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The Value of Experiential Design: "That's PR You Can't Buy"

Wed, 09 May 2012 11:08:07 GMT

Around the world, major corporations are not only creating free experiential events such as the live Angry Birds event in Barcelona, they are also creating exciting destinations where customers will actually PAY to experience their brands.

Volkswagen AG believed in this philosophy and hired JRA and a number of other architects and designers to create their own branded destination. Spread over 40 acres across from the company’s manufacturing plant in Wolfsburg, Germany, the resultant Autostadt theme park features a unique way for customers to pick up their purchased vehicles, along with several history museums, an interactive science center, a variety of restaurants and retail and a Ritz-Carlton hotel – all set within a beautifully landscaped park featuring stunning architecture.

The results of Volkswagen’s $500 million dollar investment? Attracting over 2 million people per year, Autostadt has turned the small city of Wolfsburg into one of Germany’s top destinations and has spurred the development of a number of other attractions. Perhaps even more indicative of the success of the project is how the local community has embraced the development – treating it like a town square that hosts a number of events (such as this temporary toboggan run), festivals and even a number of weddings each year. That's PR that you can’t buy.

Most importantly, VW believes that Autostadt has helped them create customers for life. Even if this is only a fraction of the 2 million guests per year, think of the financial value of that proposition.

Examples such as Volkswagen’s Autostadt illustrate the marketing value that experientially designed venues provide corporations.

But forward thinking firms also use experiential design to attract the best and brightest employees, a subject we’ll explore in next week’s blog.

The Value of Experiential Design: Differentiation and Cutting Through the Clutter

Thu, 03 May 2012 11:40:19 GMT

As we discussed in our previous posts, the value of experiential design can be purely economic, or it can also provide marketing, social, cultural or educational value. Let’s take a look at a few examples at how experiential design can aid in product differentiation and in cutting through the clutter of marketing messages.

Marketing Value: Differentiating from Competitors

Sometimes experiential design is used to simply differentiate an offering from the competitive landscape.

For those of you who might have been to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, you know that there seems to be a massive, high-end mall on each street corner. All of them are exquisitely designed with the best materials and feature all of the top luxury brands, from Gucci to Prada, Louis Vuitton and on and on.

The problem is, after a while, they all look the same, so what might make a millionaire Emirati choose one mall over the next?

The Mall of the Emirates chose experiential design as a way to differentiate itself from the competition. With the opening of Ski Dubai, a 225,000-square-foot indoor ski resort in November of 2005, not only could shoppers pick up the latest handbag, but they could also go for quick run on one of the resort’s five slopes, including the world’s first indoor black diamond. There’s also snowboarding, a toboggan run, a snowball shooting gallery and a place to make snowmen. And since Dubai is located in the desert, all winter clothing, ski and snowboard equipment is available to rent.

If you don’t want to venture in the cold, you can sit and relax in the adjacent lodge and sip a hot cocoa. However, if you want one of the prime window seats overlooking the resort, it’ll cost you, as there is a minimum purchase requirement.

Because of the popularity of Ski Dubai, while the Mall of the Emirates is pretty similar to all of the other malls in Dubai and features all of the same retail stores, it has now become one of Dubai’s premiere shopping destinations.

Marketing Value: Cutting Through the Clutter

It is estimated that consumers are bombarded by over 5,000 marketing messages everyday – from television ads, ads on the radio, billboards, internet pop-ups, mailers and so on. To say it is a crowded and cluttered environment is an understatement.

More and more corporations have found that experiential design allows them to cut through that clutter and customers in a memorable way.

How many of you have played Angry Birds?

For those of you who haven’t, it’s an extremely popular video game in which you launch a variety of birds from a slingshot and try to knock down evil pigs hiding within various structures. It’s become a worldwide phenomenon, as it’s so addictive, and you can’t get the theme song out of your head.

Well T-Mobile, had kind of a similar idea last year in Barcelona, where they created an innovative event to promote their various smart phones. Have a look.

Innovative. Surprising. Interactive. Story-based. Unique environment. Multi-sensory. All of the components of experiential design.

They not only provided passersby with a great time, but they also provided T-Mobile with off-the-charts PR value around Europe and throughout the world through YouTube (with over 12 million views).

We hope you've enjoyed this look at how experiential design can help you set your product above the rest and cut through the jungle of marketing messages. Next week, we'll discuss how one of the world's leading auto producers used experiential design to position itself not just as a car maker, but as a company that has enjoyed a fascinating history and a profound impact on world culture.

The Value of Experiential Design: Dollars and Sense

Thu, 26 Apr 2012 10:31:33 GMT

Again we bring you VP of Marketing and Business Development, Shawn McCoy who's going to teach us about the dollars and cents (or sense) of experiential design through a visit to a very special hotel.

Does experiential design offer any real value? As we’ll see over the next few blog entries, the answer is a definitive yes. Experiential design offers a great deal of value to both guests and the providers, from a wide variety of standpoints – including economic, marketing, educational, training, recruitment, even social.

Let’s begin with economics, where the formula is pretty simple: Experiential design helps to not only differentiate a venue from its competition and create consumer preference, but also encourages repeat visitation. This increase in initial and repeat demand provides economic value.

Let’s look at a quick personal example. Over the years, our studio has had number of client meetings and conferences in London. And every time we go to London, I stay at the same hotel – The Athenaeum in Mayfair.

One of the main reasons that I think I continue to select this hotel, besides it being a nice hotel, is the fact that every time I go there (whether it’s been two weeks or two years since my last stay) as soon as I get out of my cab and arrive at the hotel, I’m greeted by the doorman who always says “Welcome home, Mr. McCoy, glad to have you back.”

While I know that he probably doesn’t really remember me (as the cynic in me thinks that they probably cross check reservation arrivals with physical descriptions), it’s a nice gesture and it is one small reason that makes me consistently choose this hotel over equally nice, and often less expensive, hotels.

That gesture alone has generated a bit of economic value to the hotel, as it helped to create my preference for the hotel, which has resulted in repeat bookings. When you think about the cumulative value brought to the hotel from other guests who also repeatedly choose the hotel based in part by this gesture, the economic impact of experiential design really starts to become clear.

The hotel certainly understands that an experiential design philosophy can help to differentiate itself from the competition. Recently, the Athenaeum introduced a new experiential service called Granny Nannies, where the hotel provides professional nanny services for guests on evenings and weekends, so that parents can enjoy a romantic night out on the town.

After the hotel advertised for the position, a panel including a six year-old and a twelve year-old interviewed a variety of potential nannies, asking them a variety of questions, such as “how would you persuade me to go to bed” to “how fast can you run?”

The three winning nannies – Angela, Andrea and Deborah – are pictured here with their selection panel (and our favorite doorman Bill).

Creative initiatives such as these are what make The Athenaeum so special and that make me come back time after time.

Next week, Shawn tackles the value of experiential design as it relates to marketing, both in creating differentiation for your product/service and cutting through the clutter. Thanks for reading!

The Value of Experiential Design: The Experience of Innovation

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 17:28:12 GMT

Welcome to Part 4 of The Value of Experiential Design, brought to you by JRA's VP of Marketing and Business Development, Shawn McCoy.

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Experiential design is also about innovation, and not being afraid to push the envelope about what can be done. A good example of experiential design as it relates to innovation is the Sky Walk at the Grand Canyon – which allows you to walk over the canyon on a glass bridge.

Another example is the temporary slide at the Tate Modern in London, which provides guests with an artistic, experiential option to travel from the top floor galleries down to the lower level. This functional sculpture/ride was not well received by museum purists who found it trivialized the visitors’ experience, but it was warmly embraced by a majority of guests and got the museum a ton of free PR.

Experiential design can be applied to innovation on the most mundane of operational details, such as delivering food to tables.

At Foodloop, a restaurant found within Europe’s Europa Park, guest sit down at various tables and order their drinks or food from the touchscreen, then watch the item as it’s delivered to them via a Rube Goldburg-esque contraption.

Foodloop, and the other examples above, are simple, innovative, operationally efficient and effective, and a great experience for guests.

So, we’ve seen how experiential design is about innovation; it’s about paying attention to the details along each step of a guests’ journey, treating them as if they are the audience and our experience is theater. But besides providing interesting guests with great memories or cocktail stories, does experiential design offer any real value? If so, how? We’ll answer that question in next week’s post.

Bjorn in the USA: A Citizenship Celebration for a JRA Team Member

Mon, 16 Apr 2012 15:34:39 GMT

Last Friday, Senior Project Designer Bjorn Kemper said the Pledge of Allegiance and was sworn in as a United States citizen. JRA observed the momentous occasion at this morning's staff meeting. Before the presents were given and the cake cut, however, Chief Operating Officer, Dan Schultz, couldn't help but give Bjorn one last citizenship test with the following two crucial questions:

1) Who was the voice of Darth Vader in the American version of Star Wars? (A: James Earl Jones)

2) Who was the original CEO of Jack Rouse Associates? (A: This is not a trick question)

Luckily, Björn passed with flying colors. He was then presented with a copy of Jon Stewart's America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction, signed by the entire staff, as well as a brilliant poster created by fellow Senior Project Designer and graphics guru, Scot Ross. The festivities concluded with a mammoth American flag cake (what better way to celebrate America than with a junk food breakfast?).

Björn studied Architecture at the Technical University of Darmstadt, Germany. He freelanced for German architects and various themed entertainment clients in Europe before coming to the US and joining JRA in 1999. His recent projects include attraction and exhibit design for the World of Coca-Cola in Atlanta and for Ferrari World Abu Dhabi. Björn also played a leading role in the planning, design and art direction of Science Centre Singapore’s atrium experience and well as for attractions within both HarborLand – a 40-acre theme park in Ningbo, China – and Volkswagen’s Autostadt in Wolfsburg, Germany. Additionally, Björn played a key role in JRA’s work on the ZDF Television Studios’ “Medienpark” attraction in Mainz, Germany. Other recent clients include Cirque du Soleil, The Field Museum, National Geographic and the Contemporary Arts Center in Cincinnati.

Björn's process to Americanization was a long and complicated one, as he sought to retain his citizenship to his native Germany. Luckily, the process was successful, and Björn is now a dual citizen of both countries. Here's what Björn had to say about the celebration this morning:

Just want to say thank you all so much! This was such an unexpected surprise!

The extremely difficult questions, far worse than one "What ocean is on the East Coast of the United States?" - which took me 6 months to learn!
The poster with Umlaut-stars!
The American flag-sized cake!
The awesome book with the naked Supreme Court!
All proof that this is truly "the land of infinite possibilities" - or "das Land der unbegrenzten Möglichkeiten" as we say in Germany.

Thanks again,
Bjorn ( formerly known as Björn )

Please join us in congratulating Bjorn. We could not ask for a better member of our team and our country!

The Value of Experiential Design: Creating Experiences for Everyday Life

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 17:21:14 GMT

For Part 3 of The Value of Experiential Design, Shawn takes us out of the theme park and into - a car wash?

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Now obviously Disney and Universal are masters of experiential design, and they have resources and budgets to provide the types of world-class experiences that have come to define their various parks.

But experiential design isn’t just about multi-billion dollar theme parks and fantasy. Great experiential design is also about the little things, and you can find it all around on day-to-day basis.

For example, right near my house there is a branch of a carwash called Mike’s Carwash Express, with only about 34 locations in Indiana and Ohio. They are consistently ranked in the top 1% of the over 30,000 car wash outlets in the United States. They accomplish this by following experiential design principles.

One of the first things you notice as you drive into a Mike’s is that all of their associates are sharply dressed, always wearing a tie. They greet you in a genuinely friendly manner, walking you through the various wash options via their easy-to-read graphics. They then either take your cash payment or process your credit card quickly via the electronic processing units worn by each associate. Customer service is key to Mike’s success, and the company’s website states that they only hire about one out of every 50 resumes received.

I went to the wash earlier this week as a sort of field trip. I have a three-year old son and a five-year-old daughter, who used to be scared of carwashes, as are a lot of younger children. Anticipating this, Mike’s features a variety of stuffed animals along the route to calm the kids and give them a point of focus.

As you enter the wash, you see those characters again, who not only provide entertainment for your young passengers, but also help to market various promotions.

Now if you’re like me, if you spring an extra couple of bucks for the wheel wash, you want to make sure you got the service. Mike’s thought of this as well, and a sign lights up to show you what service you received.

Finally, where this particular car wash is located, if you turn left you will come to stop sign and may have to wait several minutes to enter or cross the busy intersection. But if you turn right, you’ll drive to stop light which provides easy access to either direction, which a sign conveniently informs you.

I realize that all of these design details are very small, but that’s the point. Most carwashes don’t think about each step of your journey like’s Mike’s does – from operational signage, to uniforms, to payment processing, to graphic design, to helping to alleviate the fears of your younger passengers. Every aspect of your experience has been scripted. It’s this attention to detail that makes the difference. And it’s why even though this other car wash is much less expensive and right next to my home, I travel a little bit further and spend a little bit more to go to Mike’s.

Another quick example, for those of you who travel as much as I do, can you think of what small but very impactful experience that Doubletree Hotels provide at check in?

That’s right. A warm chocolate chip cookie. And I tell you, after you’ve been traveling for several hours by plane, train or car, and may already be missing home, that little gesture goes a long way to making you feel just a little more welcome and comfortable. So experiential design is about the little things.

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Next week, Shawn continues by teaching us how experiential design and innovation go hand-in-hand.

The Value of Experiential Design: Designing the Non-Muggle World

Thu, 05 Apr 2012 14:28:28 GMT

To continue our post from yesterday, VP of Marketing and Business Development, Shawn McCoy, discusses how a boy wizard leapt from the movie screen and into an Island of Adventure.

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Disney’s biggest competitor in the theme park industry is Universal Studios, whose Wizarding World of Harry Potter(TM) has created a whirlwind of PR, attendance and revenue for the studios’ Islands of Adventure park in Orlando.

Since opening in June of 2010, it is estimated that the addition of the 20-acre theme area to the existing theme park has been responsible for generating an additional 10 million visitors to the park and has increased revenue by 41%.

The success of this new themed area can certainly be attributed to the enormous popularity of the characters and stories made famous by the series of books and films. However, it is the way that these elements were translated into magical environments, interactions and attractions that provides a textbook example of experiential design.

Just like Disney, every aspect of your experiential journey is planned to the last detail.

The theming of each environment was meticulously designed to match the descriptions from the book.

For example, the designers studied how snow might actually melt on the various buildings of the village of Hogsmeade in order to get every detail as accurate as possible. It looks even more magical at night.

The iconic Hogwarts castle is designed at a forced perspective in order to make it appear much larger than it actually is.

For those who know every detail of the books, they are rewarded with equally detailed interiors.

All of the attractions are based upon specific descriptions or stories from the books, as are the live shows.

Here, more than perhaps any other themed zone within a theme park, the retail outlets and restaurants are just as much of the experience as the rides themselves.

The sizes were kept to stay true to their descriptions in the book, even if they created operational problems, such as overcrowding on peak days.

The food offered is traditional English, whether it’s a shepherd’s pie or traditional fish and chips, with almost no reference to contemporary or Muggle-branded (non-witch) food.

Every worker is dressed according to the book, and no one breaks character, beginning with the conductor of the Hogwarts Express who welcomes you just past the entry gate, or the server who sells you Butterbeer. So not to break your immersion into the story, one of the more subtle techniques, that guests probably don’t consciously notice, is that there are no advertisements or items for sale of anything that wouldn’t be found in the magical world. So, you won’t see a Pepsi sign or be able to buy a SpongeBob doll or Universal Studios sweatshirt at any of the shops.

Maniacal focus on the guest experience, creating layers of memorable touchpoints with the brand, basing every part of your experience on a consistent storyline, connecting to a variety of audiences on an emotional level - that is experiential design.

But experiential design isn’t just about multi-billion dollar theme parks and fantasy. Great experiential design is also about the little things, and you can find it all around on day-to-day basis. We’ll talk about “everyday experiential design” next week. Thanks for reading.

The Value of Experiential Design: Creating Experiences for the Leisure Industry

Wed, 04 Apr 2012 11:46:50 GMT

Once again, we throw it back to Shawn McCoy to explain the value of experiential design. While last week we covered experiential products, now it's time to delve into the actual experiences themselves, particularly as they relate to our industry.

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So now that we have an understanding of experiential design in general, how does this relate to the leisure industry?

For that we need a more refined definition, and I would offer the following:

Experiential Design: Leisure Industry

The creation of a holistic experience that connects to audiences on an emotional level through the use of story, unique architecture, immersive environments, interactivity, media and guest-focused operations.

Sometimes experiential design is used interchangeably with theming, but it is very different. While experiential design includes theming, it goes much deeper. Theming is a façade in a variety of ways, only focusing on the aesthetic aspect of a guest experience. Themed experiences that do not focus on the other aspects of experiential design often feel shallow and contrived. Experiences that incorporate all of the parameters are deeper and thus more memorable.

A good example of this can be seen when you compare amusement park rides with rides at Disney.

An amusement park is exactly what its name implies, a park featuring a series of amusements, typically comprised of a variety of rides, some of which may or may not be themed. There is no overall story, unique architecture or theming that holds all of the elements together. There also typically is no real focus on providing each individual or group with a memorable experience or any type of guest-focused service. These types of facilities offer a nice day out, but they really don’t connect with their guests on an emotional level.

By infusing a quality theme that is part of a greater story and context, Disney can take similar types of rides and make them experiential.

Disney provides another way to view experiential design, where the guest’s experience is a journey, beginning well before you actually set foot in one of their theme parks. There’s the anticipation, followed by the arrival, the core experience itself, the departure and the savoring of the experience.

Those of you who have visited a Disney park have seen this philosophy firsthand. Disney’s overall business philosophy is built upon a maniacal focus on giving each guest a memorable and repeatable experience.

As you drive on to the property, a large welcome sign triggers your anticipation for the experience to come. If you stay at a Disney hotel, your arrival is characterized by a friendly and efficient check-in process. Your arrival at the park is sensory celebration of sights, sounds and wonderful characters there to greet you.

You are also surrounded by variety of Disney staff, or cast members, who are genuinely friendly, knowledgeable and helpful.

Of course the attractions are experiential case studies themselves, be they story-driven rides, shows, parades, interactive experiences or character breakfasts, combining unique environments with scripts to engage guests on a personal level.

At the end of the night, the departure experience is highlighted by an extravagant fireworks show, set to an emotional musical score, providing a wonderful conclusion for your day at the park.

Tomorrow we’ll offer another example of an immersive theme park experience for all you Muggles out there…

Thanks for reading!

Blog N' Learn: The Experientially Designed Product

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 16:05:33 GMT

Welcome back to our Blog N' Learn: The Value of Experiential Design, brought to you by Vice President of Marketing and Business Development, Shawn McCoy. Yesterday Shawn talked to us about what experiential design means. Today he'll illustrate this definition by comparing two iconic products - one that has become integral to our everyday life, and one that started strong but has since devolved into obsolescence.

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Walkman Vs. iPod

In 1979, electronics giant Sony introduced a personal, portable music product called the Walkman. In essence, a small cassette tape player and/or radio receiver, variations of this product dominated the market for over twenty years. Portable MP3 players were eventually introduced by a variety of companies and met with marginal success. That all changed in October of 2001 with the introduction of an amazing new product - the iPod.

The iPod is an example of true experiential design. First Apple researched the market and recognized that, while there were already MP3 players on the market, they were rather clunky, hard to navigate, and were complicated devices for an individual to manage their music collection on.

At the same time, Apple realized that there wasn’t a simple, universally accepted software through which users could not only listen to and organize their music, but could also serve as a way to purchase new music. The initial focus was on the needs of the consumer, not the hardware or software that Apple wanted to push.

The solution was a breakthrough in hardware – the iPod, and software – iTunes.

In retrospect, experiential design has been the key to Apple’s success. Throughout the development of the iPod, Apple looked at every aspect of their target market, including: their needs (a small, simple-to-use device); their desires (cutting edge technology wrapped in a cool looking design with an intuitive, easy-to-use interface), beliefs (that Apple is a renegade company catering to individuality, creativity and expression), knowledge and skills (computer literacy), experience (familiarity with MP3 players and other Apple products) and perceptions (to be associated with the product also expresses ones own individuality and creativity).

They then marketed this breakthrough product with a campaign that celebrated individuality and resonated with consumers on an emotional level, where it’s now part of our cultural landscape.

This experientially designed product has not only resulted in over 300 million units sold and a 70% market share, but it has turned a computer company into one of the world’s largest suppliers of musical content, and it has created an entire culture around the iPod. So now that we have an understanding of experiential design in general, how does this relate to the leisure industry?

We'll answer that question next week. Thanks for reading!

Blog N' Learn: The Value of Experiential Design

Wed, 28 Mar 2012 15:14:54 GMT

For the next few weeks, we'll be turning over JRA+blog to our Vice President of Marketing and Business Development (and frequent guest blogger), Shawn McCoy, who'll be teaching us about what exactly experiential design means and how it generates value.

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Several years ago, the marketing department at JRA updated our logo to include the tag line “experiential design + realization.” This change was due to our belief that our core business had shifted from simple attraction design or exhibit design to something deeper and more encompassing. At that time, the phrase “experiential design” was relatively new (and it still is today). So new, in fact, that a lot of people, even those of us in the experiential design business, have a hard time defining what the term actually means. With that in mind, this article not only provides some background about experiential design, along with a variety of definitions, but also highlights the ways in which experiential design provides value, from a variety of perspectives.

What is Experiential Design?
To best understand what experiential design is and its value, we must first understand the concept of “The Experience Economy,” a term and concept made popular by Joseph Pine and Jim Gilmore in first their article and then their book of the same name written in 1998 and ‘99, respectively.

In The Experience Economy, Pine and Gilmore offered a simple explanation for what they call the experience business:

If you charge for undifferentiated stuff, then you are in the commodity business.
If you charge for distinctive tangible things, then you are in the goods business.
If you charge for the activities you perform, then you are in the service business.
If you charge for the feelings customers have because of engaging you, then you are in the experience business.

Commodity (Cake Mix)

Service (Cake Decoration)

Experience (Themed Birthday Party)

Pine and Gilmore provide a great example of this using a birthday cake. At one time, if it was your birthday, your mom would get all of the ingredients or commodities together and make you a birthday cake from scratch. Then cake mixes, or goods, came out, making it a bit easier to make a cake. Then it became more popular just to outsource the cake making to your local grocery or bakery – who are providing a service. And finally, instead of just outsourcing the cake, you can just outsource the whole birthday party experience to an experiential provider.

So, as Jim Gilmore states, you can track the history of economic progress through the evolution of the birthday cake: from the agrarian economy cakes were made from scratch; through the industrial economy when cake mixes were purchased as goods, in the service economy where you paid someone to make your cake, and finally to the experience economy where you outsource the entire birthday experience.

I would say that most of you reading this post are in the experience business in some way or another. And those of us who help create these “feelings that customers have” –– or these experiences –– are sometimes called experiential designers.

Experiential design can take place in the development of both products and places. As “experiential design” is a relatively new term, there really isn’t one universally accepted definition. In general terms it has been described as the “practice of designing products, processes, services, events and environments based on the consideration of an individual’s or group’s needs, desires, beliefs, knowledge, skills, experiences and perceptions.”

In essence, experiential design is the act of thinking about every touch point that an individual or group has with a product, service or environment and making that touch point resonate in a memorable way.

To better understand the definition, tomorrow we’ll take a look at an example of an experientially designed product.

The Mind Museum Opening, Part 3: The Technology of Play

Wed, 21 Mar 2012 09:32:14 GMT

Welcome to the third and final segment of our tour of The Mind Museum in Taguig, Philippines. The museum’s first four galleries proclaimed the wonders of Nature. Our last indoor gallery heralds the innovations of humankind.

The Story of Technology is the largest of The Mind Museum’s galleries, encompassing the entire upper floor and overlooking the other four gallery spaces. It is divided into five major themes, each occupying a node: How We Live, Who We Are, How We Know, How Things Work, and Here to There. The Who We Are Node explores the tools we use to create, modify or spread human language, as well as other expressions such as art, literature and fashion. How We Are examines precision and ingenuity, featuring tools such as telescopes and microscopes that challenge us to discover the illusive, invisible and immeasurable.

In the How Things Work node, guests explore the mechanics that changed the world. Whether for manufacturing, building public infrastructures, or processing food or oil to sustain millions of lives, the tools in this gallery have altered human society. From the machines that build, to those that transport, visitors learn about mobility and speed in the Here to There node, which features vessels that carry humans and the things we humans like to carry with us. Velocity and motion give way to sustainability and wellbeing in the How We Live node, which spotlights the tools we use to live, work, play or heal and how they impact our health and the health of our planet.

The crown jewel of this gallery is The Human Face of Technology. Comprised of a 360-degree screen featuring uploaded videos of people saying what there favorite technology is and why, this exhibit can be seen by visitors from almost every angle throughout the entire museum. Not only does the Human Face of Technology provide a beautiful centerpiece for this dynamic space, it offers a personal angle to the technology story, one that extends far beyond the tools, gadgets and machines we use everyday.

Our final area juxtaposes this technology story by exposing the guests to the elements of nature. Science-in-the-Park, an outdoor exhibit area, offers a variety of entertaining science experiences entitled “Nature’s Artful Play.” The 800-square-meter park features four play pockets: Water, Math, Music and Living. The Math Pocket offers exhibits such as a fulcrum and a curved climbing wall, which challenge both the mind and senses in a fun and whimsical way. Visitors of all size and ages can play indigenous drums, a large flute, or a singing forest of wind chimes in the Music Pocket. “Wild” is the word in the Living Pocket, with creatures such as cobras, eagles and dragonflies allowing guests to “get into their heads” and plants demonstrating their capacities to filter water. Finally, guests can unleash the power of water by turning an Archimedes screw, spinning a water wheel or chasing bubbles in the Water Pocket.

The Bonifacio Art Foundation Inc. designed The Mind Museum experience to extend far beyond the guest’s actual physical visit. Through virtual exhibits such as “Light the Northern Hemisphere,” “Catch a Comet,” or “Explore Nature’s Basic Ingredients,” visitors continue their learning and are inspired to return to the museum.

“It was an honor and a pleasure to work with The Mind Museum, and it is a thrill to see it open,” said Matthew Wheeler, JRA Senior Project Director. “We greatly enjoyed collaborating with the BAFI team and have always appreciated their passion for this project and science education in general.”

Manny Bias II, Managing Director of The Mind Museum and BAFI, also enjoyed the spirit of teamwork and goodwill exemplified in the project, “The JRA people didn't just do great work for The Mind Museum, they became great friends. After they completed the contracted work, they kept in touch with us to check on our progress, and to just spur us on. When we opened the museum five years later, JRA was there to celebrate with us.”

JRA would like to congratulate everyone at BAFI and The Mind Museum on a successful opening. We’re sure this auspicious beginning is a sign of great things to come.

The Mind Museum Opening, Part 2: Nature's Building Blocks

Tue, 20 Mar 2012 11:20:02 GMT

For Part 2 of our celebration of The Mind Museum’s grand opening, we’ll visit two more of the science center’s galleries – one offering a glimpse of Nature’s work in macro terms, the second distilling everything around us into a fraction of a particle.

The Human Brain

The Story of Life features the defining exhibit of The Mind Museum – “The Human Brain.” One of the largest exhibits in the museum, The Human Brain features consoles on memory, the senses and motion and is designed with interactive multi-media illustrating what happens to our brains through various moods (e.g., sadness, joy, and fear). Another Story of Life gallery, “Adaptations,” offers a three-part tutorial on how different animals adapt to their surroundings, such as camouflage and mimicry. Guests can also enjoy an interactive 3D exhibit of the human body, a Bernoulli blower, and a walk-through exhibit documenting the evolution of mammals from sea to land to air.

Big Small Wonders

Given that the topic of life is so vast, there is a vast array of exhibit experiences in The Story of Life. Guests continue their journey by viewing “Big Small Wonders” through a microscope and seeing their finds magnified on a monitor. They deepen their understanding of genes through “Gifts Through the Past: Chromosomes” and compare numbers of species through the free-standing exhibit “Rooms of Life: Sizes and Shapes.” Other exhibits educate visitors on the topics of the human body, evolution and the interconnectedness of life. Through The Story of Life, children and adults alike are reminded that although we are uniquely “us,” we are all part of the global life network.

The Story of The Atom gallery

The Story of The Atom takes the grandness of life and distills it into its smallest building blocks. With more interactive exhibits than any other gallery, it contains the very elemental forces that we so often take for granted – gravity and electromagnetism. The highlight of the gallery is the Atom Centerpiece, which features “Atom in A Box,” a fascinating 3D visualization of an atom developed by a physicist. While serving as the building block of life, the atom is also the building block for the technologies we use everyday – from TVs to computers, cell phones to tablets. In this gallery, guests can witness the chaotic motion of a levitating pendulum, make lights glow different colors by adjusting pressure and gasses, activate a human-powered Tesla coil, and learn that “Everything is Made of Atoms” through a sculptural exhibit featuring a deconstructed chocolate bar. JRA designed this gallery to move these microscopic particles and invisible forces into the context of everyday life, creating a larger story around the infinitesimal atom.

This deconstructed chocolate bar shows how everything is made of atoms.

“With a science exhibition designer, you would need a group that respects the story that you bring to the project,” said Maribel Garcia of Bonifacio Art Foundation Inc. “JRA not only respected our concepts, they helped refine them and build a story around them that was wonderful to behold. It was like seeing your distilled imagination cloaked in shapes and color ready to step into reality!”

