BOSTON: Old Manufacturer's New Office
Next time you go to Disney Shanghai, check out the shower faucets. (You've got the waterproof cameras, might as well use them.) They’re custom designed and produced in Braintree, Mass. by 75-year-old Symmons Industries, which is putting the final touches on its relo and interiors redesign launched last May, says CEO Tim O’Keeffe. The new open layout will enhance collaboration to bring more innovation to its market, he says. Symmons sells brass fixtures and accessories for the bathroom; its hospitality client roster includes Disney, the Four Seasons, Wynn, Marriott, and Ritz-Carlton.
While Symmons' 250 employees have only been in the new space for a few weeks, Tim says they love it. The office environment—created by Visnick Caulfield and Campanelli Construction—is defined by soft couches, high-top tables, glass-walled offices, and plenty of natural light. After working with Disney on hotels in Florida, California, and Hawaii, Symmons is now outfitting two hotels at Disney Shanghai. Its fixtures are also in the Four Seasons in Guangzhou, the Wynn Macaw, and in the US, NYC's Time Warner Mandarin and Boston’s Mandarin Oriental.
