Congratulations to Jason!

Dvorak appointed CFO, COO at Shea Inc.
Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal - August 31, 2007
by Cati Vanden Breul
Staff Writer

Jason Dvorak joined Shea Inc., a Minneapolis-based marketing and design firm, in 2000 while he was still in college at the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management. Now, just seven years later, the firm named him chief financial officer and chief operating officer.

Prior to assuming his new role, Dvorak was Shea's finance and operations director.

"I was in the right place at the right time," he said. "I worked very hard getting to know the business and the people and understanding how we operate as a firm, but it was absolutely a surprise how quick I moved up."

He said the company, which at one time had 100 employees, but dropped to less than 30 after Sept. 11, 2001, is focusing on internal growth and training.

Shea added six employees this year and plans to add three or four a year over the next few years, Dvorak said, adding that the goal is not to get back to 100.

"We have a family office, we all know everyone's names and their wives' names," he said. "We don't have the desire to have a 100-person firm; it isn't really the culture we're looking for."

Shea specializes in architecture, interior design and marketing communications. Among the projects the company is working on is the new J.B. Hudson Jewelers space in the Young Quinlan Building on Nicollet Mall.

September Events

Take time to acknowledge these wonderful events:

9/3 Labor Day - Shea Closed

9/5 Fight Procrastination Day

9/7 Steve's Birthday

9/9 Grandparent's Day

9/12 Rosh Hashanah

9/13 Josh's Anniversary

9/15 Jim's Birthday

9/19 Talk Like A Pirate Day

9/20 Andy's Anniversary

9/21 Jami's Birthday

9/22 Elephant Appreciation Day

9/25 Heather's Birthday

Macy's turns to celebrities to bolster marketing

How many celebrities can you name in this article?

http://plainvanillashell.com/article.asp?ID=8412

Minneapolis Street Lighting Policy and Program

The Minneapolis Public Works Department is finalizing its Street Lighting Policy and Program which has been in the development process for several years. We will be having nine community open houses in September 2007 at various locations. These meetings will serve as opportunities to share information about the proposed Street Lighting Policy and Program, as well as gather community input.

Background

• The City of Minneapolis Street Lighting Policy and Program will support the City's efforts around livable communities and urban development.


• Appropriate lighting levels are a security and safety issue.


• A policy will help to ensure that all areas of Minneapolis receive consistent treatment, and will give clear guidance to elected officials, residents, developers, and the Department of Public Works on all aspects of street lighting system installation and maintenance.

The policy and program will address a number of issues including:

• Clarification of internal practices


• Equalization of independent initiatives


• Areas with limited lighting


• Improvement of lighting in pedestrian areas


• Safety concerns


• A simplified process for installation


• Technical efficiencies and sustainability


• Funding
  

The Street Lighting Policy objectives are:

• Maximizing the quality, sustainability, and visibility of the street lighting system


• Contributing to added comfort and safety for pedestrians, bicyclist, transit users, and motorist


• Creating a consistent and cohesive lighting system based in place-type characteristics throughout the City of Minneapolis


• Providing pole and fixture options that are aesthetically pleasing and high quality


• Providing clear guidance on expected installation methods, procedures and maintenance service levels


• Creating a system that is cost efficient, easy to operate, and maintainable


• Addressing costs to the City's capital, maintenance, and operations budgets

The following is a list of dates and locations for the open houses. Each open house is scheduled from 7-8:30 p.m. Please share the information regarding the meeting dates and locations with your neighborhood or business organizations.

* Thursday, Sept 6, 2007-City Hall Room 220, 350 Fifth St. S.
* Tuesday, Sept 11, 2007-Powderhorn Park, 3400 15th Ave. S.
* Wednesday, Sept 12, 2007-Harrison Park, 503 Irving Ave. N.
* Tuesday, Sept 18, 2007-Lynnhurst Park, 1345 Minnehaha Pkwy. W.
* Wednesday, Sept 19, 2007-Creekview Park, 5001 Humboldt Ave. N.
* Thursday, Sept 20, 2007-Waite Park, 1801 34th Ave. NE * Tuesday, Sept 25, 2007-Nokomis Park, 2401 Minnehaha Pkwy. E.
* Wednesday, Sept 26, 2007-Van Cleve Park, 901 15th Ave. SE * Thursday, Sept 27, 2007-Kenwood Park, 2101 Franklin Ave. W.

Spot Light on Form + Surfaces

Forms + Surfaces is an innovative company which provides products to the architecture and design community. To name just a few, F+S offers lighting, door & cabinetry pulls, signage, elevator systems, railings and site furniture. However, the company specializes in unique architectural surfaces including patterned glass and bonded or corrugated metal available in several materials, patterns and finishes. These materials are not only extremely versatile but aesthetically pleasing. In fact, the new Tumi store in the Galleria features Forms + Surfaces bonded aluminum in a dark patina which complements the luxury luggage beautifully. To view this company’s constantly evolving catalog check out their website at www.forms-surfaces.com.