Two small guests have a hair-raising experience in The Story of The Atom.

For these last two days, we’ve examined The Mind Museum galleries that focus on the foundations of the past (The Universe, The Earth) and the building blocks of our present (Life, The Atom). Tomorrow, we’ll focus on the future through the museum’s The Story of Technology gallery, before ending our tour outside with “Nature’s Artful Play” in Science-in-the-Park.

Free Your Mind: The Mind Museum Opens in the Philippines

Mon, 19 Mar 2012 10:39:00 GMT

The long-anticipated opening of The Mind Museum has finally arrived, as this state-of-the-art science center opened its doors to the public last Friday. Part of the Bonifacio Global City in Taguig, The Mind Museum hosts over 250 interactive “minds-on” and “hand-on” exhibits, making it the first world-class science museum in the Philippines.

Jack Rouse Associates, in collaboration with the Bonifacio Arts Foundation Inc. (BAFI), provided master planning, conceptual and schematic design for this 4,900-square-meter facility. There are so many wonderful experiences here, we couldn’t contain them in just one post, so over the next three days we’ll be profiling all of the wonderful exhibits and attractions that The Mind Museum has to offer.

Visitors begin their journey in the spacious Mariano K. Tan Hall lobby. While in the introductory hall, they are welcomed by a robot, created by Japanese company Kokoro, Ltd., who introduces them to the overall mission of the museum. Guests then encounter the “Ten Most Beautiful Experiments”, an audio-visual exploration of major scientific breakthroughs, such as when Sir Isaac Newton discovered that white light has all the colors of the rainbow.

Once visitors have passed through the lobby, they can choose among the five gallery spaces, all of which offer compelling stories related to science and technology. The galleries are linked (both spatially and contextually) by a series of exhibits and audio-visual presentations called “Nature’s Webways.” In the first gallery, The Story of the Universe, visitors learn how all life began in the stars of space. At its center is the Spaceshell, a mini-planetarium that can hold 50 visitors at one time. Rather than sitting on chairs, guests lie on cushions so as to mimic looking up at the night sky. As they gaze upward, they see films on the planets and the stars.

“What is on Mars?”, another feature of The Story of The Universe, offers guests the opportunity to learn more about the Red Planet thanks to data provided by NASA. They can maneuver a remote-controlled rover over a simulated Martian landscape or “try on” a 3D spacesuit. Other features in this area include a mechanical representation of Einstein’s Theory, an interactive model of the solar system, a suspended model of the moon that can be manipulated by the guest, audio-visual pods that simulate the sounds of space and an LCD display that poses the age-old question, “are we alone?”

From the far reaches of space, guests shift their gaze homeward to The Story of The Earth. In this gallery, they’ll meet Stan, the first cast of a T-Rex to be exhibited in the Philippines. At over 40-feet tall, Stan is the most complete T-Rex cast ever found. He is displayed along with a simulated excavation, where guests can pretend to dig for fossils. Featuring natural history from 4.6 million years ago, The Story of The Earth also offers exhibits such as “Nature’s Hourglass”, a 50-seat amphitheater and virtual time machine that offers two short films on the story of our planet. Guests can receive the latest on the Earth’s typhoons, volcanoes and more through “Knowing Home: Floating Globe,” travel through zones representing the five plant and animal kingdoms through the “Canopy of Life”, maneuver an earthquake simulation table, replicate a volcano eruption or recreate a swirling tornado. All of these experiences aim to better connect the guest with our dynamic planet.

JRA strove to design these galleries as dynamic and engaging spheres of learning that would inspire the youth of the Philippines to explore the realms of science and technology and bolster the country’s growing reputation for innovation.

“When choosing the design team that would work with us in The Mind Museum,” said Manny Bias II, Managing Director of BAFI and The Mind Museum, “we looked for both talent and chemistry. We had to make that judgment based on videoconference interviews. It turned out that the JRA designers were more than telegenic – they are designers that could help us visualize our vision; they understood our limitations; and they were just a fun team to work with.

These galleries are only a small glimpse of all there is to explore at The Mind Museum. Tomorrow we’ll discover more of its rich offerings, as we journey into The Story of Life and the Story of the Atom.

Media Moves! Part 3 - That's a Wrap!

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 16:06:55 GMT

So, your director has called a “wrap”, the cameras have been shut off, the costumes have been packed and the trailers have rolled away. Once you’re done filming, then you’re done with your film, right? Not hardly.

For our last Media Moves! segment, we’ll discuss what happens from when your sets are struck until your film is finally viewed by an audience.

During the post-production process, the editing team will create a rough cut out of the best takes from each scene. Once the cut is approved, the film will start final touches. Computer-generated images and effects will be produced, the film will be color-corrected and the audio track developed. Once all the elements are complete, they are assembled in an online edit suite. If your experience is bilingual, the captioning will be added during this online process. As the final step, an audio mix is done at the audio house. Once that's complete, the film is sent to your site to be integrated into your hardware. Post-production is typically the longest step in the making of your films. Through out-editing, color-grading and audio, the producer can change the look, feel and tone of your film. Want to make your film more ominous? Add dark tones and brooding music. Need to make it cheerier? Brighten it up!

Once the final product is finished, JRA’s team will take it to your site to make sure it properly integrates with the audio-visual hardware. When everything is installed to your satisfaction, it’s showtime. The lights dim, voices hush, and the audience is mesmerized by your film's gripping content and high-quality production values.

We hope you’ve enjoyed our Media Moves! series. Next week, we’ve got another grand opening to celebrate, as The Mind Museum opens its doors to the public in Taguig, Philippines.

Media Moves! Part 2 - Production

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 14:43:49 GMT

Lights! Camera! Action! Welcome to Part 2 of our Media Moves! series. In our first installment, we covered the pre-production phase of your project – final scripting, storyboarding and casting. Today, we’ll cover the actual filming of your media. As with pre-production, the media team at JRA will oversee the process in collaboration with your awarded production company to make sure that your media visions are fully realized on time and on budget.

As we mentioned in our last post, at the end of the pre-production phase you will have established said budget, hired your director and (live or voice-over) talent and scouted your filming location(s). The budget and director are key factors on which a production company is awarded the project. Added to the team are crewmembers including, but not limited to, your director of photography, electrics team, grips (lighting and rigging technicians), sound designers and costume designers. Obviously, the size and scale of the crew depends on the size and scale of your film.

The shooting day begins with the cast and crew arriving at their appointed call time. Typically, the props department, grip and electrics set up first, followed by wardrobe, hair and make-up, sound. The actors are usually the last to arrive (once everything else is set up) and head directly to the wardrobe and make-up trailer. Once everyone is in place, the set quiets, the director yells “Action!” and the take begins. When the take is finished, the director yells, “cut!” and sound and cameras stop recording. If the director feels that another take is needed, the process repeats. Once two good takes are in the can, the crew moves to the next “set up,” and once all the scene’s shots have been covered, the director calls it a “wrap.” At the end of the 10- to 14-hour day, the film is typically sent for processing, and a one-light is done. For the uninitiated, “one-light” is a process by which the production team takes the negative and color corrects one of the day’s frames (i.e., makes it lighter, darker, greener, etc.) to see how it will look. The day after you’ve filmed this particular set of scenes, you, the director, and JRA will review the footage, called “dailies,” to verify that all the material shot is useable.

As with pre-production, the animation production process varies somewhat from that above. This process includes modeling, the actual animation itself, voice-over recording and lighting (yes, animation needs to be lit just like live action; otherwise it will be too dark for your film!).

When all the scenes have been shot (or animated) to the satisfaction of the director and producer, the film is sent for the final rendering and then heads to the editing room for post-production.

How does this story end? Tune in next week as we conclude our Media Moves! series, where we’ll see your film edited, completed and ready for viewing by your visitors.

Project Spotlight: C'MON in! Golisano Children's Museum of Naples Now Open

Wed, 29 Feb 2012 15:28:14 GMT

We interrupt our regularly scheduled blog series for a special Project Spotlight feature.

Southwest Florida is now home to a new family destination, as Golisano Children’s Museum of Naples (C’MON) opened its doors to the public yesterday. Conceived in 2002 by Allyson Loos to address the need for more inclusive family experiences in Collier County, the mission of C’MON is “to provide an exciting, inspiring environment where children and their families play, learn and dream together.”

Fishing Pier "At the Beach"

Jack Rouse Associates, along with educational consultant Mary Sinker, provided overall planning, design development and fabrication and installation project management for C’MON’s 30,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor exhibit space. Through the museum’s 12 galleries, children and families learn about such topics as regional history, agricultural, geography and weather, all while enjoying an environment of engaging and cooperative play. JRA and Sinker based the design on three interrelated principles: an appreciation of children’s play behavior, knowledge of how an environment can influence play and learning, and an understanding of children’s developmental milestones.

Trolley in "The Street"

Specific exhibit areas include:

• An outdoor edge maze and amphitheater
• Journey Through the Everglades
• Banyan Tree
• At the Beach
• World Café
• Produce Market and Farm
• Mother Nature’s House
• ABC Lot (Toddler Area)
• Curious Kids (Pre-Teen Area)
• Pet Vet
• Green Construction
• Art Gallery and Studio

A delivery truck connects the "Farm" to the "Produce Market"

According to the museum’s website, exhibits were created to meet Florida’s Sunshine State curriculum standards, and all are accessible for individuals with developmental, hearing, physical, social/emotional and visual challenges.

The museum offered a special opening weekend to its 2,000 members, and a feature from the Naples Daily News lauded it as a "hit" and included some pint-sized “thumbs ups” from its early reviewers. When interviewed for the article, Heather Patton, director of external affairs, said that kids were “crying as they were leaving" and that the museum "had kids here comparing it to Disney World.”

For more information on the Golisano Children’s Museum of Naples, please visit their website or check our their Facebook page. Thanks for reading, and tune in next week for Part 2 of our Media Moves! series – Production.

Blog N' Learn: Media Moves!

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 09:24:38 GMT

In our previous series, we’ve showcased the 16 Stages of Project Development primarily as they relate to the physical components of your project (rides, physical interactives and theming). In today’s digital age, however, the development of a project’s media components has become a crucial element of its success. For our next three posts, we’ll delve into the process of creating vibrant and captivating media for your project. We’ll start with what happens before the first frame is created.

As with your physical exhibit components and overall layout, the development of your media begins with a concept. This concept is usually developed in a charette in the concept design phase and summarized in a short brief. During this formative stage, the following questions are discussed:

What are the content and experience objectives (what do we want the guest to feel and learn)?
What kind of experience is it (4D theater, 2D/3D simulator dark ride, or interactive?
How long is the experience? This is in largely based on capacity numbers.

Once the level of detail becomes sufficient for pricing, JRA’s media team assembles a bid package and tenders it via an RFQ/RFP process (see our Sept. 22, 2011 post on the Three R’s). This bid package includes the creative brief, mood boards, schematic rendering, deliverables and proposed schedule. Once the proposals have been returned, JRA’s team will then work with you to select the best producer for the project. JRA can also serve as the executive producer for the Owner on the media components through installation.

With the media producer on board, the real work begins. The concept develops into a more focused, detailed storyline. These words are then transformed in to storyboards (small renderings and photo references) with production notes to enable to the client to better visualize the final product. Once the client has approved the developed storyline and storyboards, the producer begins writing the final script. Simultaneously, location scouting, production/set/character design, prop and wardrobe shoppers are mobilize to get ready for the production stage.

Animation requires a completely different level of preparation, including animatics (still renderings that are edited together to make a moving storyboard), character and scene development and voice-over casting.

So you’ve crafted your script, hired your actors, developed your character and found your locations. It’s time to shoot or animate! We’ll cover the production stage in next week’s post. Questions so far? Feel free to comment below or on Facebook, or send us a tweet. Thanks for reading!

Meet the Team: Bjorn Kemper

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 10:53:56 GMT

Guten Tag! For this Meet the Team segment, we're profiling Senior Project Designer (and German native), Bjorn Kemper.

From innovative dark rides, to magical theme park settings to contemporary museum galleries, Björn Kemper has established a reputation for delivering unique designs that immerse guests within one-of-kind environments.

Björn studied Architecture at the Technical University of Darmstadt, Germany. Since joining the studio in 1999, his background in architecture, design, illustration and themed entertainment has helped make him an integral team member to a variety of JRA’s more high profile projects. His recent work includes attraction planning and design for Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, as well as the World of Coca-Cola in Atlanta. Björn also played aleading role in the planning, design and art direction of Science Centre Singapore’s atrium experience and for attractions within both HarborLand – a 40-acre theme park in Ningbo, China – and Volkswagen’s Autostadt in Wolfsburg, Germany. Björn is currently working on a number of attraction components for two JRA theme park projects set to open in Europe within the next two years.

As you can see, JRA prides itself on having a dynamic team of designers like Björn for a project's physical environments. But we also pride ourselves on our stellar executive production team, which oversees every film and interactive media experience within an environment or attraction. How does this process work? We'll learn more about that in next week's segment, as we begin our three-part Media in Motion series.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Tue, 14 Feb 2012 10:38:05 GMT

All of us at Jack Rouse Associates wish you a very happy Valentine's Day. Thank you for supporting us over the last 25 years.

You can continue to "love" us by following us on Twitter, visiting our Facebook page, and commenting on our blogs. We want to write what you want to know. And check back tomorrow for a post about a staff member who's museum and attraction design work we love!

Speaking of which, have you visited your local museum lately? Maybe it's time to show them some love this Valentine's Day!

Thanks for reading, and we'll see you tomorrow. :-)

Just a Thought: A Sincere Thanks...

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 15:35:40 GMT

As we enter our 25th anniversary year, CEO Keith James reflects on his recent IAAPA Outstanding Service Award and offers his sincere thanks to all those who have helped him (and JRA) along the way.

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Those of you who know me personally know that my entire career has been behind the scenes, whether it’s been stage-managing a musical or overseeing the development of a theme park. This is a role I’ve always enjoyed and always preferred.
This past November, however, I stepped from behind the scenes and onto a stage in Orlando to receive IAAPA’s 2011 Outstanding Service Award. And while I have to admit that being the center of attention for those few minutes made me a bit nervous, I have also never felt so appreciative and humbled.

When I started in this crazy industry four decades ago, I had no idea how my work would come to influence every aspect of my life, in ways for which I am, and will always be, grateful.

I met my lovely bride Patti while we both worked at Kings Island theme park. We’ve been married over 32 years now, and have two adult daughters: Alexis, who was born during my time at Expo ‘86 in Vancouver, and Chloe, who was born during my time at Australia’s Wonderland in Sydney. So you could say that this industry gave me my family, which by far is the most important
thing in the world to me.

My career has also introduced me to people who became lifelong friends. Their friendship and support over the years has meant the world to me, both personally and professionally. I’ve had the chance to work with some incredibly talented individuals over the years, not the least of which are those with whom I share an office back in Cincinnati. My firm’s success is truly a result of their talent and commitment. One of the best parts about my job is that I get the chance to work with people who I genuinely admire and respect.

Due to the international nature of this business, I’ve had the opportunity to travel the globe and be exposed to an amazing array of cultures, exotic sites and fascinating people. And while my 9 million frequent flyer miles certainly haven’t come easy, the experiences that I’ve gained have been worth every mile.

Finally, I am very thankful for all of the clients who have entrusted JRA over the years with their hopes, dreams and projects. If not for them, I would not have had the career that I have enjoyed so much. It was with sincere appreciation that I accepted IAAPA’s kind award last November. It is something that I will always cherish.

One could say that the award is in recognition for what I’ve given to the industry over these many years. However, I will always look at it as a symbol of the many wonderful things that the industry has given to me.

Meet the Team: Samantha Albert

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 11:32:04 GMT

Long walks, wolves and PB, J and banana sandwiches!?! Must be time for a 5 Questions segment with another one of our blockbuster co-ops, Samantha Albert!

To get inspired, I go …
On obscenely long walks. Some people “sleep” on their problems; I walk all over them. That is the only way I get through things and break through creative ruts. I'm sort of Julie Andrews circa The Sound of Music, except that I live in Clifton.

The biggest challenge being a designer is …
Not getting emotionally invested in what you're doing. I like helping people and fixing problems, and while that's a good thing to have in the back of your mind, sometimes it takes over, and it's hard to remember that design is about other people, not you. So when you REALLY like what you're working on, but it is completely ridiculous to the situation, that is not helping anyone.

If you had to be an animal, what would you pick?
I think I would be a wolf, which is a weird thing to say because I'm vegetarian and they most definitely are not herbivores. But I read Julie of the Wolves in second grade and it changed my life. There's just no coming back from that. I also like the pack dynamic of wolves. They all look out for each other, which is neat.

My favorite person ever is …
Actually, there are two of them. I know that's cheating. But they're my sisters, so I can't just pick one because then the other one would hate me forever. And they're both kind of terrifying, so I wouldn't want that to happen. I live with Alyssa, who attends the University of Cincinnati with me and is in a rock band that just got signed (she's the lead singer)! And my youngest sister Stephanie is attending Ohio University for one of the best commercial photography programs in the nation, and she also speaks Japanese. (Are you intimidated yet? Because I am.)

My favorite sandwich is?
Peanut butter, strawberry jelly and sliced bananas on toasted bread. It's a weekend sandwich.

Thank you, Samantha. And thank you out there for reading! Tune in next week for another installment of JRA + blog, and in the meantime, beat the winter blues by supporting your local museum or attraction. Cheers!

Blog N' Learn: Capacity by the Numbers

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 16:38:40 GMT

Greetings! As promised, we’re back with our Blog N’ Learn series on understanding museum and theme park capacity.

When we were researching our previous two posts, we found in our desks the article Design and Planning Cheat Sheet, written by our friend, Jim Higashi, Executive Vice President of Management Resources. We’ve already tackled the concepts of design days and peak months, but we’re going to take a couple of tips from Jim’s playbook on how to explain size and scale to a client.

When explaining how big something is to a client, consider the following examples:

• Boxing Ring = 324-576 square feet (~32-58 square meters)
• Basketball Court = 4,700 square feet (~470 square meters)
• Hockey Rink = 17,000 square feet (~1,700 square meters)
• American Football Field = 57,600 square feet (~5,760 square meters)

Remember, when breaking this down into hectares and acres, 10,000 square meters = 1 hectare = approx. 2.5 acres.

So now you have a sense of how big certain spaces are, but how much circulation space should you allow per person? According to Jim, the following guidelines apply:

• Theater seating: 12 square feet per person
• Exhibit viewing: 16-25 square feet per person (depending on how close the person needs to be from the exhibitry)
• Queue lines: 5-7 square feet per person
• Elevators: 2-3 square feet per person depending on ride time
• Retail: 24 square feet per person
• Restrooms: 36 square feet per fixture

In general, plan on allotting 65% of your total space to circulation.

In addition to people, it is imperative to allot the proper number of parking spaces for your theme park or attraction (no place to park = people turning around and heading home or to a competing attraction). The standard number of automobiles per acre is 110, and the standard number of busses is 25. Your ratio of busses to cars will most likely be determined by your feasibility study: whether your attendance tends to be via groups or those “free-in-transit” (i.e., with their own vehicles).

None of these numbers should be used as definitive figures, but hopefully they serve as a helpful guide in communicating the magnitude of a project to your client.

Many thanks to Jim Higashi for putting these numbers in perspective. We hope you now have a better sense of determining capacity for your project. Tune in next week, as we introduce you to another of Jack Rouse Associates’ fresh new faces. Thanks for reading!

Project Spotlight: World of Coca-Cola Welcomes Five Millionth Visitor

Tue, 17 Jan 2012 09:37:42 GMT

Congratulations to the World of Coca-Cola®, which yesterday hosted its five millionth visitor in less than five years. Opened in May of 2007, the new World of Coca-Cola is the only place where visitors can explore the complete story—past, present and future—of the world's best-known brand. JRA is proud to have worked with The Coca-Cola Company to design and produce the guest experience for this re-envisioned Atlanta attraction.

With 62,000 square feet of guest areas, the World of Coca-Cola has something for everyone, including a variety of interactive exhibits, a thrilling 4-D Theater, the world's largest collection of Coke memorabilia, a fully functioning bottling line that produces commemorative 8-ounce bottles of Coca-Cola®, a Pop Culture Gallery featuring works by artists such as Andy Warhol, Norman Rockwell, and Steve Penley, and a unique tasting experience allowing guests the opportunity to sample up to 70 different products from around the world.

Jack Rouse Associates provided the overall creative direction for the project, including planning, design and coordination of a team of vendors that included world-class animators, film makers and exhibit builders.

Every aspect of the World of Coca-Cola's design, construction and operation was carefully planned to reflect The Coca-Cola Company's commitment to environmental and energy issues. The building was constructed in accordance with the United States Green Building Council's (USGBC) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards and incorporates the latest advances in environmentally-friendly construction and design.

“It was an honor for us to be able to work with a brand that has such a worldwide appeal,” said Dan Schultz, Chief Operating Officer. “Coca-Cola has been, and still is, such a part of popular culture.”

According to the World of Coca-Cola’s Facebook page, KoEun “Emma” Lee, the five millionth visitor, was feted with a celebration and a prize package that included a lifetime pass to the World of Coca-Cola, a VIP guided tour for Lee and her parents, and a $500 gift-certificate to the Coca-Cola store.

Blog N' Learn: Get with the Program

Fri, 13 Jan 2012 11:07:14 GMT

Greetings! In our last Blog N’ Learn segment, we tackled the finer points of determining attendance and capacity for your museum or theme park. We’ll now introduce you to a special tool we call a program (not to be confused with programme, the European and Asian term for schedule).

The main purpose of the program is to ensure a comfortable experience for your guests. With this simple chart, you can make sure queue lines are manageable and attractions diverse. Let’s look at an example, shall we?

Let’s say that the peak on-site attendance (your park’s maximum attendance at any one time) is 10,000, and you have about 140,000 square meters of attraction space to play with. You want to make sure that your 10,000 guests aren’t all at Screaming Terror X roller coaster (unless you want your 10,000 guests screaming at you)! In fact, you want your visitors to be able to experience approximately 1.5 rides or shows per hour. Doing the math, your park needs to operate at an hourly capacity of 15,000.

So you come up with a mix of about 30 rides and shows, catering to families and singles, young and old, thrill-seeking to thrill-averse. To determine whether this satisfies your required hourly capacity, you’ll need to determine the hourly capacity of your individual attractions. For example, let’s say you are including a 4D theatre (with stunning visuals executive-produced by JRA ☺) in your attraction mix. The theatre has an instant (as in, per show) capacity of 150, and, including pre-show, has a total duration of 5 minutes. A five-minute experience means it can run 12 times per hour. Multiply that by your instant capacity, and you find that, in one hour, 1,800 people can funnel through your 4D Theatre. You would continue in this vein for all 30 of your shows and attractions to achieve your total theoretical capacity.

Let’s say that your total theoretical capacity for all rides and attractions is 27,000. Due to delays in loading/unloading riders or the dispatching of the rides from the station (guests need extra assistance, lap bar checks, safety checks, etc.), you almost never run at 100% hourly capacity. 85% is a number used as a more realistic hourly capacity. Thus, you would multiply your theoretical capacity by 85% to determine your total operating capacity, which in this case is 22,950.

From the looks of things, you’ve got more than enough rides, shows and surprises to ensure that your guest spends more time having fun and less time standing in queues. Congrats! As your attendance increases over the years, you’ll continue to use the program to determine your future expansion efforts.

Next week, we’ll close our series on capacity by borrowing some facts and figures from our good friend, Jim Higashi. Thanks for reading!

Meet the Team: Justine Benzinger

Tue, 10 Jan 2012 09:00:39 GMT

Welcome to our first Meet the Team of 2012! If you are a regular reader (which, if you aren't, how about making it a resolution?) , you'll recall last month that we showcased the University of Cincinnati's School of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning as the nationally-lauded training ground for our first class co-ops. Today, we'll be asking 5 questions of another one of future design stars, Justine Benzinger.

If you had to eat one food for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Skyline (Editor's Note: for the uninitiated, Skyline is Cincinnati's famous chili, concocted from a special (and some may say unusual) blend of chocolate, cinammon and spices). I can't go a week without having it. When I've worked in other cities my parents have had to ship me cans of it.

What sport do you enjoy watching/playing?
Anything and everything. I played basketball year-round growing up, but I also play sand volleyball, softball, flag football and tennis, and I run.

What's a quote that describes you?
“I have found that if you love life, life will love you back.” -Arthur Rubinstein

The biggest challenge being a designer is …
Not designing for yourself. It's very easy when you get a project to create the product you would want to buy, but you usually aren't the target market. If it was up to me, everything would be bright and colorful, but unfortunately not everyone feels that way.

My favorite part of the design process is …
The initial brainstorming phase. No idea is a bad idea yet, and you can think completely off the wall. An idea I threw out as a joke in a brainstorming session at a previous co-op turned into a big hit and is now for sale on the market.

Thanks, Justine! Thursday we'll turn our attention again to blogging and learning, as we explore the do's and dont's of putting together an attraction program. Thanks for reading!

Blog N' Learn: All in a Day's Work

Thu, 05 Jan 2012 11:29:49 GMT

Hello and welcome to the first Blog N’ Learn of 2012. For those who are just starting to follow us, THANK YOU! Our Blog N’ Learn series hopes to demystify the least commonly understood (and most commonly misinterpreted) terms in the museum and attraction design industry. For this post, we’ll deconstruct the art of determining capacity for a museum or themed attraction.

There are two standard units for measuring attendance – the design day and the peak day. A design day represents the number of people your facility is designed to handle. Once you have this information, you can define space requirements and operational flow, the way your guests flow through the space. If your facility is a museum, for example, you will want to design your exhibits so that there is 1 meter of space around each guest. Nothing ruins a guest experience more than feeling crammed into a gallery or pathway!

Peak day attendance, as the name suggests, is the number of people your facility can expect on an extremely busy day. Since you may only have 6 peak days per year (unless you’re Disney), you don’t want to design your facility to peak day attendance, as this would result in your museum or attraction looking empty the other 359 days of the year.

So how does one calculate design day attendance, you ask? Let’s perform a little exercise for a theme park (note, these are JRA’s standard theme park calculations based on our experience – other companies’ percentages may vary):

You expect the annual attendance for your park to be 1 million visitors.
Your peak month would be approximately 21.25%, or 212,500.
Divide that by 4.3 (the average number of weeks per month), and you get a peak week of 49,419.
While a peak day would be approximately 25% of your peak week, or 12,355, remember, we want to calculate a design day, which is slightly less at 18.5% or 9,142.

If you wanted to calculate the moment in time when you anticipate the park being the most crowded on an average day, you would take your design day and multiply it by 75% to get your peak in-ground, which would in this case be 6,857. This number helps you determine capacities for restrooms, changing rooms (for a water park), and other operational concerns.

By knowing your design day attendance, you can begin to develop your ride and exhibit capacities. You do this by creating a program, a chart that maps out the individual capacities for your rides, shows, attractions, retail and restaurants. An attraction or exhibit program helps you ensure that you have the right mix of experiences so you don’t end up with long queues and disgruntled customers. We’ll dive deeper into this valuable document in next week’s Blog N’ Learn segment. In the meantime, we hope that this post helped lift the fog on calculating capacities and provided you with a useful tool in maximizing visitor satisfaction. Thanks for reading!

Happy New Year!

Tue, 03 Jan 2012 10:21:43 GMT

All of us at Jack Rouse Associates would like to wish you a peaceful and prosperous 2012. At JRA+blog, We look forward to another year of sharing our people, places and projects with you, so make a resolution to comment on our blog, check out our Facebook page, or send us a Tweet. If you have a question for us, or if there's something you're longing for us to write about, please let us know!

In turn, we'd like to know more about you. What makes a great museum experience for you? What are your favorite theme park rides? What about experiences that extend outside the attraction (i.e., apps and RFID)? Our goal for this site has always been to create a dialogue, and we look forward to having some stimulating conversations with you about this exciting industry.

Thanks for reading - tune in Thursday for the our first Blog N' Learn post of 2012!

Happy Holidays from JRA!

Fri, 23 Dec 2011 13:53:45 GMT

WISHING YOU A HOLIDAY SEASON FILLED WITH JOY AND LAUGHTER!

- Your Friends at JRA :-)

Honoring Rick Steele's "Interesting" Career

Thu, 22 Dec 2011 16:14:33 GMT

It was a bittersweet celebration Tuesday night as JRA staff and friends paid homage to the 37-year career of Senior Project Manager, Rick Steele.

Rick met Keith James while working in the fiberglass shop at Kings Dominion in 1974. He went on to become the park’s Manager of Construction and Building Maintenance before leaving for similar posts at Canada’s Wonderland and later Australia’s Wonderland. Following his sojourn in Sydney (where he welcomed his beautiful daughter, Josie), Rick subsequently worked for Kings Productions Corporate, Disney Imagineering and a Malaysian themed entertainment company. He joined the JRA team in 1998 as the company’s on-site project manager for Volkswagen Autostadt and has since worked on the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame, The Merlion and Ft. Siloso attractions for Sentosa Island, Singapore, the Coca-Cola Pavilion at Shanghai Expo 2010 and Ferrari World Abu Dhabi.

The JRA team honored Rick with an hourglass bearing the inscription: “Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Retirement,” as well as a full-color photo book offering snapshots of the many locales Rick has lived and worked in over his years in the attractions industry. “37 years,” reflected Chief Operating Officer/Owner, Keith James. “What a ride we’ve had!”

