Sweeny &Co Architects
November 2017
Sweeny &Co Architects
Founded in early 1988 our history involves visionary clients and a talented team that have made the firm into one of the most respected and innovative Architectural, Urban Design, Development, and Interior Design practices in Canada. Today, we aim to collaborate with our clients, developing and delivering the most sought after, sustainable, flexible, humane and comfortable buildings and interiors. Our work is rooted in the urban agenda; it is based on an understanding of the economics and viability of development and the wider policy context that promotes development within cities at higher densities and a mix of uses.
A positive environmental impact.
With every client and assignment lies a new opportunity to have a positive impact on the environment. We believe that many of the positive environmental impacts are connected with designing for human comfort, health and wellness. For example, providing air in buildings can and has been done in costly, inefficient and even unhealthy ways. By working together with nature, we use building technologies like raised floors that supply superior air to the interior, in the best way that benefits the health of occupants and at a lower cost and effort of maintenance to the building operator. Another example is our mandate to build spaces that are flexible and that accommodate changes. Buildings are often thought of as rigid and permanent things yet life, business and society changes every day. We advocate for the design of spaces that are versatile, flexible and easy to change over time with minimal effort and waste. Companies see the huge cost savings and the reduced waste benefits the environment in a significant way. A last example is our commitment to design the essential that has become our hallmark. We retain and reuse what exists – whenever we can. We prefer the “exposed” look that adds a sense of raw beauty in its unique irregularities and requires minimal maintenance in the long run. We connect, simplify and integrate building systems and structures to achieve high performing, streamlined and multi-tasking elements. In these ways, and many more, we help companies save money and minimize their environmental impact at the same time.
Doing the right thing for the environment and the future of our children.
Our work is driven by the clients, tenants and occupants we serve. An increasing amount of successful companies are looking to provide a workplace advantage for their employees. Our way of design that prioritizes human health and comfort naturally aligns with positive environmental change, and has gained immense traction with top tenants looking to augment their brand internally and externally. The benefits of a better work environment far outweigh the costs, as the productivity boost of employees and the resulting growth in profitability is accounted for. This, in turn, is a huge incentive for developers and landlords to build and operate smarter: to attract tenants and to ultimately improve their own bottom-line. Our company benefits from the immensely positive message that our work, commissioned by clients, says about us: that buildings can be high performing, modern, healthy and sustainable – and it doesn’t have to cost more. Once we help businesses see that design can affect their bottom-line – for better or worse – we can have a very different conversation about introducing positive environmental changes through our design work. It’s no longer a game of reducing the up-front effort, or aiming for only a minimum requirement. We discuss smart, practical and forward-looking ideas that create a win-win-win for us, our clients, and the environment.