Shea, Inc. named Design Giant by Interior Design magazine

Shea, Inc. named Design Giant by Interior Design magazine

August 15, 2007: MINNEAPOLIS

-- Interior Design magazine named Shea, Inc. as a Design Giant, marking the fourth consecutive year the marketing and design firm has claimed this honor. Now in its 75th year, Interior Design magazine's Design Giant survey is open to all firms across the nation that provide interior design services, and rankings are based upon a firm's annual interior design fee income. Interior Design magazine ranks the industry's top 200 firms in the nation every year. This year's survey captured fees from January to December of 2006, and Shea, Inc. came in at 176. Shea is a marketing and design firm integrating expertise in marketing, architecture, and interior design. Shea blends diverse perspectives, skills, cultures and knowledge into solid creative strategy for clients. Shea's client list includes Macy's, TCF National Bank, Morton's The Steakhouse, Wells Fargo and Midcontinent Communications.

RedBrick Pizza Named Among Top 10

RedBrick Pizza Named Among Top 10 of Restaurant Businesses' Future 50-High Growth, High Concept Fast Casual Chain Shows Strong Gains

August 8, 2007

PALMDALE, Calif., Aug 08, 2007 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Fast-growing franchise RedBrick Pizza has been ranked among the top ten of Restaurant Business Magazine's The Future 50. The list, compiled annually by the publication, ranks the fastest growing restaurants with sales between $25 and $50 million.

http://plainvanillashell.com/article.asp?ID=8341

The Crowd Farm: A Prize-Winning Plan to Harness Human Power

Two graduate students from MIT’s Department of Architecture have won an international competition for a proposal to harness human power as a source of sustainable energy.

http://sap.mit.edu/resources/portfolio/crowd_farm/

City Pages Reviews Brasa

There's a biker coffee shop around the corner from my house, and in the 50 million times I've grabbed an iced coffee at the place, I've never heard anyone talking restaurants—until this week. The crowd was the typical crowd, tattooed beauties in custom Ducati jackets, grizzled vets with vintage Sturgis patches, and pale dudes in thick leathers who have that certain something about the eyes that hints that if you knew them better, they would probably fix your computer and then tell you a little more about Farscape than you'd rather know. The topic, however, was not just restaurants, but the very restaurant I had been to the night before: Brasa, which just opened in Northeast.

http://www.citypages.com/databank/28/1392/article15733.asp

Star Tribune Reviews Fogo

The brazilian restaurant, Fogo de Chao, 645 Hennepin Av. is a meat eaters dream. The room is huge and always packed. The service is hyper-friendly and it feels like there is a 1:1 ratio of customers to servers. Leandro DaSilva, Brazilian Gaucho, heads past the huge salad bar.


Got meat? All you have to do is ask for it at Fogo de Chao.
By Rick Nelson, Star Tribune
Dining at Fogo de Chao, the new, prom-queen-popular Brazilian steakhouse chain in downtown Minneapolis, makes me feel like an ugly American.
Read full review:
http://www.startribune.com/456/story/1350880.html

How to make CFLs Last Longer

I've begun noticing that some compact fluorescent lamps are not lasting as long as advertised, making them a less economical choice than they should be. What's up with that?

"Indeed, [the reader] is correct that switching CFLs on and off does shorten lamp life, but his conclusion that they need a three- to five-hour on-cycle to maintain a reasonably long life does not appear to be correct. Robert Clear, a staff scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, told EBN that it has been difficult to get data on this question, but a 1998 study of electronically ballasted CFLs found a 20% reduction in lamp life if the on-time was reduced to one hour. With significantly shorter on-times, the lamp life is dramatically reduced: with 15-minute on-time cycling, lamp life dropped 70% and with five-minute on-time lamp life dropped 85% (which brings the lamp life close to that of incandescent light bulbs). "This suggests that you should consider replacing incandescents with CFLs in any application where the lamp is on an average of [at least] about 10 minutes per start," said Clear. He added that "every switch cycle is equivalent to about 6 minutes of lamp life. This means that you should turn a CFL off if you think it won't be turned on again for another five minutes or so." This approach should also maximize electricity and cost savings."

Creative Wednesdays Happy Hour

Summer Socials at Bellanotte!

Join us for Happy Hour every Wednesday for “Creative Wednesdays!”
Absolut Vodka is a proud sponsor of Creative Wednesdays.