Two of the things we’ll miss most about Rick are his sagacity and wit, so as a tribute we again offer Rick’s Six Simple Rules for Project Management and Life:

Never give a wrong answer - "I don't know, I'll find out and get back to you" is an acceptable answer. The most common mistake is being pressured into making a guess. Wrong answers have to be corrected, and if the correction takes place after the answer is relied upon, there will be a cost, usually in time and dollars, to fix it. This is often expressed as "there is never enough time to do it right but always enough time to do it over" to fix the problem.
Nothing is more important than opening day.
Fast, cheap, good. You only get to choose two.
The only chance to save time is at the beginning of a project.
‘I don't understand’ is the smartest thing anyone ever says.
There are no good surprises.

Rick’s parting words to us Tuesday night were, “thanks for an interesting life.”

Thank you, Rick, for everything.

Rick's favorite Dilbert cartoon.

The JRA Holiday Party: Capturing the Fun of the Fifties

Tue, 20 Dec 2011 14:42:58 GMT

It was an evening of cool hepcats and boss threads at Jack Rouse Associates' 1950's-themed holiday staff party. From poodle skirts to Pan Am, saddle shoes to well, the just unusual, costumed JRA staff members enjoyed music, food and holiday cheer at the home of Chief Executive Officer/Owner, Keith James. The theme was inspired by James' Happy Days-esque kitchen, complete with neon, a Wurlitzer jukebox and a sofa formed from the back of a '57 Chevy.

"This was a terrific opportunity to bring everyone together, thank them for their work this year, and celebrate the holiday season," said James. "Not to mention the costumes were outstanding."

See below for some choice pics from the event, and check out our Facebook page for even more photo fun! Thanks for reading, and be sure to join us Thursday as we raise a glass to Senior Project Manager (and soon to be retiree), Rick Steele.

Executive Assistant, Chloe James and VP of Production, Ron Bunt

Senior Project Designer, John Nagel, and Senior Project Director, Rob Morgan, sporting their actual high school letter jackets!

Senior Project Coordinator, Kelly Ellis, and yes, that is actually Creative Director, Randy Vuksta.

CEO/Owner Keith James gets a holiday peck form his wife, Patti.

The ABC's of Design and Project Management: Give Me An 'E'!

Thu, 15 Dec 2011 11:10:53 GMT

Happy holidays, and welcome to another edition of Blog N’ Learn: The ABCs of Design and Project Management. Today, we’re moving down the alphabet to E, E ticket, that is.

E ticket rides and attractions are commonly thought of as the “ests” (i.e., tallest, fastest, biggest, etc), and are typically the most expensive to produce. The history of the E ticket derives from the early days of Disneyland. Back in the 1950s, instead of paying a blanket admission fee to gain access to all attractions, guests paid a small fee at the gate and then a separate fee per show or ride. To make this admission system more efficient, the per-attraction fee was replaced with a coupon book, each containing a certain number of coupons (or tickets) stamped A-C. An ‘A’ ticket was typically redeemable for the smallest, least popular rides. Mid-sized attractions were ‘B’ tickets, and the largest rides and shows were called (not surprisingly) ‘Cs’.

As the park grew, so did the number of ride/show classes. In 1956, new attractions and several C-ticket rides (such as the Jungle Cruise) were given the new D designation. Three years later, with the creation of Matterhorn Bobsleds and Submarine Voyage, the E ticket was born. E remained the top ticket at Disneyland for the next twenty years, eventually including such classics as Space Mountain, the Haunted Mansion and the Enchanted Tiki Room. The coupon book system expanded to Walt Disney World upon its opening in 1971, but only a few years later, California’s Magic Mountain introduced the all-ride-inclusive admission ticket. In the face of this competition, the Disney parks gradually phased out the alphabetical ticketing system in favor of the single-fee ticket still in place today.

While you’ll no longer be offered a coupon book on your park visit, the term E ticket has remained a prevalent term both in the attraction industry and in popular culture. Sally Ride, the first woman in space, famously described her shuttle launch experience as “definitely an E ticket!” Disneyland and Walt Disney World now offer the eTicket print-at-home electronic ticket option, a clever modernization of the original term they created.

So now the next time you head to a theme or amusement park, you’ll know that the most exciting, enjoyable experiences can be summed up with the letter E.

On Tuesday, we’re decking the halls with a recap of the JRA Holiday Party. Thanks for reading, and we hope you’ll enjoy some E ticket experiences this holiday season!

Outside the Studio: For the Love of Oakley

Tue, 13 Dec 2011 12:02:00 GMT

First, it was a hobby. A couple of articles here. A photo or two there. But for JRA Senior Project Designer Scot Ross, a simple fact-finding mission has become a labor of love and an exploration into the past of one of Cincinnati’s most charming addresses. For today’s Outside the Studio segment, Scot shares how For the Love of Oakley came to be, how it relates to JRA, and what he hopes it will accomplish for the local community.

“I was trying to find out about the history of our house and kept stumbling onto the history of our neighborhood,” said Ross. “Our community grew around an industrial area that was known as the ‘factory colony.’ Its working class history was not well documented, so I began to aggregate the pieces I'd found and discovered a richly layered and largely forgotten story of what is now one of the most vibrant neighborhoods in the city of Cincinnati.

The foundation of our work here at JRA – whether it’s a science museum, a large corporate visitor center or a little, family-owned amusement park – is about telling stories. At the heart of storytelling is where we find our humanity and that's what makes history speak to us. Taking those storytelling lessons out of the studio and applying them to something I’ve grown passionate about seemed like a natural fit.”

Scot’s passion has translated into a several Oakley history displays for the local library, and he has recently begun work on a series of informative and entertaining mini-documentaries, the first of which can be found here. He’s currently at work on a website that will allow anyone to enjoy the growing archive of text and images.

Ross’ work hearkens back to the works of historian David McCullough, who reminds us, ‘No one ever lived in the past. They lived in their own present.’ “The events may have happened a long time ago,” says Ross, “but the driving forces behind them are still very much the same today – relocating for a job and better life, buying a home where land is cheaper, opening a business to serve a growing community.

The stories are entertaining, but they also foster a deeper appreciation of our neighborhood and the people who built it. Indirectly, I hope that leads to a greater sense of community.”

Thank you, Scot. Tune in Thursday for another ABCs of Design and Project Management segment, where we’ll decipher the mysteries of the elusive (and usually expensive) “E-ticket.”

10 Keys for Successful Museum Experiences: Putting It All Together

Thu, 08 Dec 2011 11:15:42 GMT

You've designed your museum for the audience, accommodated guests of all types and told compelling, personal stories with strong takeaway messages. Your exhibits are repeatable, updateable and provide "only here" experiences. You connect to your local community and host events that keep them coming back. With these eight keys in place, you are on your way to make your physical space a dynamic cultural institution.

But sustainability is more than bricks and mortar. Effective operations, multi-faceted marketing, sterling customer service and a strong vision for the future are equally important in ensuring future success. These are the topics we will cover in our last segment of Shawn McCoy's 10 Keys for Successful Museum Experiences.

9. Think as much about marketing, customer service, operations, maintenence as you do on the exhibit experience.

A common mistake that the developers of new projects make is to spend all of their energy on the development of the exhibit experience and forget about other important parameters such as marketing, customer services, operations and maintenance. As stated previously, in order to attract your target audience, you have to begin a strategic marketing and public relations campaign well before you open. Once you attract your audience, your customer service and operations are critical to ensuring that your guests have a positive experience. Your exhibit experience might be fantastic, but if buying your ticket was an ordeal, the wayfinding was confusing and the staff seemed apathetic or rude, the guest will forget about the wonderful exhibits, and never return due to the other negative aspects of their visit. An energetic, well-trained staff who treat visitors as they guests that they are will go a long way toward creating a memorable repeatable experience for you target audience. A commitment to ongoing maintenance is also very important, as broken exhibits and unclean facilities will also cause a negative experience for your guests.

The Field Museum developed a comprehensive marketing campaign around A T-Rex Named Sue. Sue even has her very own Twitter account!

10. Think about years, 5, 10 and 15 as much as opening day.

Perhaps the most important key to developing a successful project is to think about how the facility will operate in the years after it opens. Too often, those developing projects are so excited about getting to opening day, that they don’t put any planning into how the facility will operate in year 2, 5, 10 and beyond. As the only successful facilities are those that work well over the long-term, you must begin thinking about the long-term operation of the facilities (including a plan for operations, programming, adding new exhibits, etc.) at the outset of the project.

We hope that these guidelines provide a bit of insight how to plan, design and operate a successful museum experience. Museums are a vital part of the educational, social and cultural fabric of the communities in which they live, and their long-term viability is to all of our benefit.

Thanks for reading. Next week, we'll turn our attention from museums to theme parks with a return to our ABCs of Design and Project Management, and a blog post sponsored by the letter E...

Outside the Studio: Home Is Where the Art Is

Tue, 06 Dec 2011 14:00:17 GMT

Editor’s Note: JRA is a proud sponsor of ArtWorks.

Since this is a season of giving thanks, we thought for this edition of Outside the Studio we’d take a moment to offer our thanks for one of Cincinnati’s most vibrant arts institutions.

Founded in 1996, ArtWorks connects artists of all ages with opportunities in the arts through inspiring apprenticeships, community partnerships and public art. To-date, ArtWorks has employed over 2,500 area youth and 500 professional artists through its Summer Program, pairing local teens with the pros to create innovative murals throughout the city. This award-winning program has resulted in 46 murals in 28 Cincinnati neighborhoods and 3 nearby cities.

This year, ArtWorks spearheaded a new program entitled SpringBoard, an 8-week program that helps creative professionals construct a business plan and develop marketing and financial management skills. The goal of the program is to enable artists to turn their work into a sustainable small business enterprise. Connections made with other creatives and entrepreneurs through the program help lay the groundwork for future success.

To support these programs, the non-profit organization recently welcomed 700 supporters to its annual fundraiser, Secret ArtWorks. Over 400 local, national and international master artists were invited to submit their own 5”x7” mini-masterpieces. Pieces were displayed online and at a local hotel, but the names of the artists remained hidden until the night of the event. Attendees received a ticket good for one piece of art, and when the curtains opened, guests rushed into the gallery space to claim their original oeuvre. Only after “winning” their secret artwork did they finally learn the identity of its creator.

JRA Senior Project Director (and ArtWorks Board Member), Randy Smith, has been a perennial participant in Secret ArtWorks and always looks forward to contributing his art to this special cause: “Artworks has been a great opportunity for us to help young artists realize there are places for them in the workforce,” says Smith. “It’s been an honor and a pleasure (not to mention a lot of fun) to contribute pieces for Secret ArtWorks over the years.”

ArtWorks – one of the many cultural resources that makes our hometown such a great place to be.

Thanks for reading. Thursday, we’ll close out the 10 Keys for Successful Museum Experiences. Until then, whether halfway around the world or right outside your door, we hope you’ll enjoy some arts and culture experiences this holiday season.

Photos: Torn Paper Studios

10 Keys for Successful Museum Experiences: Connecting with Your Community

Thu, 01 Dec 2011 12:36:56 GMT

Hello, and welcome to another Blog and Learn. Today we continue with VP of Marketing and Business Development Shawn McCoy's 10 Keys for Successful Museum Experiences. It's been a few weeks since we last met on this topic, so let's review the first six keys:

Design for the audience (interests, style and experience)
Accommodate various demographics, interests and learning styles
Connect on an emotional level by telling authentic, personal stories
Deliver strong takeaway messages
Make the exhibits flexible and updateable
Provide "only here" experiences

But museums are not just for the out-of-town visitor, right? Essential to a museum's success is connecting with the local community. That's where you'll find your repeat guests (and potential donors). In today's post, Shawn explains how to build relationships at home and create experiences that will attract the locals and keep them coming back.

7. Connect to local audience first/make it a community resource

A mistake that many nationally focused museums often make is to focus on marketing to a national audience first, and inadvertently ignore their local audience. Nothing will cause the failure of a museum project quicker than your offending your local audience who then will not support the project. Repeat visitation is vital to the long-term sustainability of a museum project. Therefore, your local audience must feel that the museum was built with them in mind. A good way to make your local communities feel part of your project is to inform them about its development from the very beginning through good public relations. This can be achieved through traditional newspapers, public meetings, your website and social media outlets such as Facebook and Twitter. You can also involve them in the design process itself through open community forums; by asking them to loan artifacts and memorabilia; by posting design drawings on your website for review and comment.

Once the exhibit is open, it is important to position the museum as a local resource. You can accomplish this by making free meeting space available for use by local groups; by giving an admission discount to those visitors with a local address; and by providing seminars or speaking engagements aimed toward local audiences.

8. Programs and events

While your new museum will be most known for the quality of your exhibits, especially at first, it is the quality of your ongoing programs and events that will contribute more to your success in the long term. By staging exciting programs on a regular basis, you will be sure to keep your facility fresh, exciting and relevant. Examples could include topical temporary or traveling exhibitions; speaking engagements by content experts or authors; seminars; after hours events, etc.

Thank you, Shawn. For our final post in the series, we'll shift to the operations and planning side. How do you provide customer service that is as dynamite as your new exhibit(s), and what do you want your museum to look like in the years (and decades) to come. Until then, thanks for reading, and we hope you'll enjoy a museum experience or two this holiday season.

Meet the Team: Heather Witt

Tue, 29 Nov 2011 09:38:28 GMT

Welcome back! We hope you had a great Thanksgiving Weekend, survived Black Friday and Cyber Monday, and are all geared up for the last few weeks of 2011.

Speaking of people and projects we have to be thankful for, our Senior Project Manager, Heather Witt, is off supervising the installation of an exciting new children's museum (which you'll learn about in 2012)! Because we miss her, we thought we'd give her a special shout-out in today's Meet the Team segment.

Known for her professionalism, efficiency and overall work ethic, Heather Witt serves as one of JRA’s senior project managers for a wide range of museum and corporate clients. Heather’s versatility and organizational skills enable her to work with clients in all industries, as well as work on many projects at one time.

Most recently, Heather served as a project manger for Ferrari World Abu Dhabi, assisting in the management of design and production across multiple disciplines including scenery, graphics, lighting, media and audio-visual control. This assignment necessitated a three-year commitment to live and work in the United Arab Emirates for the duration of the project.

Past projects include the renovation of the Jack Daniel’s Single Barrel exhibit located at the distillery in Lynchburg, Tennessee. She also was the project manager for the McKenna Children’s Museum in New Braunfels, Texas, the Tibbals Learning Center in Sarasota, Florida and the Arab American National Museum in Dearborn, Michigan. Among other projects, Heather’s most recent assignments include C’MON - Children’s Museum of Naples and The Jim Beam Distillery and Production Tour.

Thursday, we'll resume our series on the 10 Keys for Successful Museum Experiences with VP of Marketing and Business Development, Shawn McCoy. Until then, have a great week!

Conference World Tour 2011: IAAPA Expo Wrap-Up

Tue, 22 Nov 2011 12:08:41 GMT

Another IAAPA Attractions Expo has come and gone, and this one proved to be the most successful yet. The 2011 Expo welcomed a record 25,800 attendees, of which 15,300 were qualified buyers. Participants enjoyed over 80 educational sessions, miles of exhibitor booths, and festive evening receptions over the conference’s five days.

JRA's Vice President of Marketing & Business Development, Shawn McCoy, helped to kick off this year's IAAPA conference by participating in a presentation developed especially for attendees from museums and science centers.

Shawn McCoy speaks as part of IAAPA Museum Day panel.

Shawn was part of a panel of experts who provided an overview of trends and projects from the past year. His 10-minute presentation focused on the top theme parks and attractions that had opened in the past twelve months. Specific highlights included an overview of Disney’s new Star Tours attraction, the new LEGOLAND® Florida theme park, and the opening of the Evergreen Wings & Waves educational water park in McMinnville, Oregon. After the panel, guests capped off their Museum Day experience with a trip to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter™ at Universal Orlando and a JRA-sponsored reception outside its Jurassic Park Discovery Center®.

The JRA team at the Museum Day Reception

Tuesday, JRA was delighted to receive the 2011 Brass Ring Award for Best New Product (Exhibits) for Ferrari World Abu Dhabi. The award was given in the Productions and Entertainment/Displays and Sets category for the park’s Formula Rossa Attraction.

Keith James accepts the 2011 Outstanding Service Award.

Wednesday morning, the JRA team, along with friends and family, gathered at the General Managers and Owners Breakfast to salute JRA Chief Executive Officer/Keith James, who received the 2011 Outstanding Service Award. According to IAAPA, the award “is presented in recognition of a member individual that works to foster the spirit of goodwill, professionalism, and higher levels of performance within the industry regionally, nationally, or internationally.” James thanked his mentors, co-workers, and most importantly, his wife Patti and daughters Chloe and Alexis for this honor.

CEO Keith James and COO Dan Schultz meet with a visitor at the JRA booth.

The 2011 Expo was an uplifting experience not just for JRA, but for the industry as a whole. “We won’t know for three or four months how much new business the 2011 Expo generated,” said Dan Schultz, Chief Operating Officer. “But I can tell you that we had very positive meetings with both current and potential clients, and there was an air of optimism among those on the show floor that hasn’t been seen in quite a while.”

As we enter the holiday season, news like that is definitely something to be thankful for.

Interested in seeing more pics from IAAPA 2011? Check out our Facebook album!

Conference World Tour: Five from the Floor - Charles Read

Wed, 16 Nov 2011 08:01:55 GMT

Hello! We hope you are enjoying JRA's coverage of the 2011 IAAPA Expo. It's been a wonderful week so far, and we look forward to two more days of meeting and greeting with diverse professionals across the industry.

Speaking of meeting and greeting, for today's "Five from the Floor" series, we're chatting with Charles Read. Charles is the Managing Director of Blooloop.com, the premier resource on what's new and now in the attractions business. So...

If I weren't managing director of Blooloop, I would be...

...involved in forestry. I've always had a great love of nature and wildlife and would love to be surrounded by trees as part of my profession.

When I have a creative block, I...

...get all of my ideas down on paper and then chisel the rubbish out.

The aspect I enjoy most about the IAAPA expo is...

...meeting friends and new people. Social media and websites are great, but nothing beats sitting down with someone over dinner or a drink.

I wish I had invented...

...a totally safe chainsaw.

Random fun factoid?

The Rolling Stones once played a concert in my mum's front room.

Thanks, Charles! Check back tomorrow for another Five from the Floor with a special mystery guest. Happy expo!

Conference World Tour: Five From the Floor at IAAPA 2011 with Adam Sanders

Tue, 15 Nov 2011 15:40:24 GMT

Hello, and welcome to our daily coverage of the IAAPA 2011 Expo. We hope you enjoyed our photos of Museum Day at Universal Island's of Adventure. Today the red ribbon was cut, the expo doors were opened, and the show floor is now abuzz with exhibitors and buyers alike. As part of this Conference World Tour Special Edition, we're asking industry leaders (and JRA friends) five questions from the show floor, ranging from the serious to the, well, not-so-serious.

First up is Adam Sanders, Business Development Manager - Planning and Design for the Natural History Museum of London.

The best advice I ever received was...

...Be true to youself, and be honest.

The best thing about my job is...

...Working with such diverse and creative people in the industry.

What is the best attraction/exhibit you've ever experienced?

After last night's Museum Day Reception, I would have to say the Wizard World of Harry Potter!

I wish I had come up with...

...A self-cleaning house.

If you could have any superpower, what would it be?

Again, after being on the Harry Potter ride, the ability to fly would be pretty spectacular.

Thanks, Adam! Stay tuned tomorrow for another Five from the Floor, as well as some other special surprises. And if you have any questions you'd like us to ask our surprise guests, be sure to write them below. Happy Expo!

Outside the Studio: "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year"

Thu, 10 Nov 2011 10:54:20 GMT

Programming Note: Our “Ten Keys for Museum Successful Museum Experiences” series will resume December 1.

The third week of November means one thing for JRA – it’s time to leave the crisp fall Cincinnati air behind and fly south for the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) Expo in sunny Orlando, Florida.

Established in its current form in 1972, IAAPA has roots all the way back to 1918, when a group of amusement park and other outdoor park representatives founded the National Outdoor Showman’s Association (NOSA). As the industry has grown, so has IAAPA: the organization now represents more than 4,000 facility, supplier and individual members in over 90 countries, from amusement parks, theme parks and waterparks to museums, zoos and science centers.

The Orlando expo, along with IAAPA’s annual expos in Europe and Asia, are the premier industry shows in their respective regions and offer over 100 educational seminars and behind-the-scenes tours of local attractions. As of today, there are 22,000 registered attendees, and over 1,100 of these participants are exhibitors, presenting everything from plush animals to food, rides to water slides. Each day closes with one or more special events, and this year’s festivities include a behind-the-scenes tour of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Orlando and a reception at Disney’s Hollywood Studios featuring the re-imagined Star Tours® attraction.

“Everyone at JRA really looks forward to the annual IAAPA conference,” states Shawn McCoy, JRA’s Vice President of Marketing & Business Development. “Not only do we have the opportunity learn more about the latest techniques and technologies being used in the attractions industry, but we also have the chance to catch up with old friends, meet with current clients and introduce ourselves to potential new clients. IAAPA does a wonderful job organizing the show each year, and I’m sure 2011 will be better than ever.”

Your JRA social media team will be blogging, Tweeting and Facebook-ing daily coverage of the IAAPA Expo’s people, places and events, so be sure to follow us. And to many of our friends out there, we’ll see you in Orlando!

Meet the Team: Training the Best

Tue, 08 Nov 2011 14:44:04 GMT

We've always known that our co-ops are some of the hardest-working and best-trained emerging designers in the nation (you'll meet one of them in a moment), but don't just take our word for it. A national survey of employers has - for the 13th straight year - ranked the University of Cincinnati's Design, Architecture, Art and Planning (DAAP) programs as some of the best in the nation.

An annual survey by DesignIntelligence asks employers of recent university design graduates which school they feel best prepares its students for the real world. DAAP's industrial design undergraduate program ranked 1st, while its graduate industrial design, undergraduate interior design and undergraduate architecture programs ranked 2nd, 3rd and 10th, respectively. See the full article here.

"JRA has continuously employed co-op's through The University of Cincinnati's DAAP cooperative education program for 18 years," says Senior Project Director and Co-op Program Director, Matthew Wheeler. "DAAP co-ops encompass a fantastic level of talent, experience and a level of professionalism which brings a unique and fresh element to JRA."

So, with that said, let's ask five questions of another of our talented DAAP co-ops, Lauren Weir.

Best stress buster...
Boxing class. The workout and active nature of the class gives you no room to think about anything else. Of course, punching (the bags, not people) is a huge stress reliever in itself!

Dream vacation...
A couple weeks in a place that had everything: A warm beach with hiking trails, places to camp and swim, maybe even some snow to snowboard. I haven't found this spot yet but when I do, I'll be there for a while.

My iPod/iTunes is full of...
A little bit of everything. One day I will be listening to Notorious B.I.G... and the next it will be Ray LaMontagne, or Hall & Oats. There are a lot of influential variables on my listening choices. I keep my iTunes loaded with a wide variety of it all. It doesn't get boring.

For ideas, I read ...
A lot of design blogs. A few of my favorite are Under Consideration, Looks Like Good Design, and Fast Company. They all help me with new thoughts or processes. I don't always read design articles. I think it's important to get inspiration from outside of the design world... almost anything can be applied to design.

Favorite board game...
I'm not sure if it counts as a board game, but my pick would be Pictionary. Even in college, I still play frequently with my friends. It ends up being competitive and too funny when you see how people draw the clues.

10 Keys for Successful Museum Experiences: Only Here

Thu, 03 Nov 2011 09:40:33 GMT

It's Thursday, and that means it's time for another JRA Blog and Learn. In parts one and two of our 10 Keys for Successful Museum Experiences, VP of Marketing and Business Development Shawn McCoy has counseled us to:

Design for the audience
Accomodate various ages, demographics and learning styles
Connect on an emotional level by telling authentic, personal stories
Deliver strong takeaway messages

But what makes people come back for more? And how do you keep museum content fresh?

STEP 5 - Make the exhibits flexible and updateable

Today’s audiences are used to having access to ever-changing information, therefore your exhibits should be able to accomodate that change. While the historical elements of your experience will rarely, if ever, have to change, a portion of your exhibits, graphic panels and media, should be designed to allow you to keep the content up-to-date. For example, you could feature a number of media-based displays so that you can easily update with current information or relevant news stories. Or, more simply, you can design your display systems so that new artifacts can be added over time.

The content for the JRA-designed Reds Hall of Fame is updated as new members are inducted.

STEP 6 - Provide “only here” experiences

Given that your guests have access to most of the information that you will be presenting within your museum via the internet, you have to give them a reason to leave the comfort of their home. The way to do this is create “only here” experiences. These could range from the display of unique artifacts or physical interactives, or immersive environments or media presentations that they could only experience at the museum. You could also provide “only here” merchandise that will not only give your guests to purchase a unique take-home gift, but will also help increase your retail sales.

Remember, higher repeat visitation equals increased ticket revenue, higher per caps on food and retail, and potentially more members and donors, all of which add up to greater long-term fiscal stability.

Next time, Shawn shares the secrets of how to make your museum a true community steward, as well as how to create events and programs that will keep your content relevant and exciting.

Thanks for reading. Until then, take time enjoy an "only here" museum experience with your friends and family, and feel free to send us your feedback.

Happy Halloween!

Mon, 31 Oct 2011 13:43:27 GMT

Food, film and fabulous costumes were on the menu at the annual JRA Halloween Party. Check below and on our Facebook page for pics and video, and have a spooktacular Halloween!

(L) No one was going hungry at this potluck! (R) Chloe James as her dad (and COO) Keith James, and COO Dan Schultz as Creative Director Randy Vuksta.

10 Keys for Successful Museum Experiences: What Happens When They Leave?

Thu, 27 Oct 2011 11:54:55 GMT

Welcome to another installment of Blog N' Learn, where we unravel the mysteries of museum and attraction design. In our latest series, we're offering 10 keys to creating successful museum experiences courtesy of our VP of Marketing and Business Development, Shawn McCoy. Last week, we learned that designing for the audience and accommodating various learning styles and demographics will help ensure maximum enjoyment and minimum boredom. But how do you keep guests coming back, and how do you make their experience extend past your exit doors? Shawn tackles these questions today with Steps 3 and 4.

Mapping our Tears, Cincinnati, OH

3. Connect on an emotional level by telling authentic, personal stories

If you want to create a truly memorable guest experience, you have to connect to guests on an emotional, personal level. One of the best ways to accomplish this is to tell authentic, personal stories from your unique history. People relate to other people, so if these stories can be told in the words and voices of those who lived them, via text panels or audio and visual presentations, these experiences can have a great impact on visitors.

National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, Cincinnati, OH

4. Deliver strong takeaway messages

The best museum experiences are those that are designed to leave guests with a strong understanding of the key messages about the subject matter. Guests want to better know what makes your subject matter special. By creating exhibit experiences that convey this uniqueness in a clear and exciting manner, guests will feel like they have gained valuable insight for having visited the museum.

While having personal stories and takeaway messages will help encourage repeat visitation, nothing kills a trip to the museum like walking in and seeing dated or cookie-cutter interactives or graphics. Shawn shares the secrets of keeping your museum current, cutting edge and one-of-a-kind in our next segment. Until then, create some museum memories with your family and friends this weekend, and thanks for reading.

Meet the Team: Tyronne Carr

Tue, 25 Oct 2011 17:22:33 GMT

It's Team Tuesday! Today we're talking politics, culinary arts and mental telepathy with JRA co-op, Tyronne Carr.

If I wasn’t working at JRA, I’d be ….
Well... pursuing what is easily my second passion; The Culinary Arts. Cooking is by far my favorite form of design and creativity. My roommate and several others can attest to my intensity in the kitchen and my desire not only for the pursuit of perfection in what I eat and serve but also my requirement for technique and most importantly, for having fun with food.

The biggest challenge being a designer is …
I think that from my personal perspective, the biggest challenge is expressing to “outsiders/non-designers” the importance and depth of the role of Design and its impact on culture, society, the environment and the lives of people. Of course, occasionally I will encounter people who don’t fully understand the influence of Design (not to be confused with “design”) and trying to elucidate how the objective of Design (for better or worse) affects so many things, can be difficult.

What did you want to be when you grew up?
For whatever reason, ever since I was a kid, I was fascinated by politics. It was after I turned 14, during the 2004 election cycle that I decided I wanted to become President of the United States. I know there are probably a good number of kids that decided this (before they realized there were other, more reasonable options) but for me, it was definitely (and still is) no bluff. Recently I read an article building up the case that you must be crazy to ever actually want to be President. Even still today, I am drawn to the game that is our political organism and would never close the door on one day, actually running for office. Call me crazy if you will (you’re probably right).

If you could have any super powers, what would they be?
I would have to say undoubtably I would choose the power to read minds and control thoughts. I probably don’t need to explain this choice because I feel the uses for this control can be predictable. Perhaps, this makes me a megalomaniac, but who besides ME really knows? [Insert super-villain laugh]

What’s a quote that describes you?
One thing about me is that I love hearing other people describe me TO me. They often present a very strange and interesting (most of the time correct) perspective that I myself can’t see. These are a couple of my all-time favorites:

“Ty is like the ultimate manifestation of evil in like the form of a really passive person.” – Jacob Jayakaran

Somewhat extreme but pretty much hits the nail on the head, ha. This next one is most accurrate:

“I tell all of my friends that they have never and will never meet another person anything like Ty Carr. He is… there are no words” – Alex Riordan

That’s right, I have the originality thing down. With all that said, the quote that I personally would choose is pure and simple:

“I’m a very neat monster.”

