curtis Owyang, AIA, principal with the design firm, LPAS Architecture + Design. “It represents an important identity for the client.”

This brings us to the ceilings — “folded planes of wood,” as the Owyang describes them, that are also acoustically absorptive. The panels had a noise reduction coefficient (NRC) of .90 with added 1-1/2″ insulation.

The main space is the Pavilion. It’s a multi-purpose, flexible-use chamber mainly for lottery commission hearings. Shaped like a football, the room features six ceiling bays at heights ranging from 14′ to 16′. The bays feature angled 48″ by 48″ panel tiles combined with 24″ by 48″ fascia boards — a 4′ by 6′ “checkmark” panel. From the side, the panel assemblies look like checkmarks.

The Pavilion ceilings attenuate sound. Whereas standard acoustic tile is usually flat and available in 2′ by 2′ and 2′ by 4′ sizes, the architect wanted acoustic performance in angled 4′ by 6′ panels. This stretched 9Wood’s capabilities, but certainly didn’t exceed them.