We invite all those in the advertising and design field to relax and enjoy happy hour.
~ Complimentary Appetizers from 4:30-6:30pm and $2.50 Drinks* ~
*House Red & White Wine, Finlandia Vodka, Cruzan Rum, Seagram’s Gin,
Miller Lite, MGD, Leinie Honey and Summit Beer

Please email Kelly at kvigesaa@bellanottempls.com with any questions.


WEDNESDAYS ONLY!
Enjoy $2.50 Absolut Vodka drink specials during Happy Hour

If your office would like to host a Wednesday Happy Hour at no additional cost, please contact Samantha at samantha@bellanottempls.com

Phone 612.339.7200 / Fax 612.333.2805

Amazing photos of I35W Disaster

Andy sent me this link from a foreign website that shows amazing photos of the bridge collapse. Warning: some may be hard to look at.

http://drugoi.livejournal.com/2280005.html

Volume Control

Although most retailers design their visual space in a way that appeals to consumers, few focus enough on finding the right sounds, says retail psychologist Tim Denison of the British Retail Think Tank. Knowing basic retail soundtrack rules, such as "slow is good," helps former drummer Julian Treasure, the head of British consultant group Sound Agency, develop a total sensory experience that attracts shoppers and increases sales
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1649304,00.html

Krystal's new product Info!

Firefarm
http://www.firefarm.com/

Fire Farm was started in 1991 by Adam Jackson Pollock and Benjamin Goldstone. They collaborate with designers, artists, interns and its employees to nurture and develop new lighting solutions. Together they explore new materials and ideas with which to sculpt light. Fire Farm brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to all its projects.

Ultraglas

http://www.ultraglas.com/

Typical UltraGlas applications include entry and wall systems, screens and dividers, shower and bath enclosures, vertical and horizontal surfacing, counter tops, doors, door and cabinet inserts, tile, flooring, signage, stair treads and balusters, lighting, water features, accessories, art sculpture, theme walls, murals, furniture and more.

Axor

http://www.axor-design.com/english/index.php

All of the Axor brand collections have set new standards in terms of individuality, design culture and product range. What counts for Axor today is no longer just the small area of wash basin, bathtub or wall surfaces, but rather the complete room. Through the intense dialogue with designers and architects, Axor is able to provide concepts for the bathroom of the future, which involve the arrangement of the whole room - and even its transition into the rest of the living area.

A Dirty Little Secret

Remember when back-to-school ads consisted of oversized rulers and wormy apples? Those were the days. It’s 2007, and mean spirited is one way to describe a new hour-long, reality-based advertorial planned by megastore OfficeMax due to air on Aug. 5. Here’s the back story; New Jersey’s New Milford High School was subject to severe damage due to a flood back in April. The financially strapped school system was threatened to have to cut back on extracurricular activities in order to repair their bricks and mortar. In short, lose the arts program (which are always expendable). Not to fret, here was the back-door deal: very crafty OfficeMax secretly came to the rescue.

In keeping with popular shows like Ashton Kutcher’s MTV show “Punk’d” and Shannon Dougherty’s “Scared To Death” on the WB, 55 innocent kids from the New Milford High School were tricked into being sent to a grueling week-long music rehabilitation camp, under the bogus premise that they need to shape up, as their school has been deemed musically deficient, and is in jeopardy of losing its state funding. That’s not funny. The kids are berated, made fun of, put through the paces by adults all in on the gag. In the end, all is revealed, and shamefully one of my favorite bands All American Rejects makes a surprise visit to plug their album when the kids find out they have been had. OfficeMax purchased one hour of prime time space to air their dirty deed. It looks like a show; it’s really a commercial. In recompense for all their troubles and time, OfficeMax showers the kids with backpacks filled with MP3 players, digital cameras and school supplies. Teachers received laptop computers, and the quid pro quo was that the New Milford High School was rewarded with a $60,000 OfficeMax gift card. Money does not buy happiness. Money is not an equalizer. OfficeMax will further benefit by continuing to push the show called "Schooled" through an exclusive DVD of the special as a free gift with a $50 purchase of school supplies in August. Google will post behind-the-scenes video and deleted footage from the program so everyone can be further humiliated.

I’ll buy my lined paper and file folders at Staples for the time being. Shame on OfficeMax, shame on the adults, parents and school board members privy to placing their children in harms way all for a few laughs and $60,000. That’s about a mere $1,090 per kid.
--Ron Knoth, Guest Blogger

CONGRATULATIONS JOSH!!!

Congrats to Josh Collins
He has taken and passed his LEED certification exam this week.


As we all know, LEED is becoming more and more important in our industry, and Josh's efforts really give Shea an advantage to Clients.


Congrats to Josh and thanks for your hard work.

You can make furniture out of cardboard!

foldschool is a collection of free cardboard furniture for kids, handmade by you. The downloadable patterns can be printed out with any printer. Follow the instructions and assemble a stable piece of furniture.

http://foldschool.com/