From none other than Showtime’s Dexter Morgan, which happens to be my favorite show, hands down.

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Thanks, Ty! For our next team post, tune in Monday, where we'll discover what evil lurks at JRA's Annual Staff Halloween Party....

10 Keys for Successful Museum Experiences: Listening To Your Audience

Thu, 20 Oct 2011 09:48:25 GMT

It's Thursday, and that means it's time for another installment of Blog N' Learn. For this 5-week series, VP of Marketing and Business Development, Shawn McCoy, will teach us the keys to developing memorable museum moments for guests of all ages.

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Over the past twenty-four years, JRA has had the opportunity to plan, design and produce a wide range of museums –– from whimsical children’s museums to interactive sport halls of fame to immersive corporate visitor centers. Seeing a museum project grow from initial idea to opening day is one of the most rewarding aspects of being a part of the experiential design business.

What is even more rewarding is to see these projects succeed over the long-term; therefore, we wanted to share what we think are the “Top Ten” keys for creating successful museum experiences:

1. Design for the audience (interests, style and experience)

The first thing to remember as you begin to plan and design the guest experience is that you are creating for your audience, meaning that you feature exhibits, environments and stories that your audience is interested in, not just what the CEO, curator, marketing department or funder wants to talk about. During each stage of planning and design, you should ask yourself, are we really developing an experience that our audience cares about, or are we just conveying the messages that interest us? One way to ensure that you understand what your audience wants to have featured in the project is to get their input via in-person community sessions or online focus groups.

Kentucky Music Hall of Fame and Museum - Renfro Valley, KY

2. Accommodate various demographics, interests and learning styles

Keeping with our audience-centric approach, you want to make sure that the guest experience appeals to a wide variety of demographics, interests and learning styles. There are those who are more interested in the past than the present, while others may have no interest in history. Some of your guests might like a more passive experience, preferring to look at displays and read graphic panels, while others may want a more interactive, physical experience. It is important to create a guest experience that appeals to each segment of your audience and accommodates the various ways that they would like to learn about your subject matter.

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But how do you connect with your audience on an emotional level, and how do you develop strong takeaway messages? Shawn will answer these questions for us next week. In the meantime, tune in Tuesday as we profile another Jack Rouse Associates team member. Thanks for reading, and remember, if there's something you want to know about the attraction design industry or JRA, feel free to comment here, on our Facebook page, or send us a Tweet.

Outside the Studio: When in Doubt, Improvise!

Tue, 18 Oct 2011 15:04:40 GMT

Greetings! For this Outside the Studio segment, we're handing over the reigns to designer Colin Cronin. By day, he's sketching the latest and greatest children's museums, but by night, he's sketching up something a little different...

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The first time I was ever on-stage was in a production of the Wizard of Oz way back in the third grade. I was cast as a munchkin and one of the Wicked Witch’s guards. By the time I chanted my first “Oreo” I was hooked.

Ever since then, I have been in at least one production every year, oftentimes more. I’ve been such varied roles as a Mute King, Judas Escariot/John the Baptist, a Microscopic Mayor, and a Hoopla Carnival Barker. (Bonus points if you can name all the plays!)

And while I love being on stage, in recent years I have started to be more involved in the production-side at the Nativity Players, the community theater group I am involved with here in Cincinnati. Every year, usually in the spring, we put on a large musical. Over the years, our group has done every production you might think of. This past year we put on Annie, using a set design provided by yours truly!

After the adventures of that plucky redhead were over, a group of Players and myself were hanging out, reminiscing, and trying to think about what we could do in the next year. What would make the 2011-2012 season of the Nativity Players one to remember? I have had several ideas bopping around in my head for a while, some of them quite out there. (One of these days I will finally put on a dramatic reading of a classic episode of the radio series, The Shadow…)

One that I was very excited about was forming an original sketch comedy group. This past fall we started meeting, started writing, and thus OTC Sketch Comedy was born. What does “OTC” mean? Well, anything from “Over the Counter” to “Offensively Tangy Chutney.” Whatever you want it to mean – it’s IMPROV!

Our meetings have been a very creative and exciting time. No topic is off-limits, and every conversation is a source of new ideas. As a group we’ve written a sketch about the dating habits of centaurs. We have a Harry Potter sketch, a Batman sketch, and a Super Mario sketch. One sketch involves a Zombie bringing his lunch to school. Our ideas have been as varied as the projects I have the chance to work on at JRA. Really, anything is possible. (Speaking of which, if someone out there has a Zombie attraction in the works, call us. Seriously.)

As with any project I work on, be it on-stage or in the design studio at JRA, eventually it comes time for the grand opening. And this Friday night, at 8pm, OTC Sketch Comedy will have our first, inaugural, premier, supreme, performance (BTW, I love synonyms.). So this week, I’ve been running around buying colonial headgear, dalmatian costumes, and fake mustaches. We have rehearsals every night, and I’m trying to remember lines and blocking for 19 different sketches. I’m exhausted and my whole body aches. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.

So if you’re in the Cincinnati area, be sure to come out and see us perform. You can find us on Facebook and Twitter as “Nativity OTC”. For the rest of you, search for us on YouTube for videos of all our best sketches. I hope to see some of the JRA+blog readership there!

And seriously. Zombie. Themepark.

ABCs of Design and Project Management, Part 4

Thu, 13 Oct 2011 15:47:36 GMT

ABCs of Design and Project Management, Part 4
To the Letter

Welcome to the final segment in our mini-series, The ABCs of Design and Project Management. Just to recap, we’ve:

• Defined the three R’s of the bidding process – RFQ, RFP and RFI
• Decoded the architectural acronyms GC, CAD, MEP, HVAC and FF&E
• Cracked the acronyms of contracts and budgets – LOI, MOU, ROM and VE

For our last post in the series, we’ll address four acronyms relating to spatial layout and guest experience. First we have Back-of-House (BOH). Back-of-house is everything in your attraction or museum that the guest does not see. This would include staff offices, maintenance rooms, AV equipment control rooms, electrical closets and any other service spaces closed to the public. While JRA will lay these out in a master plan, your architect and GC will handle the design of their actual form and function.

Conversely, everything your guest will see – the exhibits, rides, shows, attractions and media – is considered Front-of-House (FOH). These are the areas that JRA will (hopefully) design and project-manage for you. When designing your FOH spaces, JRA must keep in mind ADA requirements. ADA is the Americans with Disabilities Act, which is a federal law in the United States establishing disabled access as a right. Specific guidelines have been established under this act that are required for public access to all exhibits rides and attractions. The Act regulates such items as grades of ramps, heights of counters and widths of hallways and floor spaces.

Another item to consider when designing the FOH is the ECU or Experience Capacity Unit, which is a method of estimating approximate exhibit capacity. Each gallery has an hourly holding capacity, measured by the number of people and the number of turns of experience in one hour. In other words, if you are expecting a relatively high ECU, you wouldn’t want to over-design an exhibit gallery in such a way that your guests are in perpetual people gridlock!

So, now you know your ABCs of design and project management. For our next series of Blog N’ Learns, Shawn McCoy, JRA’s Vice President of Marketing and Business Development, will share the 10 Keys to Successful Museum Design. Thanks for reading, and have a great weekend!

Meet the Team: Kristin Lasita

Tue, 11 Oct 2011 15:07:29 GMT

Happy Tuesday, and welcome to another Meet the Team segment. This week, we're asking five questions of design co-op Kristin Lasita.

My favorite part of the design process is...
Although I enjoy a little bit of everything, I have to say my favorite part is to see the final product I’ve worked on fully completed and looking how it’s supposed to.

Best stress buster...
A tasty habit I’ve picked up from my friends is to make baked goods when I’m stressed out, especially at the end of a hard school quarter. It’s nice to be able to start and finish something and have a delicious result!

Dream vacation...
I’ve already had a taste of my dream vacation (for a couple of hours): Isle of Capri, off the coast of Italy. It has to be one of the most gorgeous places I have ever seen. Clear ocean, blue skies, and (my favorite) some of the best places to shop in the world, as long as my dream vacation included no budget!

My favorite sandwich is...
Hands down the best sandwich I ever had was at The Naked Lunch in San Francisco. They go down to the market every morning and see what looks good then they make it for lunch. I had a skirt steak sandwich with pickled onions, tons of fresh herbs, and some sort of delicious sauce. Bonus! Comes with a freshly squeezed fruit drink (I had watermelon and basil).

Sport I enjoy watching/playing...
Actually my whole family loves sports, so I grew up watching as well. My favorites have to be football, college basketball, baseball, and then basically every Olympic sport (who knew curling could be so interesting!). I’ve been making the most of my final year at the University of Cincinnati by going to all the football games!

Thanks, Kristin! Thursday, we'll conclude our ABCs of Design and Project Management segment with a look at the acronyms for spatial arrangement and guest experience. Thanks for reading!

ABCs of Design and Project Management, Part 3

Thu, 06 Oct 2011 11:58:23 GMT

ABCs of Design and Project Management, Part 3
Contractual Acronyms

We’ve covered the 3 R’s of project management, and we’ve deciphered the codes of architectural design and construction. Today we’ll discuss contractual and budget acronyms. While it may seem a little dry, it’s probably one of the most important things you can learn for your business!

First we’ll start with the LOI – Letter of Intent. An LOI basically translates to, “we would like to build an attraction/museum, and if we can overcome our financing/zoning/insert-other-potential-obstacle-here, we’d like you to help us with it.” This is the least binding form of agreement. Most design/production companies will not begin work on a project on an LOI but may start looking at how they will allocate their staffing resources if the project comes to pass.

A more binding form of agreement is an L(M)OU, or a Letter or Memorandum of Understanding. This document says, “we’ve overcome the obstacles, and we’d like you to start working while we figure out the stipulations of the formal contract.” Most companies will begin project work on an MOU, particularly if the client will offer up a modest deposit or “good faith” payment.

As part of the bid process for a project, and certainly once the design process is underway, a company may be asked to provide a Range of Magnitude budget or ROM. This ranges from a +/-20% to +/-10% estimate (depending on what phase you are budgeting off of), usually based on incomplete design or production information. It is generally non-binding and should not be confused with a quotation, which is usually a tighter +/-5%. If the ROM or quotation is more than what the client had in mind, s/he may ask the design firm or fabricator to VE, or Value-Engineer, this design. Value engineering is a very fancy way of saying, “cutting the budget.” VE could entail cutting out exhibits altogether or simply using a less expensive form of materials or piece of equipment. A good example would be if the AV equipment ROM is higher than expected, the designer or client might employ a 55” monitor for an interactive rather than a 70”.

So there you have it – some simple terms that will make your business discussions a bit more comprehensible! We’ll close this blog series next Thursday with a potpourri of acronyms related to the layout of the space and the guest experience. Remember, if there’s a design term that confuses you, please let us know, and we’ll include it in a future Blog N’ Learn segment. Thanks for reading!

Conference World Tour 2011: European Attractions Show

Tue, 04 Oct 2011 15:37:31 GMT

The International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) enjoyed record numbers (and near record high temperatures!) last week at the 2011 European Attractions Show (EAS) in London, UK. Over seven thousand visitors attended the four-day conference, arriving from more than a hundred countries. The show floor was the largest in the event’s history; 336 exhibitors offered everything from ticketing services to rides, 3D movies to attraction design.

The week began with the European Institute for Attractions Managers Workshop and included seminars on IP branding, social media, safety, human resources and waterparks. One of the highlights of the week was the EAS Gala, held at the Royal Courts of Justice. This prestigious Victorian building is one of the last great wonders of Gothic revival architecture in England and is reminiscent of a cathedral. With more than a century of history, over 1000 rooms and a three-mile labyrinth of hallways, it is one of London’s best- kept secrets. The gala featured music, dancing, a three-course dinner and an opportunity to meet other conference attendees from around the world.

First and foremost, however, having a presence at EAS offered an excellent opportunity to share JRA’s capabilities with the European audience. “We were very happy with the EAS show in London,” said Shawn McCoy, JRA’s Vice President of Marketing and Business Development. “It was a very well organized event with solid attendance. We also participated in a number of great meetings during the course of the three-day event, so we are very excited about the future of the leisure industry in Europe.”

Be sure to check out our photo album from the 2011 EAS Gala Dinner on our Facebook page, and check back Thursday as we continue to de-mystify the various acronyms of design and project management. Thanks for reading. Cheers!

The ABCs of Design and Project Management, Part 2

Thu, 29 Sep 2011 11:06:36 GMT

The ABCs of Design and Project Management, Part 2
Architectural Acronyms

Welcome back to our mini-series, The ABCs of Design and Project Management. Today we’ll decipher the architectural acronyms that can leave a client (and even designers and project managers) a little perplexed.

Most of the acronyms we’ll be discussing today involve the General Contractor (GC). Just as a fabricator realizes the exhibit design, the GC realizes the architectural design for the building. S/he is responsible for all of the work required to prepare the project site and construct the project facilities, including the mechanical infrastructure. In other words, the GC, with his/her engineering and construction teams, makes sure your structural walls are in, your floors are down, your building is dust-free and has clean power, and your MEP is in place so that you can install your exhibits, rides, lighting and audio-visual equipment.

MEP stands for mechanical, electrical and plumbing. This would include your HVAC, or heating, ventilation and air conditioning. We have mentioned this in our previous posts, but it bears repeating: your MEP and your attractions/exhibitry must be closely coordinated. If you have an air vent located behind a piece of fabricated rockwork, you are going to have problems. If you haven’t calculated the heat and power loads for a project and how they compare with the existing facility loads, you may go to plug in your interactive only to find a spark, smoke and damaged equipment. Here at JRA, we keep in daily contact with your project architect and GC to make sure such potential issues are identified and corrected early.

Our last acronym for today is FF&E, which means furniture, fixtures and equipment. These items typically outfit the interior of a building, and the information relating to FF&E is usually supplied as a part of the interior or architectural design. Examples of FF&E include everything from kitchen appliances in a theme park restaurant to decorative plants in a museum lobby. At the outset of each project, JRA and the Architect/GC put together a differentiation document, outlining each company’s scope as regards FF&E and other building-related items.

So there you have it – the ABCs of construction and installation. Next week, we’ll take a look at your budget to determine if your ROM could use a little VE…

Thanks for reading! Is there an aspect of museum and attraction design/project management that leaves you puzzled? Let us know here or on our Facebook page, and you could see your question in a future Blog N’ Learn segment!

Outside the Studio: Can't Stop the (Cincy) Rock

Tue, 27 Sep 2011 16:39:09 GMT

The last weekend in September can only mean one thing in Cincinnati – it’s time to rock! And this year, the party was bigger and better than ever as Midpoint Music Festival celebrated its tenth anniversary.

Founded by Cincy musicians Bill Donabedian and Sean Rhiney, and now produced by local media outlet CityBeat, Midpoint Music Festival (MPMF) attendance has grown from 13,500 to 20,000 in just the past three years. To celebrate “10 Years of Audio Addiction,” the 2011 festival featured over 180 bands in 18 venues over 3 days. Introduced this year was Midpoint Midway, a pedestrian-only carnival featuring decorated box trucks (including one featuring a giant Connect Four board and maze game!), free performances and food vendors.

Amusements on the Midpoint Midway

The MPMFs of previous years have served as springboards for bands now featured in such music publications as Spin, Filter, and Rolling Stone. Musical highlights of this year’s fest included the UK indie rockers Joy Formidable, Australian electro-pop group Cut Copy, the reunion of Alabama surf rockers Man or Astroman?, and legendary San Francisco blues guitarist, Booker T. Jones.

Last row view of Australian rockers, Cut Copy. Click on the band links above to see concert footage from MPMF.

“I would say that the best part about playing MPMF has been its ability to get us in front of an audience who we might not have been able to get in front of otherwise,” says Dylan Speeg, lead singer of local band and perennial festival favorite, Buckra. “Meeting other bands from other places and seeing what they are up to is really helpful as well. It's a great place to try out new material and see old friends.”

The boys of Buckra perform a late night jam to a packed house.

Having cultural, creative outlets like MPMF is one of the many reasons we’re glad to work in Cincinnati. Considering that most venues played to over-capacity crowds last weekend, it appears that Midpoint Music Festival will be feeding audiences fresh ear candy for many years to come.

Blog N' Learn: The ABCs of Design and Project Management - The Three R's

Thu, 22 Sep 2011 11:10:57 GMT

Welcome back to Blog N’ Learn, the series that helps define some of the more commonly used (and often misinterpreted) terms in the museum and attraction design industry. In the next four series of posts, we’re learning the ABCs of Design and Project Management by decoding some often-applied acronyms. Let’s start by exploring the three R’s of the bidding process.

As you’ve read in our 16 Stages segment (If you have, thanks! If you haven’t, check out the archives!), after schematic or detail design, JRA’s project management team will perform a bid solicitation. A bid solicitation is the effort to find and qualify vendors, suppliers and consultants for the fabrication, production, installation and testing of the designed elements of your project. The first stage in the bid process is the Request for Qualifications (RFQ).

The RFQ is a document sent by JRA to a prospective fabricator, ride manufacturer or media producer. It is a request involving only company information and is generally non-project-specific. Requests in the RFQ may include:

• Firm history
• Resumes of key personnel
• Square footage of a fabricator’s workshop facilities and a list of specialized equipment
• Relevant experience (i.e. museum vs. theme park work, experience with projects of a certain size and/or in a certain region)
• What percentage of their projects they typically sub-contract (firms that sub-contract a large portion of their work tend to have higher costs)
• References
• Financial statements

This information establishes the firm’s suitability for a given scope of work. Along with an RFQ, JRA will send the bidder a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA). This agreement stipulates that whatever specifics they learn about your project in the bidding process, they are not to share them externally. Violating an NDA can lead to severe financial penalties.

After receiving the information from the RFQ, JRA will assess the firms and, upon client request, visit the various vendors’ workshops. Once this process is complete, JRA will nominate to you a short list of bidders to receive a Request for Proposal (RFP). The RFP details the scope of work, explains the criteria used to award the contract and specifies the form of response. JRA’s fabrication RFP packages usually include:

• 100% Schematic or detail design package (level of detail depends on the project)
• Architectural/Mechanical/Electrical package
• Materials/Color package
• Graphics package
• Lighting/Audio-visual package
• Written briefs and storylines
• Exhibit matrix (detailed list of attraction components with quantities and descriptions)
• Differentiation document (matrix delineating scope of fabricator vs. architect vs. client)
• Sample contract (if applicable)

Ride RFP packages may include engineering specifications and desired capacities. Media production RFP packages may include any storyboards, attraction briefs or scripts (we’ll differentiate between these various written documents in a future segment). The bidder is expected to respond with a cost quotation as well as their methodology for performing the work, which could include quality assurance/control measures, material specifications (where not specified by JRA), cost control and procurement strategies and a sub-contracting plan.

In some cases, the bidders receiving an RFP will come to JRA’s offices for a bid meeting. At this meeting, JRA’s design and project management staff will explain the various RFP components as well as the overall design intent and delivery systems for the project. During the subsequent bid period, when the vendors are working on their proposals, additional questions are sent via a Request for Information (RFI). An RFI is a formal request for bid clarification. To ensure a fair bid process, both the question and JRA’s response are sent to all bidders.

Once JRA has received the bids, we will review them based on technical/creative considerations, specified work process and price. We will then recommend a vendor to you, and you will negotiate the final contract. Then let the building, engineering and/or filming begin!

So, now you know the three R’s of bid solicitation, but do you glaze over when told that you need to send the MEP CAD drawings to your GC? Don’t know your HVAC from your FF&E? We’ll decipher the various architectural and engineering acronyms in our next ABCs of Design segment. Thanks for reading!

Outside the Studio - Oktoberfest Zinzinnati 2011

Tue, 20 Sep 2011 11:03:23 GMT

Wilkommen to Outside the Studio, a blog series where we feature great things happening in our hometown and beyond.

Here's a recipe for fun: start with a large population of German descendants and some rowdy visitors, add a dash of sauerkraut and a splash of beer, sprinkle in some oompah music, and you end up with one fabulous fest - Oktoberfest Zinzinnati!

Welcoming 500,000 visitors annually on the third weekend of September, Oktoberfest Zinzinnati is North America's largest Oktoberfest and has been welcoming Germanophiles since 1976. In fact, the Mayor of Munich annually declares Oktoberfest Zinzinnati the largest Oktoberfest outside his borders. Why Oktoberfest in September? Find out here.

Preceding the fest, Cincinnati's Fountain Square hosts several "pre-game" events, the most popular being the Racing of the Wieners. Pint-sized pooches dressed in their hot dog best make a sprint for the finish, where their owners (and some bacon-flavored rewards) await. This year's MC for the Races? None other than Cheers alum, George Wendt ("Norm!").

Oktoberfest officially begins with the Opening Ceremony and Ceremonial Keg Tapping. German-Americans in traditional vestments strut their stuff down Fifth Street, and a series of keg tappings signifies the openings of the various bier purveyors. After that, there's dancing, accordions and plenty of Gutes Essen (good food). The festival serves over 80,000 bratwurst, 64,000 sauerkraut balls, 23,000 soft pretzels and 20,000 cream puffs annually, not to mention gallons of goetta. What's goetta, you ask?

The fest culminates in the World's Largest Chicken Dance. The Chicken Dance has been a fixture at Oktoberfest Zinzinnati since 1994, when it was led by the Crown Prince of Bavaria. It broke the Guiness World Record for World's Largest Chicken Dance that year and several years since. Previous dance captains have included Weird Al Yankovic, Vince Neil and Homer Simpson, and this year's dance was helmed by legendary Reds baseball player, Joe Morgan. Of course, to do the chicken dance, you'll need a chicken hat!

Oktoberfest is one of the many gems in the Queen City's crown. While honoring our past, it also pays a nod a spirit of fun and creativity that we strive to bring to JRA everyday.

We hope you've enjoyed this trip outside the studio. Thursday, we're back deciphering the ABCs of museum and attraction design, but join us next Tuesday to see how Cincinnati has kept September rockin' for the last ten years. Thanks for reading - Prost!

Blog N' Learn: The Drawing Conclusions Finale

Thu, 15 Sep 2011 12:30:54 GMT

Drawing Conclusions, Part 5
As-Built to Last

For the final segment of our Drawing Conclusions series, we’ll introduce you to the drawings that, while not provided by JRA, are still very important to your project.

The first drawings we’ll cover are as-builts. As-builts are detailed, measured and (hopefully) accurate drawings of either the facility as it currently stands (if a renovation) or the building as it will be executed (for new construction). These drawings are provided either by the client or by the client’s architect or general contractor. JRA’s exhibit or attraction drawings will be laid on top of these as-builts to ensure they align within the space (i.e., not obstructing entrances/exits or crunched on top of each other). Structural, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, lighting, and audio visual equipment drawings also use these as-builts as their base, so it is essential that they be accurate to the millimeter.

While the architect provides drawings to determine how the building(s) should be built, JRA’s selected fabricator provides shop drawings to determine exactly how to build each museum or attraction element. This process involves taking JRA’s detail design drawings and breaking them down even further to illustrate exactly how a piece should be constructed. Accompanying the shop drawings are construction documents, which identify the construction materials, hardware and special constructions.

The thousands of drawings outlined in this series comprise the blueprint for your project. If done properly, they will ensure that your museum or attraction ends up exactly as you dreamed.

We hope you’ve enjoyed this Drawing Conclusions series. For our next series of Blog n’ Learns, we’ll learn the ABCs of various design and construction acronyms. Thanks for reading!

Project Spotlight Throwback Edition: Texas Wild! at the Fort Worth Zoo

Tue, 13 Sep 2011 16:11:24 GMT

Howdy, y'all! For today's project spotlight throwback, we're takin' it to Texas to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the successful Texas Wild! exhibit at the Fort Worth Zoo.

Jack Rouse Associates worked directly with the Fort Worth Zoo's team in the development of Texas Wild!, an eight-acre expansion highlighting the abundant, unique and varied wildlife of Texas. The goal was to create experiences that not only educate and entertain guests, but also instill a sense of responsibility and pride for their role in the future of their environment.

Texas Wild!’s exhibitry focuses on the tremendous diversity in both the flora and fauna of this unique state while highlighting the positive role man can play in both the environment and its wildlife. Displays highlight indigenous wildlife species in scenarios that emphasize the powerful dynamics of nature, of which man is an integral part. A strong message concerning man’s stewardship responsibility is also conveyed through a variety of educational and entertaining experiences.

Texas Wild! is subdivided into three zones. The first zone, a tranquil and transitional area, includes elements such as a train ride, water features and a western-style carousel. The second zone, Texas Town, includes a petting zoo, play barn, the town jail and the Texas Town Hall. The Town Hall building features a weather-effects theater and a variety of exhibits which focus on ranching, hunting, the plants and animals of Texas and man as steward of the land. The last zone includes five different ecological regions of Texas: Short Grass Prairie, Pineywoods, Coastal Marsh, Brush Country and Mountains and Desert. Over 80 animals indigenous to these five areas are represented in appropriately themed environments.

Jack Rouse Associates’ services included concept development through production of all the area’s interpretive elements, interactive exhibits and graphics. Texas Wild opened to the public in 2001 and is still going strong 10 years later.

Yee haw! Thanks for saddlin' up to this Project Spotlight segment. Thursday, we'll finish up our Drawing Conclusions series, and next Tuesday we'll explore the sillier side of Cincinnati's German heritage.

Blog N' Learn: Drawing Conclusions, Part 4

Thu, 08 Sep 2011 15:25:49 GMT

Drawing Conclusions, Part 4
Elevating Your Design

Welcome to Part 4 of Drawing Conclusions. So far, we’ve differentiated between sketches and renderings, gotten some perspective on and a birds-eye view of your attraction or museum, and bubbled, flowed, planned and reflected your space through various drawings. Today, we’ll explain the intricacies of elevations and sections.

An elevation is a scaled or measured drawing offering a front or side view of the interior or exterior of a structure. The scaled aspect differentiates it from a rendering or sketch. In schematic design, elevations show the size, function and basic appearance of an attraction or exhibit and the various components within it. In detail design, “zoomed in” elevations are produced, giving greater focus to the size, shape, components and functionality of a specific exhibit or attraction element.

Conversely, sections are scaled drawings that offer a cut-away, side view of a structure. Imagine that the structure you are looking at has been sliced through like a pie. You can now see the inner workings of the pie and how far this slice of pie extends into the surrounding space.

So there you have it – now you’ll be identifying drawings like a pro! For the last of this series, we’ll cover the various drawings that are provided by contractors other than JRA – construction documents, shop drawings and as-builts.

Meet the Team: Linda Round

Tue, 06 Sep 2011 10:21:38 GMT

For today's Meet the Team post, we're introducing you to Marketing and Business Development Specialist, Linda Round.

Linda Round joined the JRA team in early 2008, bringing with her over 17 years of experience in the attractions industry, where she was primarily responsible for the international marketing and sales efforts of two major ride manufacturers. During this time, the firms she represented introduced several world record-breaking rollercoasters and prototypical rides, requiring trusting relationships with each client throughout their development. Prior to her work in the rides industry, Linda gained invaluable experience in both operations and marketing during her employment tenures at both Kings Island and The Beach Waterpark in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Linda’s relevant industry experience, global knowledge of the attractions industry and her understanding of business from both an operational and supplier perspective, serve her well in developing and maintaining healthy relationships with JRA’s clients. Her own personal values relative to how clients should be regarded also coincide with JRA’s philosophical approach to business.

Linda has an undergraduate degree in Business Administration from Bowling Green State University. Linda is also an active volunteer and has chaired one of Cincinnati’s larger community festivals for the last seven years.

Thanks, Linda! Thursday, we'll round out our Drawing Conclusions mini-series with a look at drawing elevations and sections. Enjoy!

Blog N' Learn: Drawing Conclusions, Part 3

Thu, 01 Sep 2011 17:26:39 GMT

Drawing Conclusions, Part 3
Bubble, Flow, Plan and Reflect

Welcome to Part 3 of Drawing Conclusions, a Blog N’ Learn miniseries where we break down the various drawings we use to design your project. Today we’ll discuss the various diagrams and drawings around planning.

First, let’s start with the bubble diagram. This is the most rudimentary and loose planning tool and is usually drawn during the preliminary concept phase of your project. Its main goal is not to map out spaces exactly – we’ll do that later – but to get a sense of how the different galleries or theme areas will differentiate themselves and interrelate with each other. The primary physical elements are not scaled, but are represented by simple bubbles or circles.

Once the bubble diagram is laid out, the design team begins to consider how the guests will move (or flow) through the space. These flow or circulation diagrams use a series of arrows to map out a course for the visitor. Some museums or attractions have a prescribed flow (such as a chronological flow), some have various flow options, and some are completely free-flowing. While flow diagrams are first plotted out on top of the conceptual bubble diagram, they will be used throughout all of the phases of design as the exhibits or attractions take shape.

In the Final Concept Phase, JRA will develop a master plan for the entire site. This plan will incorporate all exhibits and attractions and will take into account land (or exhibit) area and defined spatial relationships. Throughout the subsequent Schematic and Detail Design Phases, JRA will develop plan drawings for individual exhibit or theme areas.

