Photography by Timothy Hursley

SEI Investments, Inc., a banking and financial software services firm with operations worldwide, commissioned MS&R to develop a multi-phase master plan for their 90-acre site located near Valley Forge in Upper Providence Township, Pennsylvania. The first phase of design incorporates five, two-story buildings connected by bridges and below-grade passageways for a total of 230,000 square feet. Building interiors are sparsely finished with utilitarian grade materials and minimal partitions. Training and conferencing facilities, equipped for international business transactions, are satellite-linked and fully interactive. Because the company is heavily dependent on technology and work teams are required to relocate quickly to adjust to current market conditions, work stations and conferencing were required to be highly flexible. Employees have their own "home-base" desk which can be easily moved to alternate locations as needed. Building technology includes personal ceiling power/data drop cords, or "Pythons," serving each work station, ATM local and wide area networks, and broad band interactive television. Phase II has begun and includes an addition to the original complex and a stand alone building connected by a skyway for an additional 40,033 square feet.

One of the stated reasons that SEI selected MS&R was because of the firm's ability to combine low cost with design innovation. Specifically, MS&R believed that extraordinary performance and design could be leveraged from ordinary materials. The design is about performance and aesthetics ae leveraging intelligence rather than over-spending. The project utilizes all non-toxic and recycled materials. For example, the floor covering is recycled rubber. The exterior is clad with aluminum and cement-based panels. Because of a lease expiration, the entire process (design to move-in) was completed in 31 months by using fast-track bidding and construction procedures. The final construction cost was $88.80 per gross square foot.