A few years ago, Sciemetric’s Kanata North facility was bursting at the seams.
Riding a wave of demand from manufacturers looking for deeper analytical insights into their assembly line operations, the software and instrumentation firm increased its headcount but quickly ran into a space crunch that forced the company to convert boardrooms into offices and hold client staff meetings with clients in nearby coffee shops.
While the short-term fix allowed Sciemetric to keep growing, the company realized it was an Sciemetric expands in Kanata North unsustainable solution and quickly began looking for alternatives. The tech firm – which has offices around the world, including in Michigan, the U.K., India and China – also wanted to give its Kanata hub a distinctive, modern look, said Derek Kuhn, Sciemetric’s senior vice-president.
He and his team turned to their landlord KRP Properties who came up with a solution. Sciemetric occupied nearly 17,000 square feet on the first floor of 359 Terry Fox Dr. in Kanata. By relocating existing tenants within the building, Sciemetric would expand and relocate to the opposite end of the building on the first floor – giving the tech firm an extra 10,000 square feet without the need to endure a disruptive fitup.
KRP also offered to do renovations of the entire first floor so that Sciemetric could have a vibrant, modern, clean space to work in.
But the move wasn’t just about adding more space. Kuhn wanted to seize the opportunity to facilitate more collaboration between teams working in product development, engineering and manufacturing, which had previously been separated across three floors in Sciemetric’s old space.
“When you’re making custom products, you need your entire team together,” says Kuhn. “I like being able to walk on the floor and speak with our engineers about their ideas. It helps with collaboration.”
While he initially explored other office locations in Ottawa’s west end and Bells Corners, Sciemetric’s employees wanted to stay in Kanata North to stay in close proximity with their local customers and be well-positioned to recruit top talent and staying with a landlord they had a respected relationship with.
Kuhn was “blown away” by the new open-concept design. The east side of the building features floor-to-ceiling glass windows overlooking a neighbouring pond and new, bright lunchroom to host company parties. In the large meeting room, built-in speakers installed in the ceiling and a large flatscreen help to facilitate video conferencing.
“This is a first-class boardroom,” says Kuhn. “When you’re recruiting, space is so important. It’s great to bring people here.”