The final planning document we’ll cover today is called a reflected ceiling plan, which is typically drawn during the Schematic and Detail Design Phases. Imagine that you are in a museum and somehow managed to have your back stuck to the ceiling, so you’re looking down on an exhibit area – this is your plan view. Now imagine you’ve detached yourself from the ceiling, and the experience has left you exhausted, so you need to lie down on the floor. When you look up, you see banners, painted scrims and projection surfaces. This is your reflected ceiling plan view, which maps out all of your ceiling treatments. The reflected ceiling plan (or RCP) is carefully coordinated with the lighting and audio-visual hardware plans so that the various hanging items don’t conflict with one another. Wouldn’t want your drywall drop ceiling blocking the audio coming from your speakers!

I hope you’ve enjoyed this introduction to the various planning documents that will be used throughout your project. In our next Drawing Conclusions segment, we’ll cover the other drawings used in Schematic and Detail Design – elevations and sections.

Outside the (Cincinnati) Studio - A New Look for JRA Southeast Asia

Tue, 30 Aug 2011 17:13:04 GMT

Jack Rouse Associates Southeast Asia just unveiled its sparkling new office space in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. JRA is one of the first tenants in the new 28-story building, which is located in Kuala Lumpur’s Mont Kiara area, and the 2,000-square-foot office is perfect for the company’s current needs.

Design of the office was the work of Zarina Rafique, one of the directors of JRA Southeast Asia. Even the location in the building was her idea – it’s on the 17th floor, same as the Cincinnati office. “Since JRA’s three key colors are purple, orange and green, the office was most critically, visually themed in those colors,” says Rafique. “Even the desk accessories in the directors’ rooms are in those colors – Post-it notes, trash cans, even down to the highlighters in the color-matched pen holders!”

“Personally, my favorite area is the back-of-house, which has as its focal point an orange ’50s retro-design fridge, again, thanks to Zarina” says Shahryn Azmi, another JRA Southeast Asia director. “Our water glasses and mugs have purple accents, and other than coffee or tea, we also serve Welch’s grape juice to stay as company purple as possible.” Of some quirky value to staff and visitors is the shower, which was purpose-built to be able to offer everyone a convenient freshening-up facility in the office.

Asked what the new office means for JRA, Azmi believes that now JRA will be “able to provide itself with a more effective/efficient base of operations for team members working on local/area projects.”

Well, let me say on behalf of the Cincinnati team that we can’t wait to visit! Thanks for reading, and be sure to check out additional office pics on the JRA Facebook page.

Jumpa lagi (“see you next time”)!

Blog N' Learn: Drawing Conclusions, Part 2

Thu, 25 Aug 2011 09:36:35 GMT

Getting Some Perspective on Birdseyes

Hello, again, and welcome to another Drawing Conclusions segment. Today, we’re covering the difference between perspectives and birdseyes. Building on our previous entry, perspectives and birdseyes are usually considered renderings because they are normally fully illustrated and colored.

Birdseyes (or birds-eyes or birds’ eyes) are just that – they evoke the feeling of being a bird looking down on the entire attraction.

They are the aerial view of the facility and are typically drawn during the final concept phase of theme park or attraction project.

Instead of making you feel like you’re flying above the attraction, perspective renderings make you feel like you are flying (or most likely, walking) through it. These are used for museum and attractions projects and convey three-dimensional qualities – the way you would actually see the museum or attraction. They are constructed to resemble our field of vision and create a sense of depth and balance.

There you have it! Next time, we’ll decipher the difference between bubble diagrams, flow diagrams and the various types of plans. Thanks for reading!

JRA Journeys: Cool Britannia

Tue, 23 Aug 2011 11:53:22 GMT

From our first journey along the east coast of the US, we’ve traveled across North America, jaunted to Asia, and explored the beauty of Europe. It is now time for the last of our JRA Journeys segments, and we’re capping off the series with a look at three of our projects in the United Kingdom. So, cheerio, and let’s go!

Our first stop is Ripley’s London, located in the heart of Piccadilly Circus and housing 700 fascinatingly peculiar exhibits over its 5 floors. For over 40 years, Ripley – often referred to as the real Indiana Jones – traveled the world collecting the unbelievable, inexplicable and one-of-a-kind. Artifact highlights within the London attraction include an actual section of the Berlin Wall, genuine shrunken heads, an authentic vampire killing kit, a four-meter long model of London’s Tower Bridge made out of matchsticks and a 545-pound meteorite. JRA worked with Ripley Entertainment Inc. and London Bridge Entertainment Partners LLP to conceptualize, design and produce the attraction.

Twenty-one miles west of Charing Cross lies the town of Windsor. Most notable for its castle, one of the official residences of the British Royal Family, it is also the home of LEGOLAND® Windsor. Among its 150 acres of wooded landscape, LEGOLAND® Windsor has five main activity areas, interspersed with “peaceful clusters.” Each area relates to a different LEGO play theme, with interactive rides, shows, playscapes, building workshops, driving schools and a “Miniland” – a series of model towns and scenes from European cities, re-created in astonishing detail from millions of LEGO bricks.

Our final JRA Journey takes us northeast to the town of Coalbrookdale, located in Ironbridge Gorge in Shropshire. The Coalbrookdale museum campus contains numerous museums and historic sites that tell the story of the Industrial Revolution. Jack Rouse Associates designed the tenth Coalbrookdale museum within this UNESCO World Heritage site, the popular Enginuity.

The 20,000-square-foot educational attraction showcases the principles of engineering within a historical context, while simultaneously making connections to contemporary design and technology. Working with the museum’s in-house staff, JRA designed a variety of cutting-edge interactives and displays, which have earned the museum rave reviews from both guests and the national press. In fact, just last week, Enginuity was named one of the top 20 paid attractions in the West Midlands by VisitEngland.

We hope you’ve enjoyed our JRA Journeys series. Remember, whether it’s halfway across the world or just outside your door, it’s never too late to have an adventure.

Drawing Conclusions in a New Blog N' Learn Series

Thu, 18 Aug 2011 11:35:29 GMT

Drawing Conclusions – Part 1
Sketches vs. Renderings

Hello, and welcome to another Blog N’ Learn. In this series, we help define some of the more commonly used (and often misinterpreted) terms in the museum and attraction design industry. Today, we begin our mini-series called Drawing Conclusions, where we’ll differentiate between the various types of drawings that a firm like JRA would provide you during the design process.

A question we are often asked is – what’s the difference between a sketch and a rendering? A sketch is typically done in black and white and is a simple, quickly executed drawing that provides the essential features of an object or space without the details. It can be done on a computer, on a drafting table, or even on a cocktail napkin! It’s that creative spark that you just have to write down before you forget. Sketches are typically produced as part of the preliminary concept phase of design.

Renderings, on the other hand, are more carefully planned and begin to show rough detailing of the building, attraction, exhibit or object. They are fully illustrated and colored and are typically drawn during the final concept design phase.

Got it? Great! Next time, we’ll cover the difference between perspectives and birdseye drawings. Thanks for reading!

Outside the Studio: Kings Island Day!

Tue, 16 Aug 2011 16:52:00 GMT

Last week, Jack Rouse Associates staff and friends took a break from the everyday and retreated to Kings Island park, just 30 minutes up the road from the JRA offices. The team enjoyed time with family and each other as they screamed on the Diamondback coaster, glided 300 feet in the air on the new Windseeker walked through the world's largest animatronic dinosaur park.

"It was a wonderful day for all of us," said Assistant Operations Manager, Dana Moore, who organized the event. "Theme parks are our business, so not only did we get to have fun with our families, friends and co-workers, we also got to learn about the latest and greatest rides and attractions."

After a day of fun, it's back to work! Thursday, we'll begin our new Blog N' Learn series, Drawing Conclusions, where we'll decipher some of the more commonly misunderstood terms in the museum and attractions design industry. In the meantime, enjoy these pics from Kings Island Day!

Executive Assistant Chloe James, CEO Keith James, Kelly Webb and COO Dan Schultz ride Race for Your Life, Charlie Brown at Planet Snoopy. Meanwhile, Michael, son of Senior Project Designer Jeff Lichtenberg, awaits his turn - again!

Assistant Operations Manager, Dana Moore, is (very) eager to get on Diamondback.

Senior Project Designer Bjorn Kemper and his family pose in front of their new pre-historic pet. Hope they can fit him in the car!

Blog N’ Learn: The Tale of the Pepper’s Ghost

Thu, 11 Aug 2011 13:05:53 GMT

Once upon a time (actually the mid-1800s), there was a British inventor named Henry Dircks. He developed the Dircksian Phantasmagoria – a concept for making a ghost appear onstage. Problem is, he couldn’t quite figure out how to execute it without having to re-build the whole theatre. Dircks presented his idea at the Royal Polytechnic, which was run by a chemist named John Henry Pepper. Pepper helped Dircks conquer his conundrum, and thus the ghost was born. While Pepper offered various times to give Dircks his due, the name Pepper’s Ghost stuck.

A Pepper’s Ghost is an illusory effect of an image projected by means of intense light and concealed mirrors onto a scrim so that it appears and disappears with the concealed light source. The mirrors can either be on the floor, or the illusion can be created via a large pane of glass situated between the viewer and the scene. The glass reflects a projection or object that is hidden from the viewer. More often today, the images are cinematic in nature.

Pepper first introduced his Ghost in a stage production of Charles Dickens’ The Haunted Man, to great critical success. Today, Pepper’s Ghosts are used throughout the museum and attraction world, the most famous being the Haunted Mansion at Disney’s Magic Kingdom. Jack Rouse Associates has used Pepper’s Ghosts in several of its attractions, most recently to portray the private study of explorer and eccentric Robert Ripley at Ripley’s Believe It or Not! London.

Tuesday, it's all about FUN as we celebrate JRA Kings Island Day!

Meet the Team: Chloe James

Tue, 09 Aug 2011 13:04:43 GMT

Today, we'll meet the newest member of the JRA team - Executive Assistant, Chloe James.

Favorite entertainment experience

I lived in Orlando, FL for 4 years (age 1-5) because my dad was working at Universal Studios…I was obviously not big enough at the time to ride any of the rides, but since my dad worked there they were able to sneak me onto them anyways…definitely one of the perks of having a dad in the industry. However, I do think that I rode both King Kong and Jaws at least ten times each, and somehow never managed to see either of them…face hiding in Dad/Mom’s lap.

If I wasn’t working at JRA, I’d be ….

A Special Education teacher.

The part of my career I enjoy the most is …

Working with my dad…

The best idea in the history of mankind was …

SHOES

My favorite person ever is …

Lex…my sister. She’s 3 ½ years older than I am, and we couldn’t be more different, but I think that’s what makes us so close.

Thursday, we'll reveal a technique that has resulted in great museum and attraction experiences for over 100 years.

Forbes Praises The World of Coca-Cola

Thu, 04 Aug 2011 13:02:22 GMT

"What I believed would be a simple bottling tour turned into the realization that Coca-Cola embraced the world, social responsiblity, and was a cultural phenomenon...If any reader hasn’t visited the Coke museum, do so. Your creative juices will explode. If they don’t, you really need a vacation from your business." - Marianne Bickle, Forbes.com

Jack Rouse Associates provided the overall creative direction for The World of Coca-Cola, so this article was a great way to start our week! It wouldn't be receiving this kind of praise if it weren't for the world-class animators, filmmakers and exhibit builders who worked tirelessly to realize JRA's designs and plans. Kudos to the Coca-Cola Company and all of those who touched this fantastic project!

Want to read the rest of the article? Click here.

Tuesday, we'll drop in on the newest member of the JRA team.

Meet the Team: Five Questions for Irena Eckard

Tue, 02 Aug 2011 13:22:00 GMT

Her favorite game is chess, and don’t you dare call her a starving artist. For this “Five Questions” segment, let’s get to know JRA co-op, Irena Eckard.

If I wasn’t working at JRA, I’d be …
…working somewhere else! Haha! But, assuming that in the current economic situation no other full time positions were available, I would be doing free-lance work in both art and design for companies that make consumer products and sharpening my digital skills by learning new programs and practicing my sketching to prepare for the coming academic year.

Best advice anyone ever gave me …
“Don’t worry about grades. Grades don’t matter. You want an A? I’ll give you an A. Who cares.”
My sophomore design professor was the one who made me understand that when you’re in a creative field, the grades you got in school really don’t mean anything. The important thing is to learn the trade, not try to satisfy some arbitrary rating system. Outside of school, you’ll succeed on the strength of your craft, your work ethic, and your dedication.

I beat a creative block by …
…blasting my ears with different kinds of music. I can control my mood by what music I’m listening to, slow myself down with some smooth piano or hype things up with groups like Flogging Molly or The Fratellis. I like a wide range of music, but my favorite songs are the ones that make me feel alive. Those inspire my creative juices to flow no matter how bad a block I have.

I would advise anyone starting out in a creative career to …
…not fall prey to the starving-artist stereotype. If there is one thing that being a co-op has taught me, it’s that there ARE jobs for artists and writers and designers out there. You may not be on the road to being the next Michaelangelo, but you can make a good living doing something that you love.

Favorite board game
My favorite board game is chess. I’ve been playing it on and off since I was six and I often competed in scholastic tournaments throughout high school. I was also captain of my high school chess team. I like the fact that chess doesn’t involve random or hidden information, like card or dice games. Being able to see the whole board puts both people on equal footing, and you win or lose based on skill alone. I like to play aggressively and favor Bird’s Opening, which I’ve found always leads to an interesting game.

Thanks, Irena!

16 Stages of Project Development: The Great Unveiling

Thu, 28 Jul 2011 16:49:32 GMT

You’ve gotten your permits. You’ve been shown the money. You’ve hired JRA (good move ☺). You’ve seen your project conceptualized, elevated, sectioned, rendered, prototyped, fabricated and installed. Today’s the day – it’s time for the world to see your project…

…almost.

In our last 16 Stages of Project Development segment, we’ll make sure every last ‘i’ is dotted and ‘t’ crossed, that your staff is trained, and that you know how to maintain and operate your new facility before we cut the ribbon and welcome your guests.

Stage 14, Pre- or “Soft” Opening, is the opportunity to give your project a ‘test drive’ before Opening Day. It is at this stage that your operating team and systems are integrated with the facility, the staff and all of its attractions. JRA’s producers and art directors – along with the fabricators and media professionals – work side-by-side with your facility’s management, operations and maintenance staff, and you’ve hosted personnel training programs to prepare the staff for opening. Once you have determined that your operations team is ready, you’ll want to invite friends and family to test out the attractions, rides and/or interactives. Items that need last minute attention are identified, placed on the punch list, and addressed. Once these issues have been rectified, there is often a VIP or press sneak peak to generate buzz for the public grand opening.

“All the work we do in the final stages of the project supports the idea of it coming to life with the addition of the guest,” says JRA Art Director, David Ferguson. “Whether we are finishing a detail that still is incomplete or correcting something we thought would work but didn't in the testing of the idea, the last moments before we open a project are the most anxious.”

So here we are – Stage 15. Congratulations! You’ve opened the doors to the general public for the first time, and all of the work from the last 24-36 months has finally come to fruition. “To see the guest immersed in the attraction and actually enjoying themselves is the ultimate payoff”, says Ferguson. “That is why we do it. We don't think about how much work it took because it was all worth it.” Adjustments continue to be made based on audience reaction, but all in all, the journey has finally come to a (hopefully) glorious end.

…Or has it?

As you may have noticed, there is still one stage missing. It’s a year (or several) after opening. Guests love your new park, attraction or museum – so much so that you have maxed out your capacity, or you want to add some new elements to keep them coming back for more. You guessed it – it’s time for Stage 16 – EXPANSION! As with any product that is designed and produced for public consumption, operating the experience with paying guests will assist you in planning expansion for future years. And when you go through the 16 Stages again this time, you’ll already now the players, steps and processes to make your expansion a success.

We hope you’ve enjoyed our journey through the 16 Stages of Project Development. Questions? Feel free to comment here or post a note on our Facebook or Twitter pages. Tuesday, we’ll meet another of our fabulous co-ops. Until then, thanks for reading, and have a great weekend!

JRA Journeys: Abenteuer in Deutschland

Tue, 26 Jul 2011 12:04:10 GMT

Guten Tag und Wilkommen to another edition of JRA Journeys. So, far, we’ve traversed the United States from sea to shining sea and discovered the wonders of Southeast Asia. Today, we’re crossing the globe to visit two of our projects in beautiful Germany. With 81.8 million people, Germany is the most populous country in the European Union, and its economy is the fourth largest in the world. We’ll start our jaunt in Mainz before heading north to the town of Wolfsburg.

Mainz is located in southwestern Germany and is the capital of the federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate. The Romans founded Mainz as a military post in the late 1st century BC because of its strategic location on the Rhine River, and it has changed hands many times since. More than eighty percent of Mainz was destroyed in World War II, but today the town houses such sites as the Roman-Germanic Central Museum and the Museum of Ancient Seafaring.

Another site may one day be added to the Mainz landscape. ZDF, the German television giant, worked with JRA to develop concept for the proposed park, the first phase of which was planned to include an enclosed facility offering real and simulated experiences based on a variety of ZDF television programs. Actual television broadcasts would be combined with theme park-style attractions to create a dense, immersive and diverse experience for all visitors.

Traversing 186 miles (300 km) north, we arrive in Wolfsburg. Located in Lower Saxony on the banks of the River Aller, it is best known as the world headquarters of Volkswagen AG and the home of Volkswagen’s Autostadt.

Autostadt is a one-of-a-kind, 40+ acre corporate visitor center. This ambitious attraction celebrates Volkswagen’s brands, its fascinating history and its impact on world culture – from the “People’s Car” to the “Love Bug” to the automobility of the future. The Autostadt development features an exposition-style corporate forum, an auto museum, showrooms, pavilions for each of the company’s many brands (including Audi, Bentley, Lamborgini, Seat and Skoda), an elaborate auto delivery center, several theaters, restaurants, shopping, a Ritz-Carlton hotel and other anchor attractions.

Jack Rouse Associates was commissioned by the Volkswagen Group to provide the overall planning and design for many of the major attractions at this highly acclaimed facility. JRA’s specific responsibilities included master planning, exhibit design and project management within the development’s KonzernForum, KundenCenter and ZeitHaus. JRA also provided executive media production of several specialty film attractions, including an 8/70 large-format film, a 360-degree theater, a motion-simulator attraction and a fractured-image multimedia walkthrough. Since its opening in 2000, Autostadt has attracted nearly 2 million visitors annually.

Hard to believe, but we only have one journey left! Join us next time, when we cap off our globetrotting escapades with a visit to jolly ol’ England. Until then, remember: whether it’s on another continent or just outside your door, it’s never to late to start an adventure. Auf Wiedersehen!

16 Stages of Project Development - Fabrication and Installation

Thu, 21 Jul 2011 16:52:28 GMT

16 Stages of Project Development
Stages 12 & 13 – Production, Fabrication, Installation and Testing

Greetings, readers!

I hope you are enjoying our new website. As promised, today we’ll be continuing our 16 Stages of Project Development. But before we begin, let’s take a look at what we’ve done so far:

Phase 1: The Dreaming Period
Stage 0 – What is “it”?
Stage 1 – Zoning: will the community let you build it?
Stage 2 – Government Approvals: will the local authorities let you build it?
Stage 3 – Environmental Impact: what will it do to the surrounding area?
Stage 4 – Financing: can you pay for it?
Stage 5 – Feasibility Analysis: if you build it, will they come?

Phase 2: The Designing Period
Stage 6 – Master Planning and Programming: developing your scope and setting your criteria for success
Stage 7 – Preliminary Concept Design: developing your preliminary concept designs and addressing economic and operational guidelines
Stage 8 – Final Concept Design: completing your master plan
Stage 9 – Schematic Design: defining component elements and preparing cost estimates
Stage 10 – Detail Design: describing the project in fullest detail
Stage 11 – Production and Fabrication Documents: developing construction bid documents, tendering to sub-contractors and negotiating contracts

We now move into Phase 3: The Doing Period, which begins with Stage 12 – Production and Fabrication. In this stage, coordination is critical between JRA’s design and project team, the fabricators, the general contractor, and the specialty subcontractors (audio-visual hardware, rides, media and lighting). Close adherence must be paid to the schedule and the budget so that neither deviates from its intended target.

Depending on the scale of the project, prototyping is likely to occur at this stage. These prototypes can range from small-scale models to full-scale mock-ups of critical and/or complicated components. For children’s museums, interactives are often “kid-tested” to make sure they properly engage the project’s little visitors. For theme park projects, rides undergo vigorous testing and approvals by various engineering authorities. Once the prototypes are approved by JRA and you, the exhibits, rides and/or attractions then move to fabrication.

Media production also takes place during this stage, beginning with appointment of the producer and proceeding through storyboarding, pre-vis, production and post-production. We’ll cover this process in greater detail in a future JRA blog.

The fabrication, AV, ride, lighting and media components are usually constructed off-site, so they will need to be shipped to the project location. Depending on where your project is located, it could take anywhere from 2-8 weeks to ship the items and clear them through customs. Before they can be installed into your facility (Stage 13), the bulk of the building works (structural, mechanical and electrical) must be complete. At the very least, the site will need to be climate and humidity controlled, dust-free and have clean power (i.e., a continuous power stream isolated from the building’s power supply) so that electrical equipment can properly function. JRA’s project manager will provide on-site supervision during the installation, testing and commissioning processes, and JRA’s art director will ensure that the design integrity is maintained through fabrication, installation and opening.

So, your various components have been fabricated, shipped, cleared through customs and installed in your exhibit-ready building. Congratulations! You have now completed the Doing Period. Now begins Phase 4: The Done Period(!), where JRA and the various producers introduce your operational staff to the project. Once your staff is ready, you’ll conduct a soft opening to work out the kinks before unveiling your finished museum or attraction to the public (and the media). We’ll cover the Done Period – and the final three project stages – next Thursday. Until then, be sure to answer our Facebook “Question of the Week?” and enjoy Tuesday’s JRA Journeys segment, when we visit JRA's various ventures in Europe.

Meet the Team: Grania Frueh

Mon, 18 Jul 2011 14:15:39 GMT

Wiggling ears, running and olives? It must be time for another Meet the Team segment, and this time, we're asking five questions of JRA co-op, Grania Frueh.

I beat a creative block by...Listening to music and browsing thedieline.com.

My favorite part of the design process is...Brainstorming new ideas.

My hidden talent is...I can wiggle my ears.

Best stress buster... Running, it works miracles.

What ís your favorite food? Olives, any kind-I like them all.

Thursday, we'll re-visit our long-running blog series, The 16 Stages of Project Development. We'll tackle stages 12 & 13, which will take us through prototyping, fabrication, installation, and testing.

Welcome to the NEW JackRouse.com!

Fri, 15 Jul 2011 13:18:55 GMT

On behalf of the entire JRA team, I'd like to welcome you to the NEW JackRouse.com. Here you will find a portfolio of JRA's enterainment, museum, sport and brand projects, as well as information on the people and processes that can help make your project a reality.

In addition to our blog, which will be updated (at least) weekly, please be sure to check out our Facebook and Twitter pages. Next week, we're beginning a Facebook "Question of the Week." We want you, our loyal readers, to tell us what kinds of museum and attraction experiences you enjoy, and what you'd like to see for the future of the industry.

In the meantime, enjoy the new site and blog, and please give us your comments!

Cheers,

Clara J. Rice

Editor, JRA + blog

JRA Wins International Design Award for Ferrari World

Thu, 07 Jul 2011 16:59:06 GMT

Event Design Magazine has just announced its 2011 Event Design Award Winners, and Jack Rouse Associates is ecstatic to have been awarded top honors. JRA, along with British architectural firm Benoy, received the Gold Winner designation for Best Permanent Exhibition for Ferrari World Abu Dhabi. Opened this past November, Ferrari World Abu Dhabi is the world's largest indoor theme park and immerses guests with the passion, performance and culture of the legendary Ferrari brand.

"We are thrilled to receive this award from Event Design," said Keith James, JRA Chief Executive Officer/Owner. "So many hands touched the Ferrari World project, and we share this with all who have been involved in its success."

Other award recipients included Ralph Appelbaum Associates for the Royal Court of Bahrain's National Charter Monument, Heartland Scenic Studios for the American Museum of Natural History's "Brain: The Inside Story" and Thinkwell for the Fernbank Museum of Natural History.

A complete list of winners can be found here. Congratulations to all!

Conference World Tour 2011: IAAPA Asian Attractions Expo

Thu, 30 Jun 2011 11:02:15 GMT

The final leg of our “conference world tour” took place from June 21st through the 24th in Singapore, host of the 2011 Asian Attractions Expo.

Held at the impressive Resorts World Sentosa on Sentosa Island, the annual conference features a variety of expert-led education sessions, one-of-a-kind evening events, exclusive behind-the-scenes tours of Singapore’s world-class attractions, and an extensive trade show featuring consultants and suppliers from around the world. This year’s conference was a huge success and broke records both for general attendance and the number of tradeshow participants.

JRA had a significant presence at the show, with almost a dozen team members attending from JRA’s design, project management and marketing groups, including Shahryn Azmi and Zarina Rafique from JRA Southeast Asia, based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The Expo’s opening night reception was held at the recently opened Universal Studios Singapore. While somewhat smaller than the Universal parks in Orlando and Los Angles, the 49-acre park is packed with a variety of state-of-the art rides, attractions, themed areas and shows. JRA favorites included the Jurassic Park Rapids Adventure water ride; the whimsical Madagascar: A Crate Adventure dark ride; and the exciting Revenge of the Mummy: The Ride indoor coaster.

Several of JRA staffers had the opportunity later in the week to explore the rest of Sentosa Island, which features a number of JRA-designed attractions, including the Merlion and Fort Siloso.

The JRA team also attended an elegant evening event hosted by our friends from Kingsmen held at The Jewel Box at the top of the iconic Mt. Faber. A big thanks to Kingsmen for hosting such a wonderful reception.

Next year’s conference will take place in Hong Kong from June 5th through the 8th.

Project Spotlight - Throwback Edition: Amazing Chicago

Tue, 28 Jun 2011 17:16:58 GMT

This month marks the 5th anniversary of Amazing Chicago, located on the Windy City’s Navy Pier. Part fun house and part cultural journey, Amazing Chicago invites guests to navigate a series of mirror mazes and twisted tunnels set in a Chicago landscape.

Once inside Amazing Chicago, guests journey through various infinity-maze corridors and colorful sets depicting Chicago scenes. From dark underground tunnels to stunning architectural landmarks, Amazing Chicago takes visitors on a tour like no other.

Throughout the experience, special effects, music and narration bring sights and sounds of Chicago to life. It is the city’s first full-sensory maze experience.

Jack Rouse Associates designed the attraction and enlisted the help of famed London-based maze designer Adrian Fisher to design the mazes. Amazing Chicago is operated by Premier Yachts, the nation’s premier harbor cruise company. Premier Yachts owns and operates ships in Boston, Washington, D.C. and other Navy Pier attractions.

This Thursday, we’ll finish up the summer edition of our Conference World Tour 2011 with IAAPA Asia.

Meet the Team: Erin Graham

Tue, 21 Jun 2011 09:42:10 GMT

Teleportation, soccer and LEGOs. Just another day in the life of JRA Architecture co-op, Erin Graham.

If you could have any super powers, what would they be?

Definitely teleportation, because I could go anywhere! I could see the sun rise over the pyramids in the morning, grab lunch at a Parisian cafe, visit Tokyo in the afternoon, pop in on my friends for a bit, have dinner in Sydney, and still be back in time to see Times Square fully lit. I wouldn't even have to pay for gas!

What is your favorite part of the design process?

Though it can really make design challenging, my favorite part is the problem solving. I love when a constraint makes me think harder about a design: trying to make new things fit with old things, make less space seem like more space, make a building interact with its site, or make architecture that represents a philosophy.

What sport do you enjoy watching/playing?

Soccer. I started playing when I was four and I still love it. One of my favorite things to do in my spare time is play a pick-up game with my friends. I also like watching international play and the Premier League games when they're on television.

What did you want to be when you grew up?

I've always wanted to design for LEGO. Those little blocks brought me so much joy when I was younger and still do. They're even what got me interested in design in the first place. I think playing with LEGOs and finding new ways to combine the bricks to build sets would be the ultimate job.

JRA Journeys: Conference World Tour 2011 - ECSITE

Thu, 16 Jun 2011 14:57:30 GMT

After the ASPAC conference in Guangdong, the next stop on our museum conference “world tour” was Warsaw, Poland, host of the 2011 ECSITE (European Network of Science Centers and Museums) conference.

Held from May 26 – 28, the conference attracted over 1,000 delegates from Europe and beyond. The theme of this year’s conference was “Freedom.”

Each year that I attend the ECSITE conference, I am impressed by how well the conference is organized by the host science center. This year actually exceeded by expectations as Copernicus Science Centre raised the bar in terms of their preparation and hospitality.

Copernicus Science Centre - Warsaw, Poland

The US$131 million dollar, 215,000-square foot museum just opened this past November and is already one of the more popular attractions in Warsaw. During a presentation about the science center early in the conference, we were told that on some weekend days, people actually wait for hours outside just to get in, as the center reaches its capacity quickly. The popularity of the science center is no doubt due to the quality of its exhibitions, programs and energetic staff.

Throughout the conference there was ample time to explore the science center’s various galleries.

Some of my favorite exhibits and galleries included:

Elektrobalt, a robot poet inspired by a character created by late Polish writer Stanislaw Lem.
A kinetic sculpture illustrating various types of wheels and gears.
A bubble sculpture which creates famous portraits (Ladies and gentlemen, Elvis hasn’t left this building)
The museum’s beautiful and relaxing rooftop garden.
A series mechanical puppets illustrating science-based content.

Fansailing exhibit at Copernicus Science Centre

At the same time that Copernicus was hosting the ECSITE conference, they were also hosting their popular Science Picnic event.

Held every year in Warsaw since 1997, Science Picnic is an open-air science festival that attracts over 200,000 visitors. Over 250 institutions from Poland and abroad participate in the event, including various science centers and museums, universities, research institutes, science-related foundations and scientific groups.

Through various demonstrations, shows, exhibitions and interactives, Science Picnic conveys science-based content in a way that is both entertaining and educational.

Congratulation to Copernicus’ management and staff, who simultaneously delivered two very successful science events in one week!

Honda’s walking robot, ASIMO makes a first ever appearance in Poland during the 2011 Science Picnic.

In two weeks, we’ll make the last stop on our Summer Tour – Sentosa, Singapore and IAAPA Asia.

Outside the Studio: Another Project Manager on the Way!

Tue, 14 Jun 2011 14:01:15 GMT

It was an evening of celebration as the ladies of JRA toasted the impending arrival of the newest member of the team! Executive Assistant Chris Chynoweth and her husband, JRA Project Manager Mark Amos, are expecting a daughter in late July. It was a great excuse for a party, presents, and Graphic Designer Teresa John's famous cupcakes!

Chris joined JRA last fall when she and Mark returned from Abu Dhabi, where Mark was working on Ferrari World. She has been a fabulous addition to the team. We wish them nothing but the best and can't wait to meet their little girl!

Congratulations from everyone at Jack Rouse Associates.

Project Spotlight - Throwback Edition: Gateway Colorado Automobile Museum

Thu, 09 Jun 2011 14:21:18 GMT

Greetings! For this Project Spotlight: Throwback Edition, we’re celebrating the 5th anniversary of the Gateway Colorado Automobile Museum, a museum devoted to understanding and celebrating the history, science, design and social impact of the American car. The museum features the collection of John S. Hendricks, founder of Discovery Communications, Inc., the leading global real-world media and entertainment company.

The centerpiece of the facility is a TimeLine of historical vehicles and surrounding the TimeLine are a variety of themed galleries, including the Mass Mobility Gallery, Hollywoood High Style Gallery, American Muscle Gallery, and F-88 Gallery. Overall, more than 40 cars are displayed alongside archival advertisements, high-definition media pieces and science interactives developed according to local and regional academic curriculum standards. The centerpiece of the museum is a one-of-a-kind 1954 Oldsmobile F-88 “Dream Car,” which was purchased for a record $3.24 million.

“It was really refreshing working on the Gateway Auto Museum,” said Brian Donahue, Senior Project Director. “The client had a passion. A passion for classic automobiles. A passion that he decided to share with the community he lived in no matter what the cost, or lack of any possible return on investment. It was a true act of selflessness...”

Jack Rouse Associates provided complete design and project management for this 20,000-square-foot museum.

Meet the Team: Brent Ellis

Tue, 07 Jun 2011 15:28:26 GMT

For today's Meet the Team segment, we're introducing you to JRA Project Manager, Brent Ellis!

With a career spanning over 25 years, Brent Ellis has established himself as a proven, results-oriented, hands-on construction and development professional. Brent has successfully implemented a variety of multi-million dollar projects, for which he has provided contract negotiations, project estimating, document preparation, building code and regulations adherence oversight, material purchasing and site management through to certification of occupancy.

After spending seven years as Manager, Facility Maintenance & Construction for Canada’s Wonderland in Ontario, Brent joined JRA in 2007, and was part of the project management team responsible for delivering Ferrari World Abu Dhabi – the world’s largest indoor theme park. Brent is currently working on two major theme parks, both set to open in Europe within the next three years.

Throughout his career, Brent’s unique combination of interpersonal skills and technical knowledge, has allowed him to successfully coordinate a variety of trades, develop partnerships among project participants, and build positive rapport with consultants and local officials, vendors and clients, all while adhering to each project’s set schedule and budget parameters.

JRA Journeys: Museum Conference World Tour 2011 - ASPAC

Thu, 02 Jun 2011 15:02:44 GMT

In keeping with our recent JRA Journeys: Asia segments, VP of Marketing Shawn McCoy offers insight on his Museum Conference World Tour. First stop - Guangzhou, China.

One of the best things about working here at JRA is the fact that part of our job is to attend conferences and visit a variety of museums and attractions around the world. Last month, many of those conferences fell over the course of three consecutive weeks.

Today’s post takes an in-depth look at the first conference on our “world tour”: ASPAC – The Association of Asia-Pacific Network of Science and Technology Centres, which was held at the Guangdong Science Center in Guangzhou, China.

The Guangdong Science Center is the largest in the world, with a structural area of 137,500 meters (1,480,000 square feet) of space. While the size of the building is certainly impressive, the first thing you notice as you approach the building is its beautiful design, which is inspired by the form of an open flower.

The opening reception of the conference was very entertaining and featured a variety of traditional Chinese performances, including entertaining acts by groups of dancers, acrobats and musicians.

The next day I had the opportunity to walk through the science center which features a number of state-of-the art galleries, including the Children’s World gallery designed by JRA. I was fortunate enough to be treated to a guided tour of the gallery by two of the science center’s young and energetic staff members, who said that the gallery is very popular, and is visited by over 3,000 guests each day on the weekend. Despite having been opened for three years with heavy visitation, the gallery looked brand new, which is a testament to the science center’s dedication to maintenance and cleanliness. My favorite parts of the gallery include the children’s driving school and repair shop, the walk-through cave and forest area and an interactive exhibit teaching kids how moon pies are made.

The conference itself was very informative, very well organized and well attended, with delegates from a variety of Asia-Pacific science centers.

The theme of the conference was “The Missions of Modern Science Centers and Museums: Opportunities and Challenges,” and there were a variety of thought-provoking presentations. One of my favorite presentations was a video detailing how the Petrosains Discovery Centre in Malaysia sent a variety of delegates to the Science Alive! science center in New Zealand after that country’s recent earthquake. Not only did the Petrosains representatives provide valuable guidance to the science center on how to present entertaining outreach programs, but also provided the citizens of Christchurch with a bit of welcome distraction from recent events.

The closing ceremony was held on a riverboat that took delegate up and down the beautiful Pearl River, which features a variety of stunning architectural wonders, including the colorful Guangzhou TV Tower and the iconic Liede Bridge.

Next week, we take a look at the next conference we attended on our tour: AAM – The American Association of Museums conference held in Houston.

JRA Journeys: Malaysia and the Philippines

Wed, 01 Jun 2011 13:09:55 GMT

Selamat siang (“good afternoon” in Malay)! For our last JRA Journey through Asia, we’ll be visiting the beautiful countries of Malaysia and the Philippines.

Driving over the South China Sea via a bridge from our last stop in Singapore, we arrive in Malaysia. This constitutional monarchy achieved independence from the British Empire in 1957 and is split into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Malaysian Borneo. Malaysia comprises many ethnic groups and languages and has a strong tradition in literature and music to contrast its science and technology economy.

We recently highlighted the opening of the KidzWorld pavilion at the National Science Centre of Malaysia (Pusat Sains Negara) in Kuala Lumpur. Jack Rouse Associates also provided conceptual design work and master planning for Lok Lawi Seaside Resort, a planned 50-acre tourist attraction in Kota Kinabalu, Shabah on the northern coast of Borneo. Phase I included a themed entertainment area, featuring a large wave pool and several water rides throughout the adult area, teenage area and children’s play area. The theme is based on the tropical flora, fauna and architecture specific to the region. Phase II involved the development of several themed thrill rides, including a rapid river ride, spill-water ride, flume ride, adult bumper boat rides and the addition of several water slides.

We now travel east back over the South China Sea until we reach the Philippines. With 92 million people of various cultures and ethnicities, the Philippines is the 12th most populated country in the world. With Magellan’s “discovery” of the Philippines in 1521 (people had inhabited the Philippines since prehistoric times), the island nation came under Spanish control (the country is named after King Philip II of Spain). It remained Spanish until the early 20th Century, when the United States took over, but finally gained independence after World War II. Its culture melds its Spanish and American influences with traditions found in Malaysia and other Southeast Asian countries.

In Taguig, in the district of the Filipino capital of Manila, construction is underway for the Mind Museum. This innovative new science center will serve as the cultural anchor for Bonifacio Global City, a new 593-acre development, and will feature 4,900 square meters of interactive science and technology exhibitions within five major galleries. The goal of the Mind Museum is to convey important and accurate science principles through the use of interactive, multi-media and multi-sensory exhibits firmly based in a story context. Current story topics include The Universe, Life, Nature, the Atom and Technology.

Each of the major exhibit galleries, or “spheres,” will include an iconic “centerpiece,” which will be surrounded by 25 to 30 exhibits embedded within the overall gallery aesthetic and/or architecture. Corridors connecting the five spheres will provide further opportunities for interpretation and immersion within the various story themes. JRA provided master planning, conceptual and schematic design for this innovative project.

That brings us to the end of our JRA Journeys through Asia. If you’re in the area, be sure to visit our JRA offices in Kuala Lumpur! Join us next time, as we head west to visit JRA’s projects in the Middle East. Till then, we wish you safe journeys of your own, and remember – it’s never too late to have an adventure! Paalam (“Goodbye” in Tagalong)!

Meet the Team: Ian Surra

Tue, 24 May 2011 16:16:01 GMT

Whether it's building prototypes, playing instruments or just watching things go BoingBoing, there's never a dull moment when you're asking 5 questions of Jack Rouse Associates co-op, Ian Surra.

My favorite part of the design process is...

Physically building the models, prototypes, and products. I love making things and working with my hands. That's the main reason I'm studying industrial design: I want to know how everything is made, and then I want to make it.

My ipod/itunes is full of...

A smorgasbord of music, of all genre, period, and style. I'm pretty passionate about music, I play some instruments, been in a few bands, and I probably spend significantly more than I should on CDs and LPs. It's really hard to pick favorites, but I've been listening to Max Indian's new album a lot recently, and it is fantastic.

I get my daily news from...

Google Reader. My friend introduced me to it a few months ago, and it is addicting. I follow a bunch of blogs (like BoingBoing and GOOD), parse the headlines of BBC News and Al Jazeera, read comics, etc. Google Reader makes it far too easy to be fed endless interesting information. I also listen to NPR in the morning on the radio.

I'm reading...

I'm about to finish a book called Rip it Up and Start Again: Postpunk 1978-1984 by Simon Reynolds. I picked it up on a whim from a used bookstore, and it's been great. As I said, I love music, and postpunk is definitely one of the more interesting musical (and cultural) movements.

What are your favorite movies?

Just like with music, it's hard to pick favorites. I love Wes Anderson movies, and John Hughes' stuff. I suppose in general I like filmmakers with a good sense of humor. Lately I've been on a Kevin Smith binge. I also have a soft spot for science-fiction: The Fifth Element, The Adventures of Buckaroo Bonzai Across the 8th Dimension, Brazil, 12 Monkeys, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind... there are too many to list.

JRA Guest Blog: Strategic Planning

Thu, 19 May 2011 16:22:55 GMT

Please remind me again...why are we doing this?
Why Good Strategic Planning Makes for Great Public Experiences

For today's guest blog, are lucky to have Hugh Spencer of Museum Planning Partners help us tackle that penultimate question in undertaking a museum project: why?

In our line or work, we use leading edge technologies, employ advanced logistics and even run our interpersonal professional relationships according to sophisticated human management models. This can sometimes make it hard to have the courage to ask what might seem like some really simple questions when we undertake change or initiate new projects:

How does a project help us to achieve our goals? How are we going to carry out this project? What’s going to change in the world once we’re finished? Who is going care that we’re doing this project? Creating great exhibitions and public experiences is hard work; it can take a lot of time and many resources. So why are we doing all of this?

These questions may be awkward to ask, but finding reliable answers can be extremely important to your future and success. More and more museums, art galleries, science centers, zoos, aquariums and theme parks are turning to master planning and strategic planning as a way of finding the essential information to help them grow and better serve their markets and communities. Strategic planning helps you to better understand who you are, what your roles are, what challenges and opportunities you’re facing, what resources you can use, and what steps you can take.

There’s a vital connection between strategic planning and exhibition and attraction design, because your exhibits, shows and even architecture are all very powerful ways to express your organization’s identity and mission. These are also the experiences that will attract people to you and keep them coming back. The results of a good strategic plan will help you to define your brand, craft your core messages and identify the markets you need to serve.

Working with JRA has given me some really wonderful and, I come right out and say it, fun opportunities to apply the results of strategic planning to help create some great exhibitions and attractions. The American Royal Visitors Center in Kansas City needed more market and educational curriculum information so that we could design exhibits and programs that would make it a year-round rather than just a seasonal attraction. KIA Motors presented us with the unique challenge of converting a temporary World’s Fair pavilion into a permanent science center. The resources and operational requirements identified in our planning study told us how we could recast the visitor experience and specify the best possible back-of-house infrastructure.

Right now, I’ve been working with the JRA team on the development of new master plan for one our America’s more prestigious educational attractions. While we have just begun our work on the project, it is clear that strategic planning will serve as the foundation for the development of the institution’s new exhibit program, operations and, perhaps, branding. It is this holistic approach that will gave the institution the best chance to succeed for the long term, which its been such a fulfilling project to work on.

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Hugh Spencer is a writer, interpretive planner and museum consultant and has participated on projects around the world such as the White House Visitors Center in Washington D.C. the Natural History Museum in London, the Singapore Discovery Centre, and the West Kowloon Cultural District in Hong Kong, the Khalsa Heritage Centre and the Massar Discovery Centre in Damascus. He has been a cultural and attractions consultant since 1987 with groups such as Lord Cultural Resources, Cultural Innovations, Hall Train Studios and Arius 3D. Hugh is currently President and Senior Consultant at Museum Planning Partners.

JRA Journeys: Singapore

Tue, 17 May 2011 13:08:05 GMT

In our last segment, we journeyed through southern China to the territories of Macau and Hong Kong. Today, we’ll head west to the majestic island country of Singapore. While there, we’ll visit Science Centre Singapore before venturing to Sentosa Island, Singapore’s entertainment capital and home to two Jack Rouse Associates projects.

The Republic of Singapore is a city-state comprised of 63 islands off the Malay Peninsula, just 85 miles north of the Equator. First settled in 2 A.D., Singapore was governed by Great Britain and Malaysia before declaring its independence in 1965. This unique location and history supports a fusion of many cultures, and Singapore’s official languages include English, Malay, Chinese and Tamil. The Singaporean government views racial and religious harmony as the key to the country’s past successes and future endeavors. Considered one of the four Asian Tigers (along with South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong), Singapore has seen a massive increase in wealth since becoming an independent nation, and it is now the fifth busiest port in the world.

Located in the Jurong East section of Singapore, Science Centre Singapore (SCS) specializes in the promotion of scientific and technological education for the general public. Opened in 1977, SCS now hosts more than 1 million visitors annually and offers 850 exhibits among its 8 exhibition galleries.

JRA worked with Science Centre Singapore’s in-house design staff to develop an exciting live show and themed elements within the museum’s entry atrium. The renovated atrium integrates a number of the Centre’s existing off-the-shelf exhibits into a high-energy, high-impact experience that communicates a strong message about the thrill of science. Facilitated by a live actor portraying the mysterious Nikola Tesla, the show makes use of the full atrium, creating an immersive environment that recalls the tremendous power of natural phenomena. Through audience interaction, special effects and dramatic lighting, the educational and entertaining presentation builds into a thunderous crescendo of lightning from an iconic Tesla coil. JRA also designed a variety of themed portals that introduce guests to the Science Centre’s wide variety of science-themed exhibit galleries.

Traveling southwest down the Ayer Rajah Expressway before taking a cable car across Keppel Harbour, we arrive at Sentosa Island. Sentosa, which translates to peace and tranquility in Malay, is Singapore’s entertainment epicenter. Attractions include Resorts World Sentosa casino, Universal Studios and the JRA-designed attractions Fort Siloso and The Merlion.

JRA provided overall design and production for a major exhibit and site renovation of Fort Siloso, Singapore’s only preserved coastal fortification. This historic site now serves as a popular interpretive attraction and houses a comprehensive overview of Singapore’s World War II history. Updates to the interpretive attraction include: more accessible walking routes, new interpretive experiences, relocated exhibits and exciting multimedia shows, each providing insight into the diversity of people and events surrounding the Fort’s rich history.

Guests of Fort Siloso begin their experience at a new square, where they can see a series of exhibits and films that detail Fort Siloso’s history. From there, visitors may tour the Fort’s structures, seeing firsthand what life was like for soldiers and volunteers who served on Sentosa Island throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Popular attractions such as the “booming” six-inch gun and vignettes depicting the lives of soldiers are blended with more reflective exhibits that address the POW experience and Singapore’s years of Japanese occupation.

Reverting from history to pure fantasy, we journey from Fort Siloso across Sentosa Island to The Merlion. The Merlion is Singapore’s benevolent guardian and one of the many mysteries of the sea. The new Merlion experience begins with a pre-show that introduces visitors to sea mysteries from many cultures. Lively original music follows guests as they pass dioramas depicting mermaids, lake monsters, sea serpents, movie creatures and other deep-dwelling enigmas.

The attraction’s main theater showcases Singapore’s own sea mysteries: the storm that threatened Prince Sang Nila Utama in the 11th century as he traveled to the island he would name “Singapura,” or Lion City and the development of the Merlion as a symbol of welcome and guardian of Singapore’s good fortune. These stories, presented using animation from Hollywood’s ACME Filmworks, are told in a themed space that puts audience members into the heart of the action. Afterward, visitors can participate in an interactive experience, which allows them to see whether they, too, have been touched by the luck of the Merlion. The guest experience culminates with a trip to the top of the Merlion’s head to take in a view of Singapore’s harbour that has captivated island-goers since the Merlion first came to Sentosa.

The Merlion was completed as part of a bigger project, conducted in partnership with Los Angeles-based BRC Imagination Arts, to redevelop several key attractions at Sentosa.

This brings us to the end of our JRA Journey through Singapore. Join us next time as we conclude our Asian tour with visits to Malaysia and the Philippines. Till then, we wish you safe journeys of your own, and remember – it’s never too late to have an adventure!

Blog N' Learn: 16 Stages of Project Development - Construction Documentation

Thu, 12 May 2011 17:21:32 GMT

16 Stages of Project Development
Stage 11: Production and Fabrication Documents

In our last 16 Steps segment, we completed JRA’s design process, selected the materials and finishes for your exhibits and attractions, and helped you select and hire the fabricators, AV hardware vendors, lighting vendors and media producers who will make your project (and JRA’s designs) a reality. From this point forward, JRA will assume the role of executive producer, managing the work of the various sub-consultants in cooperation with the base build architects and engineers.

In this stage, all documents required by consultants, vendors and contractors to implement the project are finalized, though the documentation produced can vary greatly with each museum or attraction. These exhibit, attraction and building works documents are assembled into a tender package to bid out a general contractor (those familiar with the Royal Institute of British Architects stages will recognize this milestone as Stage G). Deliverables among the various vendors and the building architect may include:

Plans
Specifications
Construction Documents
Shop Drawings
Scripts
Storyboards
Models

Upon the selection of a general contractor, demolition will most likely begin on a renovation or foundation work on new construction. Production begins on exhibit components, rides, attractions and media. We’ll delve further into this process in Stage 12, Production and Fabrication.

Meet the Team: 5 Questions for Emily Ciccarello

Tue, 10 May 2011 17:24:43 GMT

Interesting wall decor, teleportation and attack pigeons? Must be time for another 5 Questions segment, this time with JRA co-op, Emily Ciccarello.

Best advice anyone ever gave me … “Forget regret… or life is yours to miss.”

I beat a creative block by … Doing or observing something else creative that is unrelated to what is causing my block. If it’s a design issue I might go choreograph a dance, listen to music, or watch inspiring youtube videos.

Do you collect anything? If so, what? I collect discarded CDs that are scratched beyond functioning or unwanted and use them to decorate my room by writing my favorite song lyrics at that moment on them.

If you could have any super powers, what would they be? I would like the ability to teleport myself anywhere so I could save a ton of time getting from point A to point B, and I would not have to deal with cars, traffic, and the soaring price of gasoline.

My most embarrassing moment was… When I got attacked by a pigeon in a crowded park, and by attacked I mean it latched onto my hair for a solid 10 seconds as I flailed around swatting at it fervidly to let go.

Project Spotlight: Honoring the Mercury Mission

Fri, 06 May 2011 13:04:32 GMT

“It’s been a long way, but we’re here.”
- Alan Shepard

Fifty years ago today, and only 23 days after Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin’s momentous voyage, Alan Shepard became the first American in space, riding aboard the Freedom 7 capsule as part of NASA’s Mercury missions. Shepard’s flight lasted only 15 minutes and 23 seconds, but it inspired John F. Kennedy to make the following remarks before Congress only twenty days later:

Finally, if we are to win the battle that is now going on around the world between freedom and tyranny, the dramatic achievements in space which occurred in recent weeks should have made clear to us all, as did the Sputnik in 1957, the impact of this adventure on the minds of men everywhere, who are attempting to make a determination of which road they should take…

…I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the earth. No single space project in this period will be more impressive to mankind, or more important for the long-range exploration of space; and none will be so difficult or expensive to accomplish.

Twelve years ago, the Kennedy Space Center asked Jack Rouse Associates to design its Early Space Exploration Exhibit, which tells the story of the early days of NASA and the American space effort. Organized by space achievements from the early twentieth-century through the 1970s, the 8,500 square-foot exhibit guides more than 3 million guests per year through a comprehensive and compelling history.

The exhibit features a variety of immersive environments, media experiences and displays of unique artifacts, including authentic Mercury and Gemini capsules, Apollo space suits and various NASA rocket models. The jewel of the exhibit is the actual Mercury Control Room – the same used to guide Alan Shepard out into space and safely back to Earth – relocated from Cape Canaveral Air Force Base.

“We are honored to have worked on such an important project celebrating US space exploration,” said Dan Schultz, Chief Operating Officer. “Then men and women of the Mercury program were true pioneers, and we hope this exhibit will inspire others to expand their view of what is possible.”

“I must admit, maybe I am a piece of history after all.”
- Alan Shephard

Project Spotlight: Making it Easy to Be Green

Fri, 22 Apr 2011 13:02:56 GMT

Welcome to this special Earth Day edition of Project Spotlight. Founded by United States Senator Gaylord Nelson in 1970, Earth Day is now celebrated by 175 countries around the world, and was formally recognized by United Nations in 1990. The actual April 22nd date of Earth Day is a relatively arbitrary one, chosen by Nelson because it would not fall on any important holidays or school exams and would thus enable more students to participate.

As the world has become more environmentally conscious, many of our clients have requested that our designs meet specific the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) criteria. So, in honor of Earth Day, we sharing three of our “greenest” design projects.

Cordova Center on the Rock Environmental Learning Center
Lake Red Rock, Iowa

Jack Rouse Associates recently worked with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to provide interpretive planning and design for a LEED-certified environmental learning center to be located on the bluffs of Lake Red Rock, Iowa’s largest lake. The overall goal of the project is to educate the public on environmental stewardship, and build support for conservation of Iowa’s land and water resources. The central theme will be one of relationships between human need and natural resources at Lake Red Rock and within the Des Moines River Watershed. The center will combine several components into a regional destination for experiencing and understanding our natural environment and will also enhance the quality of life for both visitors and residents. In addition to the 30,000-square-foot learning center, other components will include new trailheads, rental cabins, and picnic sites to further enhance the educational, recreational, environmental, and cultural experiences for individuals of all ages. In addition, a stage for live performances and programming will augment the public’s interaction with both nature and culture.

Museum of Broadcast Communications
Chicago, Illinois

Jack Rouse Associates provided initial planning and design for the new Museum of Broadcast Communications. Currently in fundraising, the museum was awarded a $1.2 million grant by the Illinois Clean Energy Community Foundation and is expected to earn a gold rating from the U.S. Green Building Council under the LEED rating system.

The Museum's new home, located within a renovated building on the corner of State and Kinzie, will have dramatically reduced electricity demands due to its energy efficient design. The museum will also feature soy-based roof coating and insulation. The energy saved from the upgrade will result in less pollution and reduced operating and maintenance expenses every year. Educational kiosks and media access points will be installed in the museum to tell visitors "the green building story," showcasing the benefits of the green features incorporated at the Museum.

Kohl Children’s Museum
Glenview, Illinois

The is a hands-on children’s museum for children ages birth to eight. Working with the client and educational consultant Mary Sinker, Jack Rouse Associates provided complete master planning, conceptual design and the majority of schematic design for approximately 17,000 square feet of exhibits and environments. Detail Design and fabrication was provided by Layman Design, Inc. and Derse Museum Group, while the museum’s Water Works area was designed by Claro Creative Studios.

The museum believes in the power of imaginative play and features creative interactive exhibits with immersive environments, many of which have a “green” focus. Adventures in Art often employs recycled materials, and the Nature Explorers exhibit explains the basics of recycling. The facility received Silver Certification from the LEED program.

We hope you’ve enjoyed this cross-country tour of JRA’s environmentally-friendly designs. Remember, even small, individual acts make a huge difference. It’s as easy as turning off a light when you exit a room, planting a tree, or ordering a recycling bin.

Have a GREEN day!

JRA Journeys: Passport to China Part 2 - Guandong, Macau and Hong Kong

Tue, 19 Apr 2011 13:57:38 GMT

Feliz Terça-feira (“Happy Tuesday”)! Why am I writing in Portuguese for a blog about Asia? You’ll just have to read on!

In our last JRA Journeys segment, we traveled to Asia, exploring a cultural center in central China before traveling to this ancient country’s south east coast. Today, we’ll continue southward through Guangzhou before visiting the territories of Macau and Hong Kong.

From where we last left off at Harborland, we’ll travel 693 miles down the coast of the South China Sea to Guangzhou, in the province of Guangdong. Located at the mouth of the Pearl River, Guangzhou is the third largest city in China. It is also the home of the Guangdong Science Center, the largest science-technology center in the world coming in at 450,000 square feet.

Guangdong Science Center’s 20,000-square-foot “Children’s World” takes children on an interactive exploration of their home, neighborhood, city and world. Children’s World features a number of immersive environments and interactives. Highlights include a children’s driving school and mechanic shop, a role-play farm where children can pick their own fruit, a sand pit where guests can unearth dinosaur “fossils”, a walkthrough body experience and a dynamic water play area. Jack Rouse Associates provided complete exhibit design for this dynamic children’s experience.

Children and parents alike will enjoy our next Guangdong destination, which lies 90 miles south in the city of Zhuhai. In this resort town on what is known as the “Chinese Riviera,” we find New Yuan Ming Palace. Working closely with EDAW Hong Kong, Jack Rouse Associates provided theming as part of a larger feasibility analysis and renovation plan for this 140-hectare park.

Since its opening in 1997, this partial reproduction of Beijing’s once famous Old Summer Palace has been a popular destination in southern China. The renovation plan was launched to reinvigorate the park in anticipation of its 10-year anniversary. New attractions and programs have been added to available space, while existing attractions are being adapted to meet the ever-demanding market expectations. Upon completion of the renovation, the New Yuan Ming Palace will provide enriched activities and new highlights to the visitors.

On the western side of the Pearl River Delta, and bordering the Guangdong Province to the south, lies Macau. Once a Portuguese colony (the language is still spoken along with Cantonese), Macau is now one of the two special administrative regions of the People’s Republic of China and a major gambling and tourist destination.

Pier 16 – Property Development, Ltd. Is currently developing a new HK$2.4 billion integrated resort, Ponte 16, that will be situated on a 2.3-hectare waterfront site within Macau’s Inner Harbor. The resort will consist of 1.3 million square feet of high quality entertainment and attractions, include a five-star hotel, a casino and an entertainment complex, conceptualized by Jack Rouse Associates and featuring a variety of themed areas, shows, restaurants and retail experiences.

For more “grown-up” fun, we journey across the South China Sea to our final destination, Hong Kong. China’s other special administrative region, Hong Kong was a colony of the United Kingdom until 1997. It is currently one of the most densely populated regions in the world. All those 7+ million people need something to do, right? Enter JRA and Ocean Park Hong Kong.

Ocean Park hired Jack Rouse Associates to revise the original master plan for the park’s Lowlands theme area. The study analyzed all existing attractions, the goals of the park and expected attendance increases. The subsequent master plan called for renovating existing attractions and using available land for new attractions like a themed rapid-river ride and a 4,000 seat Dolphinarium. In addition, the plan called for a new front gate, entry plaza and retail and food venues. The entire master plan was designed to incorporate the park’s existing marine life and animal education theme. The park currently welcomes over 5 million visitors annually, making it the world’s #15 theme park for annual attendance.

We hope you’ve enjoyed our JRA Journeys: Passport to China. If you’ve visited one of our Chinese attractions, be sure to comment here or on our Facebook page and let us know what you think!

Next time, we’ll travel west to Singapore. One of the busiest ports in the world, this island country is enjoying an influx of both immigrants and tourists and is fast becoming Southeast Asia’s entertainment capital. Until then, happy travels!

Blog N' Learn: 16 Stages of Project Development - Detail Design

Thu, 14 Apr 2011 15:43:13 GMT

16 Stages of Project Development
Stage 10: Detail Design

We have now reached the final stage of JRA’s design process for your project. During the detail design stage, designs and storylines are defined to a level accurately describing each attraction. The work begins to illustrate how the project will be constructed, fabricated and produced. Technologies are determined and delivery systems identified to enable the project team to evaluate the design solutions for their effect on the budget and the quality of the visitor experience.

Flooring Plan

It is important to note that, due to the nature of the selected components, the level of design required for installation and/or fabrication may vary. Determining factors include the project budget, size and schedule, as well as the needs of the selected fabricator and/or media producer (some fabricators can build off of a concept, others require details down to the last flange). JRA will provide vendors with the appropriate level of documentation for fabrication and production.

The detail design stage is the stage at which the fabricators and media specialists are chosen to take our designs and manifest them into your project. The process begins with a Request for Qualifications document sent to a long list of vendors, which asks for generic items such as financial information, staffing, relevant overall experience, and relevant experience particular to your project’s specific region or subject matter. From there, we review these RFQs with you and get down to our short list. Those on the short list are then sent a Request for Proposal package, which includes items such as an exhibit matrix, project schedule and detailed descriptions of major attraction, museum and/or media components. The process thus ensures that all vendors are receiving (and budgeting) the same information. Once all the RFPs are received and reviewed by your team and JRA, the winning bidder is identified and contracted. Often, this entire process occurs at the halfway point of detail design. The selected fabricators, AV providers and media producers can then help value engineer JRA’s design through the rest of the phase.

Graphic Template

Deliverables at this stage may include:

Detail design CAD plans
Detail design elevations and sections
Color and surface treatment selections
Object and case layouts
Final graphic templates for specified attractions, rides, exhibits, environments, and media
Final project matrix
Final design intent documents for lighting/audio/visual control for specified attractions, rides, exhibits, environments and media
Performance specifications for specified attractions, rides, exhibits, environments, and media
Revised budget allocations document

“Detail design is where all the hard work of everyone's previous design accurately describes each element in the project,” says Matthew Wheeler, JRA Senior Project Director. “Pay attention to the small details and it will greatly reduce the risk of surprise. Even the grandest projects depend on the success of the smallest pieces.”

After detail design, JRA’s role shifts from that of designer to that of executive producer, overseeing the fabricator, AV hardware vendor, media producer(s), lighting contractor and any other specialist subcontractors. The fabricator begins their process by producing a set of production documents, and tender documents for the base build construction/integration are developed. We’ll tackle this last drawing challenge in Stage 11 – Production Documentation. Then, it’s time to make our 2D drawings your 3D experiences.

Want additional information or have a question on any of our 16 Stages? Write in the comment area below, or check our Facebook page!

Meet the Team: Rob Morgan

Tue, 12 Apr 2011 15:31:00 GMT

It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s…JRA Senior Project Director, Rob Morgan! Found out about his other super power aspirations in this installment of Meet the Team.

Best thing about the industry:
It has to be the variety of work, both in terms of subject matter and location / culture. It’s always fresh and challenging - no single solution works everywhere, and you’re always being forced out of your box…

I beat a creative block by …
Getting away from the issue and doing something else for a time, or by simply starting over with a new approach. Some ideas weren’t meant to happen, better to cut your losses and get on with things.

I’m reading …
“The Next 100 Years a Forecast for the 21st Century” by George Friedman
Ours is a global industry, so it’s important to know what may be happening economically and politically around the world in the next few decades. China and Russia will continue to be strong markets for the next 20 years or so, but the big money is on Brazil and South America.

If you could have any super powers, what would they be?
I do this one with my son all the time… it would have to be – super strength, flying and probably invisibility. My son usually says “vast wealth” but I figure that’s not so much of a “super power” as it is a desire, and of course he’s only 12 so…

For ideas, I read …
I look for visual solutions mainly - I go to the contemporary art/architecture world. That’s where the new and innovative ideas are coming from. My favorites are “Artforum” and “frieze”

Blog N' Learn: 16 Stages of Project Development - Schematic Design

Thu, 07 Apr 2011 15:44:34 GMT

16 Stages of Project Development
Stage 9: Schematic Design

Welcome back to our Blog N’ Learn and the 16 Stages of Project Development. You now have a sense of the general feel and look of your project. Now we’ll start tinkering with the nuts and bolts.

Schematic design defines the size, function, appearance and basic requirements of the facility and all of its attractions. Materials prepared represent the story lines, design intent, theme, appearance and approach to the fabrication, construction and production, and functional and operational requirements are finalized.

Schematic Lighting Plan

In this stage, the various sub-fields begin to take on their own importance. Multimedia briefs are finalized. Lighting drawings are added, as are diagrams of where the AV control rooms will be housed. Our team begins the RFQ and RFP processes to identify the exhibit fabricators and media providers. Graphics become more individualized as opposed to just a template. Along the way, we’ll be meeting with you to make sure that our work continues to fall in line with your aspirations for the project while adhering to the prescribed schedule and budget criteria.

Materials Study

“This is really where ‘the rubber starts meeting the road’, as we say in the States,” says Rob Morgan, Senior Project Director. “Here we are clearly defining our interpretive approach and beginning to finalize guest take-aways and desired outcomes.”

Deliverables at this stage include:

Schematic CAD plans
Facility interface information for specified exhibits, environments, rides and media
Schematic elevations and sections
Color and surface treatment studies
Schedules of finishes
Finalized artifacts or objects list
Long list of vendors for fabrication and media and RFQs
Preliminary design intent documents for lighting/audio/visual control for specified exhibits, environments, rides and media
Updated graphics schedule and style guides
Multimedia briefs
Updated project budget
Updated project schedule

Getting closer to build time! From this point, the design moves to a level of specificity from which it can then be fabricated and produced. Tune in next time for Stage 10 – Detail Design.

JRA Journeys: China

Tue, 05 Apr 2011 14:02:22 GMT

Ni hao (“hi”), and welcome back to JRA Journeys! On our last expedition we visited JRA’s diverse museum and entertainment projects while cruising down the California coast. Today, we’re getting our passports stamped and boarding a plane and heading to East.

In previous Project Spotlights, we’ve highlighted our work in China’s big cities – museums like Beijing Children’s and brand experiences like Coca Cola’s pavilion at the Shanghai World Expo. On this trip, we’ll take a look at our work in some of China’s more remote towns and seaside resorts.

Our first leg of the journey takes us to the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, located in the north central area of the country. In the year 651 AD, Caliph Uthman ibn Affan dispatched a deputation to Chang’an, capital of the Tang Dynasty. This event marked the beginning of a friendship between China and the Arabic world and is considered by Chinese Muslims to be the birth of Islam in China. When completed, the JRA-designed Arabic International Cultural City in Ningxia will celebrate and preserve this rich culture, with its mission “to introduce Chinese Muslim culture to the world, and the world’s Muslim culture to China.”

JRA worked with The Alms and Special Foundation of Ningxia Islamic Association for the Promotion of International Economy, Culture & Friendship to develop the initial concepts for this innovative cultural park. Early concepts call for an Arabic theme park, The Arabic International Cultural Museum, a Mosque, an Arabic language school, an outdoor bazaar, a medical research center and unique residential villas.

Traveling southeast 470 miles, we arrive at Zhengzhou, one of the “Eight Great Ancient Capitals of China” and the site of the Grand View of the Yellow River. Located on 300 acres, this cultural theme park blends history and entertainment into a vibrant family attraction. The park’s featured element is a recreation of the great Yellow River, with large-scale replicas of attractions and historical sites along its shores. JRA provided master planning and conceptual design services for the attraction and coordinated the transition of JRA’s design efforts to local architects via a number of visits to the Henan Province.

After experiencing the gentle flow of the Yellow River, we venture southeast to feel the splash of a rapids ride at the HarborLand theme park in the coastal Zhejiang Province. Located on the base of Ningbo’s Phoenix Mountain in Ningbo’s Beilun District, the 50-acre park features a variety of rides, activities, and shows based on a fairy-tale story about two children who discover their destinies as descendants of the Phoenix. The story follows Feng Feng and Huang Huang (whose names, together, mean “phoenix”) as they escape the imprisonment of an evil wizard and travel the world to experience phoenix stories from many different cultures before taking their places as the prince and princess of Phoenix City, where all of the world’s phoenixes gather for celebration.

Specific areas of the park include: the “Flight of the Phoenix” coaster and a variety of family rides, a sky cycle, a character carousel and live storytelling show, immersive theaters and character shows, a children’s driving school and archaeological dig, a rapid river ride, bumper cars a shopping bazaar and a variety of festive games.

Working with its client – a government organization called the NETD, which was charged with creating a 39.6-square-kilometer development zone in Ningbo – Jack Rouse Associates provided overall planning, as well as conceptual and schematic design for this 65-acre theme park.

That brings us to the end of this JRA Journey. On our next journey, we’ll continue southward to the Guangdong region of China before venturing to the islands of Hong Kong and Macau. Until then, zai jian (“goodbye”)!

Project Spotlight: KidzWorld at Pusat Sains Negara

Tue, 29 Mar 2011 15:46:40 GMT

Wandering through a mirror maze, climbing through a rocket, creating shadows of color or playing a giant music box. These are just a few of the experiences that children and their caregivers can have at KidzWorld – the recently opened gallery at the National Science Centre of Malaysia (Pusat Sains Negara) in Kuala Lumpur.

The 4,000-square-foot KidzWorld exhibit, geared towards children ages 7-14, is divided into five thematic zones. As guests enter the popular science center’s main atrium, they are greeted by a massive, rocket-themed climbing structure and a ball play area, each filled with a variety of interactive opportunities. Moving into the main exhibit space, visitors can manipulate a magnetic ball wall in the Creativity area, look at themselves in a whole new way via a computer-controlled “fun-house”-styled mirror in the I Am Special area, create a musical masterpiece on a giant piano or light beam harp in the Sound of Music area or see how much energy they generate by running in a human hamster wheel in the Machines area.

JRA Southeast Asia Director Shahryn Azmi tries out the hamster wheel.

Since opening in early March, the new KidzWorld exhibit has been an exciting new play-based destination for the museum’s younger visitors. The gallery’s various exhibits were designed to help children sharpen their fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination, learn to identify different shapes, colors and sounds, tap into their creativity and discover the worlds of physics, biology and motion.

Beat Bender

“For Kuala Lumpur residents and visitors alike, the 'new' National Science Centre enhanced in the atrium by KidzWorld exemplifies the best of experiential learning for children,” said Shahryn Azmi, Director, Jack Rouse Associates (Southeast Asia) Sdn Bhd. “JRA Southeast Asia is honored to have worked on such an important project, and as a Malaysian parent myself, I’m excited about taking my children to a new destination full of fun things to do and reasons to return.”

JRA provided complete planning, design and implementation for KidzWorld at Pusat Sains Negara. Stay tuned for more photos via our Facebook page.

Blog 'N Learn: 16 Stages of Project Development - Final Concept

Thu, 24 Mar 2011 15:47:39 GMT

16 Stages of Project Development
Stage 8: Final Concept Design

Your design language has taken shape, and you are beginning to understand the relationship between your attractions or exhibits and how they fit together. Our next stage, Final Concept Design, creates a level of detail sufficient to fully grasp the project’s scope, style and content.

Once a story and design language aligning with the criteria for success have been agreed upon and established, Jack Rouse Associates, in collaboration with your team, the architect and the building designer, then begins the actual exhibit development process. Working from the agreed-upon story and design language, there are two distinct areas that are now considered in great detail:

Guest experience planning
Space planning

The space planning aspect tends to be more technical, while the guest experience planning is driven more by content, emotions and story. The two are linked, of course, because a great exhibit gallery or thrilling attraction can be completely undermined by poor operations or a confusing guest-circulation pattern.

At all times, we’ll be thinking about what the visitors will do, how they’ll do it, what they might think about, what they might learn, what they might be sparked by, what might make them laugh, how they can cooperate with one another, ways they can communicate. Our goal is to create truly visitor-oriented exhibits, visitor centers and attractions.

As it becomes appropriate, JRA’s design team will call on the in-house expertise of our project managers to ensure that each of our exhibit or attraction concepts can be built as designed on time and within budget. Our lead designers and staff members with operational backgrounds are there to keep us grounded in reality, ensuring that we adhere to a universal design philosophy at each stage of design. Their emphasis on the total guest experience and on operational details helps make the story “tellable” and the design language “functional,” even in their formative stages.

Concept Color Rendering

Through continuous interface, our team will develop a series of refined planning diagrams and renderings of key exhibit areas to indicate the form and function of the overall attraction. Deliverables in this phase include:

Project space requirements
Finalized exhibit master plan
Finalized program list and preliminary briefs for all exhibits, environments, attractions and media
Finalized concept designs of all exhibits, environments, attractions and media, which may include preliminary plans, sections, storyboards, color sketches and illustrations
Budget allocations for all exhibits, environments, attractions and media
Project time schedule

We’re halfway through the 16 Stages! Concept in hand, the process moves to the more technical phase of Schematic Design, where we define the size, function and appearance of the facility and its attractions. Join us in April for Stage 9 of the 16 Stages of Project Development. Next week, we’ll travel to Ireland to visit their first children’s museum, and the following week we’ll enjoy one of Cincinnati’s greatest annual traditions. Thanks for reading!

JRA Journeys: Go West!

Tue, 22 Mar 2011 14:10:01 GMT

“Go West, young [readers], go West.” Such was the advice (slightly paraphrased) that Horace Greeley supposedly gave to Josiah Bushnell Grinnell in the mid-19th Century. We’ll take his good counsel as we conclude our JRA Journeys tour of the United States by traveling through the Mountain West and California.

From our last stop in Dearborn, Michigan, we’ll fly over 1100 miles to Colorado Springs, Colorado and the Cheynenne Mountain Zoological Park. The zoo’s African Rift Valley exhibit takes a novel approach to interpretation, helping visitors appreciate both the uniqueness of Africa and the many ways that the Rift Valley is closer to their everyday lives than they might think. Jack Rouse Associates designed and project managed the 4½-acre interpretive exhibit area, which combines hands-on interactives, a multimedia presentation and an engaging storybook method of interpretation.

The exhibit’s centerpiece is Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s giraffe herd, the most prolific in the world, with 181 births at the Zoo since 1954. A number of activities are built around these animals, including unique feeding stations, a daily “stampede” through the exhibit’s boardwalk drawbridge and a variety of displays, interactives and theme areas.

Our next destination takes us from lively animals to living history, as we drive 176 miles north to Laramie, Wyoming. The Wyoming Territorial Park was created to accurately depict the nineteenth-century American West, with particular emphasis on the High Plains. Its centerpiece, the Wyoming Territorial Prison, was fully restored and is operated as a museum. Jack Rouse Associates provided overall planning, design and project management for this popular living history museum.

From the plains of Wyoming, we fly 855 miles to sunny Los Angeles, where we visit the site of the planned Go for Broke National Education Center. During World War II, “Go For Broke!” was the rallying cry for the predominantly Japanese-American 100th Battalion and became the inspirational motto for all of the Japanese-American units who served during the world conflict. Despite the fact that many of their family members were being held in US internment camps during the war, Japanese-American soldiers quickly became known for their loyalty, valor and military effectiveness. In fact, the 100th Battalion became the most highly decorated military unit in the history of the United States Armed Forces, including 21 Medal of Honor and 9,846 Purple Heart recipients, earning the unit the nickname “The Purple Heart Battalion.”

Jack Rouse Associates worked with the 100th/442nd/MIS WWII Memorial Foundation to provide planning and concept design for the new Go For Broke National Education Center, which will be built adjacent to the Go For Broke Monument in Little Tokyo. When completed, the Center will teach students and other visitors the values of citizenship, patriotism and leadership through the stories of these legendary soldiers. JRA is honored to have worked on this prestigious and important project.

For the last stop of our US tour, we’ll “build” on our previous experiences, driving a short 88 miles down I-5 to LEGOLAND® California in Carlsbad. LEGOLAND® is a unique interactive family theme park dedicated to the imagination and creativity of children. Resting on 128 acres of park-like setting, LEGOLAND® California takes its inspirations from the company’s world famous LEGO bricks. Within the park are five main activity areas: Village Green, Fun Town, Castle Hill, Imagination Zone and Miniland. Each area relates to a different LEGO play theme and features a variety of interactives, rides, shows, playscapes and building workshops. Working closely with the LEGO group, Sasaki and HOK, JRA provided master planning and attraction design for this popular theme park.

We hope you’ve enjoyed our JRA Journeys through the United States, and we look forward to designing new traveling experiences for you. On our next series of Journeys, we’ll head west to the Far East, visiting JRA’s projects in China, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines.

Project Spotlight - When (Little) Irish Eyes are Smiling: A Look at Imaginosity!

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 14:03:48 GMT

When (Little) Irish Eyes are Smiling: A Look at Imaginosity!

In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, we’re visiting Ireland’s first children’s museum. Opened in 2007, Imaginosity! Dublin Children’s Museum is dedicated to creating a meaningful, fun experience for children and adults to share. The museum emphasizes arts and literacy education through a combination of interactive exhibits and daily programs. Imaginosity’s design is reflective of the local culture, containing a variety of environments that encourage children to both “play” and “create” their own stories. Specific exhibit areas include: a mini-town, a construction zone, art studios, performance art spaces and a unique two-story climbing structure.

Jack Rouse Associates and educational consultant Mary Sinker provided planning and design for Imaginosity! Dublin Children’s Museum.

JRA Journeys: Cruising the US Midwest

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:19:32 GMT

In our last JRA Journeys segment, we traveled down the Atlantic Coast all the way to Guatemala! Today, we’ll be heading back up through the center of the United States, stopping in Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri and Indiana before making camp in Dearborn, Michigan.

Our first stop is PowerBall Hall at the San Antonio Children’s Museum in San Antonio, Texas. PowerBall Hall opened May 30th of this year and promotes cooperative play while conveying the basic principles of physics. Themed loosely to a factory aesthetic, the new exhibit invites children to move colorful balls through a variety of launchers, interactive walls, a mini-rollercoaster, conveyer belts and a Bernoulli blower. JRA provided conceptual and schematic design for the project and teamed with Boss Display, who provided fabrication and installation.

Four hundred miles up Interstate 35 lies our next stop, the Chisholm Heritage Center in Duncan, Oklahoma, which was designed and produced by JRA. This renovated facility features more than 6,000 square feet of new exhibits and theatrical experiences and introduces visitors to the history and romance of the Old Chisholm Trail. The trail was the major route along which Texas cattle ranchers drove their herds through the Indian Territory (Oklahoma) to railroad points in Kansas.

The museum’s permanent exhibition contains a number of traditional and scenic environments where various artifacts from the museum’s collection are displayed. The museum also contains a number of multimedia presentations. In the “Campfire Theater,” guests are invited to sit around the campfire and learn about the harsh realities and legend of the Trail. Within “The Chisholm Trail Experience,” an immersive theater, guests feel the wind, smell the prairie grass, feel drops of rain, see the sunrise and sunset and hear the constant rumble of cattle moving along the trail.

From the rumble of cattle we make a beeline for the roar of roller coasters, heading east up I-44 to Six Flags St. Louis and Mr. Freeze™. JRA designed the themed interiors and exteriors of this fast-paced attraction, which is themed around the hit Warner Brothers movie, “Batman and Robin.” The coaster’s queue is found inside Snowy’s ice cream factory, where the evil Mr. Freeze™ has secretly set up a covert cryogenics lab. After a refreshing wait in line, visitors are blasted at speeds approaching 70 miles per hour through a 190-foot icy tunnel. They are then hurled through 1,300 feet of diving, twisting track before they are sent back to the icy starting tunnel – in reverse!

We continue our journey via I-70 over 200 miles through Missouri to Indiana, where we are met with new type of adrenaline – the adrenaline of sport. Jack Rouse Associates teamed with the NCAA and RATIO Architects, Inc. to re-invent the popular NCAA Hall of Champions museum, located within Indianapolis’ White River State Park. Closed in November 2007 due to an electrical fire, the 30,000-square-foot facility re-opened to the public in March of 2009.

The renovated museum features vibrant graphics, one-of-a-kind memorabilia, exciting media experiences and attractive displays, along with a variety of interactive kiosks that immerse guests within the rich history of the NCAA and its 23 championship sports. Highlights include a 4,000-square-foot “Play” gallery filled with a variety of “body-on” interactive exhibits, a Hall of Honor, a Member Showcase and a Media Room. JRA, along with fabrication partner Geograph Industries, Inc., provided complete planning, design and project management for over 10,000 square feet of exhibits, interactives and displays located within the museum.

For our final destination, we head north 284 miles up I-69 to Dearborn, Michigan, and The Arab American National Museum. This museum showcases the rich and diverse cultural heritage of Arab American communities throughout the United States. With thoughtful exhibits and interactive designs, the center provides, along with other things, a resource center, a theater, an art gallery, a permanent exhibit and space for traveling exhibitions.

The permanent exhibit tells the stories of Arab Americans from around the US. Its content is organized into three main chapters: “Coming to America,” “Living in America” and “Making an Impact.” JRA provided complete planning, design and project management for the museum, which opened in May of 2005.

What a day! We’ve come to the end of this JRA Journey and hope you’ve enjoyed learning about JRA’s diverse portfolio of projects in the US Midwest. Join us next time, when we head into the western plains before taking a trip down the California coast. Until then, happy travels!

Blog 'N Learn: 16 Stages of Project Development - Preliminary Concept

Thu, 10 Mar 2011 15:49:00 GMT

16 Stages of Project Development

Stage 7 - Preliminary Concept Design

Last week, JRA began the legwork of designing your project. We developed your criteria for success, began plotting locations for major attractions and analyzing adjacencies, and witnessed the first glimmerings of your storyline. In Stage 7, we move on to Preliminary Concept Design, where the visual language of your story begins to take shape.

In the Preliminary Concept Design stage, the goal is to further develop the project’s overall exhibit story line and establish a project aesthetic (or design language). All of these components must work together to meet the various parameters outlined in the Criteria for Success document. In contrast to the development of the project’s Criteria for Success document, however, the development of the project’s story and design language is more subjective and emotionally driven. It is this convergence of objective criteria and subjective emotions that will create meaningful and lasting museum, visitor center or park experiences.

The development of the project exhibit story line and initial aesthetic falls into several stages:

Content development
Draft story
Design language research
Suggest design language via reference images, etc.
Re-evaluation in light of Criteria for Success
Revise and expand story/design language, as required

Birdseye Sketch

These steps will be repeated and revisited several times before a final story and design language emerge that satisfy the criteria for success. More than writers and designers are involved in the development of the project’s story and design language; it is a collaborative effort. We began by listening to you and your advisors, but then we start to talk. First, we talk among ourselves as the project team is assembled. With so many disciplines on our team — writers, storytellers, planners, exhibit designers, producers and those with architectural backgrounds — we thrive on an open exchange of ideas. We also know that no single discipline has a lock on good ideas or the truth, so we talk a lot. We argue a lot, too, among ourselves, for we arrive at the best solution by challenging every idea and assumption along the way.

Eventually, we arrive at a suggested revised story line and design language. Then, it is time for the first review. Through in-person reviews, teleconferences, videoconferences, e-mail and communication through an area of our website dedicated to the project, we receive your input. We begin to refine our ideas and then listen again to you to make sure we heard you correctly the first time. Slowly, through revisions and rewrites, we agree on a final story, design style and thematic direction. Our objective is to devise a story and design language that will provide all audiences with a memorable, enjoyable and repeatable experience. No guest should have to labor to be able to comprehend what the exhibits or attractions are trying to convey.

The preliminary concept design creates a general level of direction sufficient to understand the project themes and styles developed through the various discussions. Operational parameters, project costs, and schedules also begin to take shape. Final deliverables for this stage in addition to the story line include:

Theme boards showing style, theme, tone, look and design
Space program chart, including associated support areas
Revised circulation and space allocation plans
Revised exhibit or attraction master plan
Preliminary plans, including general space requirements for major exhibits, environments, attractions and media
Sketches and/or color illustrations of major exhibits, environments, attractions and media

All of these items are packaged together to either help you provide a compelling argument for funding (if you have not yet received it) or to serve as the basis for Stage 8, Final Concept Design. Join us next week as the designs, budget and schedule become increasingly more refined, and the images of your project begin coming to life.

Blog 'N Learn: 16 Stages of Project Development - Master Planning and Programming

Thu, 03 Mar 2011 15:57:11 GMT

16 Stages of Project Development
Stage 6 – Master Planning and Programming

You’ve received (at least part of) your project’s funding, and government authorities have issued you the permits you need to begin design and construction. You’ve also met JRA and gotten a sense of our design philosophy and how it could work for your project. Now, the fun begins.

Our first step will be to meet with your project team, consultants and other stakeholders in either your offices or at the project site in order to fully understand the experiential and/or educational goals for the project. Eventually, our job will be to take any initial ideas that have been developed by your team and further refine them so that they deliver the appropriate experiences and messages specific to your target group. These ideas will then be expanded and enhanced through creative brainstorming, research and design.

But at the outset, even before we begin our planning and design process, it will be necessary to understand your success criteria for the overall project. To determine these criteria, we would meet with the project team and embark on an in-depth assessment of the following:

Goals
Building requirements
Community expectations
Internal and external target audiences
Demographic and attendance targets
Lessons learned from other similar exhibits/museums/parks
Operational realities
Financial parameters
Educational guidelines
Internal and external research

Based upon our review of all relevant material input from our initial meetings with the overall project team, as well as any feasibility research conducted in Step 5, our team will present a rough outline of the direction they believe they have been given and draft a “Criteria for Success” document that clearly outlines the criteria on which all future development decisions will be based. Upon confirmation, our design staff will proceed with planning and conceptualizing your project.

In addition to the Criteria for Success, in the Master Planning and Programming stage our team will help develop the project’s story line, scope and general character. This serves a point of reference for future design decisions, not a perspective blueprint for the final design. The master plan and its program provide a firm outline for the project, while allowing sufficient flexibility for changes and modifications. Deliverables in this stage include adjacency diagrams, preliminary and revised storylines, bubble diagrams and descriptions of major exhibit areas, rough sketches of potential key areas, and a preliminary facility program, all of which we would present to you at the end of this stage.

With strategy in hand, we delve deeper into your project’s story and begin crafting its overall design language. Tune in next week for Stage 7 – Preliminary Concept Design.

Project Spotlight - Throwback Edition: Celebrating McKenna Children's Museum

Tue, 01 Mar 2011 14:20:26 GMT

It’s time for another Project Spotlight: Throwback Edition! This week, we’ll celebrate the 5th anniversary of the McKenna Children’s Museum in New Braunfels, Texas.

Opened in New Braunfels in March 2006, the McKenna Children’s Museum features more than 10,000 square feet of exhibits for children and their caregivers. Through a variety of interactive exhibits and programs, museum visitors of all ages experience the joy of learning and the power of play in a wholesome, safe, welcoming environment. The museum’s exhibits and programs reflect the diverse physical and societal cultures of the local region and were developed in line with the most current knowledge concerning the developmental needs of children: physical, cognitive, social and emotional.

The entry into the museum features the sights and sounds of a typical summer day on the Comal River, an allusion to New Braunfels’ famous river tubing experience. After ticketing, guests find themselves “underwater,” swimming with hundreds of paper mâché fish and dodging the dangling arms and legs of tubers at the surface. Exploring further, guests encounter interactives married with scenes from a ranch, a town square and a hospital. At the Hill Country Campground, one can fish, prepare “food” and climb a great tree, a scene evoking the imagery of surrounding Hill Country, Texas.

JRA, along with educational consultant (and former guest blogger), Mary Sinker, provided completed design and project management for the museum.

“We have received positive remarks from parents and children alike,” says Senior Project Director, Mike Meyer. “The children love the opportunity to play in this themed version of New Braunfels. Whether they chose to roam the wilderness, be a rancher, try their hand at journalism or even go into space, each child finds something at McKenna Children’s Museum. Looking back at the experience of designing the project, the caring (and persistent) Texas staff stand out as memorable. Whenever we had a concern about finding something for an exhibit, they said, ‘this is Texas! Tell us what you want, and we’ll find it!’”

Happy birthday, McKenna! Thursday, we’ll return to the 16 Stages of Project Development and begin programming and master planning your project.

Guest Blog: Robert Niles of Theme Park Insider

Thu, 24 Feb 2011 16:02:49 GMT

Hi! It’s Clara here, your blogger-on-the-street, and today we have a real treat for you. We’re sitting down (ok, chatting via email) with Robert Niles, founder and editor of Theme Park Insider, a consumers' guide to the world's most popular theme and amusement parks. Theme Park Insider has been named the top theme park site on the Internet by Forbes and Travel + Leisure magazines and has been a finalist for the Webby Award for best overall Guide/Ratings/Reviews site.

In 2001, Theme Park Insider became the first travel-related website to win the prestigious Online Journalism Award, presented by the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism and the Online News Association, for its pioneering citizen journalism initiative, Accident Watch.

Niles is a former Walt Disney World attractions host, trainer and lead, who worked at the Magic Kingdom from 1987 to 1991. Since then, Niles has worked as a staff writer, editor and website producer at top newspapers, including the Los Angeles Times and the (Denver) Rocky Mountain News. He holds a master's degree in journalism from Indiana University and a bachelor's degree from Northwestern University in political science and the Honors Program in Mathematical Methods in the Social Sciences.

Thanks for joining us today, Robert! So, to kick things off, what was the first theme park you ever visited, and what do you remember about that visit?

Actually, my first memory of a theme park visit is ... leaving one. I remember being carried by my grandfather under the monorail tracks in the old parking lot as we were leaving Disneyland after a long day when I was a toddler. It was dark, and I remember the flash of light as the monorail streamed past me. Perhaps the sound woke me.

I was born in LA, and we visited all the local theme parks: Disneyland, Universal, Magic Mountain, Knott's, and those that aren't here any longer, such as Busch Gardens, Marineland and Lion Country Safari.

My favorite memory was getting picked to be one of the kids in a fake Rice-A-Roni commercial on the Universal Studios Tour. That started a two-decade personal streak of mine, getting picked as an audience volunteer every time I visited a Universal theme park.

So was it that close proximity to local parks what inspired Theme Park Insider?
I started Theme Park Insider when I was working a newspaper website in Denver. We were trying to use a lot of reader-submitted content on that website, and I thought it'd be an interesting experiment to see if I could build an entire website based on reader-contributed content. I've always been a big theme park fan, and I worked at the Walt Disney World Resort when I was in college, so I decided to make theme parks the subject, since I knew them well and could kick-start the website with what I knew.

For the first eight or nine years, I ran the site in my spare time, adding features as I dreamed them up or - more often - as readers demanded them. Two years ago, I ditched the news industry and made the site my primary job - and have been enjoying every moment since then.

You and your contributors post daily entries about your experiences at the parks. What do you think designers should consider when crafting a great amusement or theme park?
A great theme park needs to envelop me in a story in a way that completely convinces me that I'm in a different time or place. It must be a multi-sensory experience that engages me with visuals, audio - even smells and taste (food is a too-often overlooked component in great theme park design).

It all starts with the themed land, the layout and design of the exterior, feeding me into more interactive adventures within. Like many visitors, I most enjoy rides and shows that don't get old after additional visits, experiences within which I can continue to find new detail every time I ride or watch.

Games and structured social interaction are becoming more important parts of the theme park experience, so I love to see smart use of those elements within the parks, as well.

With these design characteristics in mind, describe your perfect theme park day.
Obviously, a perfect theme park day begins before the park opens, when I arrive with my pre-bought ticket in hand! That way, I can go straight to the park's most popular attractions, before lines build up.

Beyond that, the park would offer a nice mix of rides, thrills, interactions and shows in a comfortable environment. (That means protecting me from the heat or rain, but not forcing me indoors on a lovely day.) Lunch would be at a great table service restaurant with well-prepared, fresh food that fits the area's theme. Then I'd walk back to a nicely themed hotel, where I'd relax, swim or nap before returning to the park for dinner, a nighttime show and some late rides after the crowd's thinned for the day.

Technology has increased by leaps and bounds what theme parks can do, but some argue that it’s at the cost of the “human element.” What impact do you think technology has had on the theme park industry?

The best technology wows me without my noticing that I've experienced technology in action. The blending of technology with good old-fashioned stagecraft offers the potential to tell three-dimensional, interactive stories in a completely convincing way.

But we all know that and have been trying to do that for years. What I find most exciting now is how technology can bring visitors into the storytelling experience, empowering and enabling them to communicate their experience within the park, with people in the park and at home. The industry's only just begun to tinker with that tech, and it is powerful.

So with that said, what do you think is the future of theme parks? How will parks keep people coming back?

If social media can help shape narratives that empower revolutions, imagine what it could do within the context of a theme park narrative? Tens of thousands of people each day, united in a fantastic social narrative that draws each person within it into an ideal entertainment experience.

It won't be as simple as creating some MMORPG (for the uninitiated like me that stands for Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game). People come into a park within varying desires to interact with it. Some people love coasters; others simply want to stroll and look at pretty things. Some parents want to watch their children at play; other people want to watch other folks their age and find new friends. The challenge for theme park designers is accommodating these varying levels of commitment while exposing everyone to the opportunity to participate in immersive social narratives in ways that they will find not necessarily comfortable, but natural.

The design team that does this well will own this industry, creatively, for years after that triumph.

Thank you, Robert! Be sure to check out Theme Park Insider for breaking park news and views.

Tuesday, we’re hitting the road again, checking out JRA’s projects in Texas and the Midwest. Cheers!

Blog 'N Learn: 16 Stages of Project Development - The JRA Design Philosophy

Thu, 17 Feb 2011 16:03:17 GMT

16 Stages of Museum and Attraction Project Development
The JRA Design Philosophy

You’ve gotten your land, your building permits and your funding. Now it’s time to craft your attraction or museum’s story. Luckily, you’ve come to the right place.

JRA moves continually between the worlds of entertainment, museums and corporate communications. From that diverse body of work, our design philosophy has emerged. It is simply this. JRA regards design as a very specialized form of communicating messages to an audience. We cannot separate design from writing, for all of our work begins with a story. So, our ultimate goal is satisfying an audience by conveying the appropriate information in an informative and memorable way.

This design philosophy can be distilled into a few core precepts:

Design is storytelling and the story is the star. Exhibiting is theater.
Guests are an audience. Design for the audience, not for the designer.
People relate best to other people, so make it personal. Emotion can cleanse the intellectual palette and facilitate learning. Touch hearts in order to engage minds.
Audiences like being challenged to think, participate and choose.
Involvement is better than observation. Promote shared experiences.
No writing, planning or drawing until you get the story and facts right.
Oblige all the ways in which people learn. Provide information at several levels and in various ways.
There is no substitute for real things, artifacts and first-person perspectives.
Theatrical techniques/technologies can heighten the appreciation of real things by creating context and involving the audience.
Guest experiences should have a rhythm that alternates moments of immediacy and interaction with moments of reflection and reverence.
Simple is better than complex. Good designs are accessible, lucid and inclusive.
All of the senses are involved in perception and memory; design for more than just the eye.
Take heed of operational and maintenance realities. Utilize proven technologies and processes. Accommodate change.
Approach each project with a fresh perspective.

Next week, these core precepts and philosophy will guide us into Stage 6, Master Planning and Programming, when your dream will begin to take shape both in writing and design.

JRA Journeys: Touring the East Coast

Tue, 15 Feb 2011 16:18:04 GMT

Greetings! Today we’re launching “JRA Journeys,” a blog series showcasing the variety of our projects throughout the world. This month, we’re staying close to home with a tour of North and Central America. For Part One, we’re traveling 2142 miles down the East Coast, immersing ourselves in everything from science to auto racing to a visit to the Big Top.

We begin our journey in the Northeast, specifically The Milton J. Rubenstein Museum of Science and Technology (MOST) in Syracuse, New York. JRA worked with MOST to completely renovate the exhibit program within the popular science center. Highlights of completed exhibits include Science Playhouse; a colorful and iconic maze structure full of physical interactives on each of its nine levels; the Earth Science Adventure Cave, where guests can learn about local geology; and a vibrant Life Science exhibit, where guests can walk through a giant reproduction of the human heart, observe how the skeletal system and muscles work, and learn more about the function of the brain and nervous system.

Heading 281 miles southeast and shifting from learning to pure entertainment, we find ourselves at Jenkinson’s Fun House in Point Pleasant, New Jersey. The Fun House attraction at Jenkinson’s Beach and Amusement Center is a tribute to the American and European carnival fun houses of yesteryear. All the old tricks, and quite a few new ones, are employed at the Fun House to ensure an amazing visit. Mazes, foreshortened rooms, calliope music, black lights and moving floors are just a few of the classic fun house elements used effectively to create a disorienting, laugh-filled journey. JRA’s services included concept and detail design, floor plans, elevations, story line development, material specifications, operational data and fabrication coordination.

Leaving New Jersey, we literally switch gears, hopping on I-95 to DAYTONA USA in Daytona Beach, Florida. In conjunction with Exline Design Services of Newport Beach, California, Jack Rouse Associates provided overall planning and design for this 50,000-square-foot visitor center located on property at DAYTONA USA. The center is open year-round and is the “front door” to the 28 racing events held at DAYTONA USA every year. Special features include the 16-second Pit Stop Challenge, where visitors are invited to test their mechanic skills in a race against the clock; the Trilon Trivia Tower, where guests test their racing knowledge; a robotic system that lifts away different levels of Jeff Godon’s No. 24 Winston car; and a full-scale slice of Daytona’s 31-degree banked track.

With our engines revved up from our racecar experience, we decide to drive all the way to Guatemala City! Our destination is El Museo de los Niños, the last stop on this leg of the journey. JRA was honored to have worked with the former first lady of Guatemala to bring her country its premier museum for children. El Museo de los Niños has something for every child. Regardless of a young visitor’s level of education or familiarity with the wider world, he or she is sure to find areas of interest. Six colorful galleries housing experiential exhibits engage children, inviting them to explore universal information on science, health and geography. The importance of human values is woven through this museum experience.

Phew! That was a lot of traveling for one post! Next time on JRA Journeys, we’ll saddle up for a tour of projects in Texas and the Midwest. Until then, you can check out our complete slate of projects on www.jackrouse.com.

Blog 'N Learn: 16 Stages of Project Development - Financing and Feasibility

Thu, 10 Feb 2011 16:20:11 GMT

16 Stages for Attraction and Museum Development
Stages 4-5: Show Me the Money

After you’ve gotten your approvals and your site is ready to go, two looming questions now come to the forefront:

Do you have the money to pay for this, and if not, can you get it?
Is there enough need for this project to make it sustainable (a nice way of saying, “will anyone care”)?

It’s always desirable to have financing (Stage 4) in place as early as possible. Realistically, however, there is a chicken-egg relationship between financing and design. You have to know roughly what you’re building in order to shape your fundraising/financing requests, but to get to a level where you have that knowledge, you’ll probably need to make some investment in the design. Usually, getting your design to the master planning or preliminary concept level is enough to a) establish a range-of-magnitude budget, and b) provide your potential donors or financiers the “pretty pictures” they need to understand your project. We’ll go into more detail on master planning, preliminary and final concept design over the next several weeks.

While conducting a feasibility analysis follows financing in our stage progression, in reality they go hand-in-hand. In order to make a compelling case to your donor, government entity, investors or lending institution, you have to assess whether there is sufficient demand for your project and who your target audience should be. The best way to make this assessment is to commission a feasibility study from an objective third-party who has experience in the attraction industry (i.e., not someone who has a connection to you, your organization or your project). This type of independent analysis allows you to get a business and market assessment that is not biased by the excitement and passion that you may have for the project. Feasibility studies usually include:

Demographic analyses
Assessments of your target audiences’ ability to spend money and their willingness to spend money on attractions like yours
Estimations of capital expenditure and potential revenue
Determination of the optimal dwell time for your facility and whether there are opportunities for repeat visitation
Distance people are willing to travel to get to your facility
Evaluations of like facilities (your competitive environment)

All of these factors determine your ability to raise capital and attract a sustainable number of visitors. JRA is happy to provide a list of trusted consultants that can provide these analyses for you.

So your project is feasible and has secured at least enough funding to get you through the next stages. Now the fun begins! And we’ll begin the fun next week when JRA joins your team and begins crafting the story for your project!

Blog 'N Learn: 16 Stages of Project Development - Beginning at the Beginning

Thu, 03 Feb 2011 15:58:29 GMT

16 Stages of Theme Park and Museum Project Development
Stages 1-3: The Work Before the Work, Getting to Know Your Government Officials

Over the next several Thursdays, JRA + blog will be examining the 16 stages essential to any successful theme park or museum project. These stages need not necessarily be sequential, but can overlap, particularly in the early phases.

Obviously, any attraction or museum project begins with an idea. If it’s an attraction project, is it a theme park, amusement park or Family Entertainment Center (FEC)? If it’s a museum, what is the focus? Who is the audience (children vs. adults)? Are you rehabbing an existing facility or building a new one? If it’s new build, where will it be located, and who owns the land?

Once these details are sketched out, the client, along with specialty consultants, will begin the 16-stage process. Most developments, whether new or existing build, will require zoning studies and approvals before any planning or design work can begin. The definition of zoning is the “process of planning for land use by a locality to allocate certain kinds of structures in certain areas.” Zoning can include a host of restrictions depending on the zoning area, including building heights, green space and lot usage, density (number of structures in a certain area), and business types. If, for example, the area in which you want to construct your project is zoned for residential use, you may have some trouble getting the project approved unless you can get a variance (exception) from the local zoning authority. Zoning studies are a safeguard for the client, any additional investors and the community in which the project is located.

After or concurrent with the zoning process, other government approvals must often be obtained, which brings us to Stage 2. Approvals may be needed for such things as permits related to the use of municipal water and sewer lines or points of ingress/egress to and from city roads and highways. It is sometimes necessary to complete a certain amount of preliminary design work in order to obtain these approvals. This can be a lengthy process depending on local conditions, politics and other business and financial realities. In order to potentially shorten this process and create broad-based buy-in for your project (not to mention future financial support), you and your specialist consultants should develop first-name-basis relationships with local government, business and community leaders.

To round out the pre-design municipal approvals process, most projects will need to carry out Stage 3, an environmental impact study. Because lenders are often required to assume responsibility for the environmental impacts of their projects, environmental considerations (impacts on air quality, water quality, etc.) should be considered early. Again, proactively engaging local government leaders in the process, particularly if your municipality has an Office of Environmental Quality, will mitigate time- and cost-consuming surprises.

Congratulations! You have the approvals. Now, how are you going to pay for your project, and is your project viable? We’ll answer these questions next week.

Project Spotlight: Go Packers!

Tue, 01 Feb 2011 14:23:28 GMT

For today’s Project Spotlight, we honor the NFC Champion Green Bay Packers in their quest for Super Bowl glory this Sunday.

Few sports franchises evoke such passion as the Green Bay Packers, and few stadiums embody that passion as much as Lambeau Field. The only publicly-owned franchise in major league sports, the Green Bay Packers answer not to a single organization or individual, but to all of its 111,000 stockholders. Lambeau Field, like its namesake, is a one-of-a-kind emblem of the love of American football and the will of a community.

Within this hallowed sports landmark, the five-story Lambeau Field Atrium transforms the stadium into a 365-day-a-year destination, with conference/banquet space, a themed restaurant, a food court, themed retail, exhibition spaces and the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame. The 25,000-square-foot Hall does more than simply enshrine the team’s best players and coaches. The Hall celebrates all facets of the Green Bay Packers franchise as well as the game of football. Attractions include a multimedia timeline, the Weather Theater, Ice Bowl diorama, trivia challenge game, re-created locker room and a re-creation of Vince Lombardi’s office. The Hall of Fame’s inner sanctum features a multimedia show, celebrating great moments in Packer history, as well as a display of the franchise’s three Super Bowl trophies, a database containing information about every Packer ever to play, and, of course, an exhibit dedicated to the 147 enshrined Packers.

“The Green Bay Packers organization was one of our best clients ever,” lauded Senior Project Manager, Rick Steele. “They knew their subject, they were passionate about it, and they had 50 years of artifacts in excellent condition and knew exactly where and what they were.”

In addition to designing the Green Bay Packers Hall of Fame, JRA assisted the team in planning components of other major guest areas within the Lambeau redevelopment, including exterior plaza areas, food service venues and a games area to ensure consistent thematic treatments, efficient guest flow patterns, optimal revenue generation and an overall integrated guest experience. Jack Rouse Associates also designed and produced a number of interactive experiences for the museum and its surrounding area. Adults can test their football skills in the Interactive Game Zone while children and families play and learn in an area themed to resemble a training camp.

“We’ve always been proud to be associated with the Green Bay Packers, one of the most well-known sports franchises in the world,” said Jack Rouse Associates COO, Dan Schultz. “We’ll be watching Sunday and look forward to another Packers’ Super Bowl win.”

Thursday, we’ll begin our weekly series on the 16 Stages of Theme Park and Museum project development.

Meet the Team: Our Staff's Dream Projects

Thu, 20 Jan 2011 16:52:21 GMT

For today's blog, and because it's a snowy, dreary day, we thought we'd ask our staff what their dream design project would be. Here are some of the serious (and not-so-serious) responses we received:

"Definitely a Lord of the Rings permanent installation or theme park. Not only is the written material so incredibly rich, but the filmmaking was exquisite and ahead of its time."
"My second floor bathroom. It really needs work." Nice.
"A retrospective of the Impressionists." That project would definitely generate a lot of Monet.
"A giant mood ring." Earthy.
"I love the sports stuff that we do. I would love to work on a project for a world-renowned soccer (football) team!" GOOOOAAAALLLL!
"A Pixar museum, a Starbuck's Vistors Center, the next Harry Potter attraction, a Lord of the Rings theme park or a Red Sox Hall of Fame." Or combine them all! Just imagine how much faster Harry could fly on the broom after a couple of lattes! Turn the Quidditch pitch into Fenway!
"Create an original photographic essay of sunsets from beach bars around the world. I would have to do all the research and photography." We'll call it The Margaritaville Museum.

Our last submission was particularly poetic and deep:

"A story,
writ visually
with a broad brush,
a chameleon character,
toes tapping in limelight
through color-washed silk sets,
or...one with a large fee"

We look forward to providing you with more fun insights into the JRA team's mind. Enjoy!

Why Cincinnati? Part Two

Fri, 14 Jan 2011 16:57:25 GMT

Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum

Why We Stay
The University of Cincinnati continues to serve as one of the main reasons Jack Rouse Associates has remained in Cincinnati for 23 years. I.D. (International Design) Magazine ranked the University’s College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning (DAAP) as one of the world’s top ten design schools, and Businessweek consistently names DAAP one of the best in the nation. Each semester, one industrial design and one graphic design student co-ops with Jack Rouse Associates, and these students often become full-time employees of or independent contractors to JRA upon graduation. Approximately half of our current design team consists of DAAP graduates.

(L) Cincinnati History Museum (R) Cincinnati Museum of Natural History and Science

In addition to providing JRA with much of its talent, with its many attractions, Cincinnati has also provided JRA with a stream of work, including:

Wolf Woods – Cincinnati Zoo
Cincinnati History Museum
Cincinnati Museum of Natural History and Science
Mapping Our Tears – The Center for Holocaust and Humanity Education at Hebrew Union College
Bubba Gump Shrimp Shack – Kings Island
Cincinnati Reds Fan Zone and Team Shop
Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum
National Underground Railroad Freedom Center

(L) National Underground Railroad Freedom Center (R) Mapping Our Tears - Hebrew Union College

Creativity loves company, and you won’t find many more creative and artistic cities in the United States than Cincinnati. The city boasts a two-time Tony Award winning theater, an art museum ranked by Zagat with New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Chicago’s Art Institute as one of the best art museums in the country, and the nation’s second oldest opera. Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra was the first American orchestra to make a world tour sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, and the Cincinnati Pops was the only American orchestra invited to perform at the Opening Weekend of the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

With 9 Fortune 500 companies (more per capita than New York, Boston, Chicago or Los Angeles), Cincinnati provides a bevy of design work for its many firms. From consumer product development to graphics to architecture to interior design and media, Downtown in particular has become an enclave of activity, even establishing one of its streets as Designers Row. This breadth of partners enables Jack Rouse Associates to pull together dynamic teams for its portfolio of projects.

Given the fact that we are one of Esquire’s “Top Ten Cities That Rock”, one of Money Magazine’s “Top 20 Fun Cities,” and one of the Most Innovative Cities in the country according to the Visa Index (and the list of accolades goes on), the answer to the “why” question becomes even more apparent.

“Personally and professionally, Cincinnati is a great fit for us,” says Shawn McCoy, JRA’s VP of Marketing and Business Development. “From a business standpoint, we have the country's top design school in our back yard, which provides a steady stream of design talent for our studios. Given the large number of design firms in the city, the area also has a vibrant and talented pool of specialty consultants and freelance designers with whom we regularly collaborate. On a personal side, the city is a great and affordable place to raise a family, and offers all of the cultural and social amenities of larger cities - all while holding on to its small town charm.”

The Future

Over the last 10 years, Cincinnati has seen the construction of the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, Great American Ballpark, Paul Brown Stadium, the Contemporary Arts Center, and the School for Creative and Performing Arts – the only K-12 arts-focused public school in the country. It has also seen the revitalization of Fountain Square, the Cincinnati Art Museum’s Cincinnati Wing and parts of its historic Over-the-Rhine neighborhood. The next 5 years hold even more promise, with the opening of The Banks (a $1B mixed-use riverfront development), a 45-acre Riverfront Park, a Downtown Casino, a streetcar system and the renovations of Washington Park and Cincinnati’s 19th-century Music Hall, home to the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Pops and Opera. In July 2012, Cincinnati will serve as host to the World Choir Games, considered the “Olympics of Choral Music”. Coming to the United States for the first time in its history, the World Choir Games will bring hundreds of thousands of participants from over 70 countries, resulting in a multi-million-dollar impact for the city.

“The energy and potential currently alive in Cincinnati is something I have not seen in many years,” says James. “We look forward to seeing where it will go, and we will continue to be a partner in the growth of the city we call home.”

…And this Song of the Vine, 
This greeting of mine, 
The winds and the birds shall deliver, 
To the Queen of the West, 
In her garlands dressed, 

On the banks of the Beautiful River.

- Catawba Wine, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Photo: Cincinnati.com

Why Cincinnati? Part One

Thu, 13 Jan 2011 16:54:54 GMT

More than a few times (a month), a vendor, colleague or client asks us: “why are you in Cincinnati?” While no, we are not near Disney or Universal, New York or Hollywood, Cincinnati and Jack Rouse Associates are intertwined, and living in the Queen City has afforded us many opportunities, both professional and personal.

Cincawha?!

Photo: ChooseCincy.com

When colleagues from outside of Cincinnati ask us where we’re from, our answer evokes what is known as “The Glaze.” The Glaze involves a sideways tilt of the head, a blank stare and a moment of complete silence. After telling them it’s “near Chicago,” The Glaze reverts to a smile and a nod of recognition. In fact, Cincinnati is nearly 300 miles (482 km) from the Windy City – not exactly a hop, skip and jump. However, its location in the central region of the country positions it with in 500 miles of 60% of the US population, and having 6 airports within 150 miles makes it pretty easy to get where we need to go.

Photo: Cincinnati.com

Cincinnati, originally named Losantiville (a name of 4 languages together meaning “city at the mouth of the Licking River”), was founded in 1788. The name “Cincinnati” comes from the Society of Cincinnati, a group that honored the return of Revolutionary War soldiers to civilian life in the late 1800s and that was itself named for the Roman general Cincinnatus. Cincinnati has had its share of nicknames over the years, including Porkopolis (when Cincinnati was the #1 hog packing center) and “the Queen of the West” – a moniker coined by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Cincinnati is also the home of many firsts, including t he Cincinnati Reds (1869 - first professional baseball team), the first municipally-owned major railroad (1880), the world’s first re-enforced concrete skyscraper (1902), the first licensed public television station (WCET in 1954) and the first municipal university (University of Cincinnati in 1870).

University of Cincinnati

How We Got Here

That university brings us to the beginning of the JRA story, for it was there that the founders of the company met for the first time. Jack Rouse was a professor at UC’s College Conservatory of Music, and Keith James, now CEO, was his student. From there they would go to work at Taft Broadcasting, laying the groundwork for Kings Island. After working for other Taft parks, as well as the Vancouver Worlds Fair and Universal Studios, James returned to Cincinnati in 1992 to join Jack Rouse and former COO Amy Merrell, who had founded Jack Rouse Associates five years earlier. Current CEO Dan Schultz, another former (and self-proclaimed “best”) student of Dr. Rouse at the University, joined the JRA team in 1993, and the rest is history. “Cincinnati and Kings Island is where I got my start in the themed entertainment business,” says Schultz. “And while this business has allowed me and my family to live in several great cities in the US, my work and fate always somehow brought us back here. For me, I consider myself lucky to be able to work on all of these great, international projects while living in Cincinnati.”

So that’s how we came to Cincinnati, but why do we stay? Visit JRA + blog tomorrow to find out.

Project Spotlight - Throwback Edition: Legoland Windsor

Tue, 11 Jan 2011 14:24:30 GMT

For our first Project Spotlight – Throwback Edition, we celebrate a unique children’s theme park on the eve of its 15th anniversary. LEGOLAND® Windsor, located in Berkshire, England and as such the first Legoland Park outside of Denmark, opened its doors in 1996. Geared toward the 3-12 age group, the park, now owned by Merlin Entertainment, boasts 50 rides and attractions on its 50 square acres and uses 25 million LEGO bricks. With a 2009 attendance of 1.84 million visitors, LEGOLAND Windsor is the third most visited theme park in the United Kingdom and the 12th most visited in Europe.

LEGOLAND Windsor’s slogan, Heroes Wanted, speaks to its emphasis on “active participation, stimulating imagination and learning through play,” and Legoland has been a hero in its own right. It was voted UK’s Number One Family Attraction by Leisure Group Magazine in 1999, Best UK Attraction for Children by Yandell Publishing in 2002, and Best Family Visitor Attraction in the 2007 Tommy’s Parent Friendly Awards.

LEGOLAND Windsor has five main activity areas, interspersed with “peaceful clusters.” Each area relates to a different LEGO play theme, with interactive rides, shows, playscapes, building workshops, driving schools and a “Miniland” — a series of model towns and scenes from European cities, re-created in astonishing detail.

Working closely with the LEGO Group and several other firms, JRA provided master planning, attraction design, graphic design and scripting for several live shows. We asked Senior Project Director, Randy Smith, to provide some insights on working on this unique project:

“We started our work with a week long workshop at LEGO’s headquarters in sleepy Bilund, Denmark. We were given tours of just about every corner of the place, factories, offices, local restaurants, and the best of all, the LEGO model shop! My favorite part of the model shop, aside from all the great models in progress, was the 100 foot long, 4 foot high display of every available LEGO component in every color; really a LEGO fan’s dream come true.

After the workshop, the project team immediately transferred to the site in Windsor. The site was a former safari park and the new headquarters was located in the ‘Mansion House’. This had to be the nicest site office any project has ever had. Whereas most site offices are in temporary trailers, St. Leonard’s Mansion was the former home of a Duchess, an American car magnate and a U.S. President. It had oak paneled rooms, ornate plaster ceiling moldings, and terraces overlooking Windsor Castle and Windsor Great Park. Oh, and once a day, at approximately 11AM, British Airlines’ SST took off from nearby Heathrow making so much noise that all discussions had to stop for a few minutes.

When we arrived on site there were still elephants and lions on the property. This made for some interesting rules, like we couldn’t get out of our vehicles in various sections of the property. It was also the first project where a “Burial Plan” was part of the record drawings. This plan located the numerous locations where many large animals met their final resting place.

LEGO was meticulous when it came to children’s learning requirements and providing appropriate play environments relative to each of the LEGO brands, but they were also warm and humble colleagues that really enjoyed their work. Like many of our staff, I’ve always been very interested in how children learn through play, and the LEGOLAND project was a fantastic opportunity to put play and learning ideas into practice.

Because LEGO really challenged the norms of theme parks with the decision to cater to very young guests, I think we all learned a lot and came up with some great attractions that, in the end, were simple and extremely affordable.”

On Thursday, we’ll answer a question that we have been asked since our founding in 1987 – WHY CINCINNATI?!?

Variations on a Theme: Deciphering the Difference Between Amusement and Theme Parks

Thu, 06 Jan 2011 14:28:54 GMT

When clients come to us with an attraction idea, one of our first questions is whether they want to build an amusement park or a theme park. While these two kinds of parks have many similarities, their differences have a profound impact on the overall project budget and goals.

First, the similarities. Both amusement and theme parks are larger than city parks, playgrounds or Family Entertainment Centers. Both are fixed (i.e., not traveling carnivals or fairs), both are most often outside (Ferrari World being the most recent exception), and both usually incorporate a mixture of rides, shows and other attractions.

This, however, is where the similarities end. While amusement park rides can be lightly themed, they are generally purchased off-the-shelf (and sometimes even used). A theme park consists of a single theme or an amalgamation of several themes. The theming not only exists just on the rides and attractions, but permeates through each of the park’s environments, including landscaping, front- and back-of-house buildings and signage. While amusement parks have been around since the late 19th Century, theme parks are a comparatively new concept. The first park designed to encompass a single or combination of themes was Santa Claus Land (now known as Holiday World and Splashin’ Safari), which did not open in Santa Claus, Indiana until 1946.

JRA has provided design work on a number of both amusement and theme parks. Below is a photo of the former Bubba Gump Shrimp Shack at Kings Island. As you can see, even if you are not building a park based on specific themes, it is possible (and more visually appealing for the guest) to theme specific rides, attractions, restaurants or retail.

In addition to Ferrari World, JRA has provided theming for such parks as Universal Studios Florida and Legoland. Design for these parks provides the additional challenge of integrating a single component into the overall theme of a larger park.

In determining the type of park you want to build, the first question is – what is my budget? The additional expense for a theme park in sizable, not just in terms of the additional design and fabrication involved, but also in acquiring the intellectual property of an established brand. Theme parks generally also take more time to build, so you’ll want to take that into consideration. On the other hand, do you want your park to tell a complete story? Do you want your guests to feel totally immersed in your park as if they are in a different world? Then, allowing for the budget and time considerations above, a theme park is definitely for you.

Whatever your decision, Jack Rouse Associates is here to help, and we look forward to creating a dynamic and engaging park experience for your visitors. For a complete list of our amusement and theme park projects, be sure to check out our website.

Tuesday, JRA + blog will take a trip in the “way back machine” and check in on one of our past projects.