Back to the Future

Print Shop: ER2 Image Group | er2image.com
Location: Hanover Park, Illinois
Tools and Supplies: Dreamscape Terralon Smooth wallcovering, 1/2-in. acrylic, 1/18-in. recycled aluminum, reclaimed local wood, house Celtic fabric, 3M Crystal Glass Finishes 7725SE-314 Dusted Crystal film, 3M Controltac 180C-10LSE, 3M 8150 Clear, 3M Matte White Cut Vinyl, wheat paste and paper, EFI Vutek H5 flatbed, EFI Vutek 3r+ roll-to-roll press, HP Latex 3600 printer, MultiCam 3000 router, EnRoute software, Zünd G3-L3200 digital cutter, Zünd G3 3XL-1600 digital cutter.

BY NOW, IT’S old news that cookie-cutter, cubicle-centric offices are relics from the past. Today’s office environments lean toward the creative, extravagant, high-tech, Instagrammable, and memorable. LinkedIn’s new Omaha headquarters is anything but typical, thanks to ER2 Image Group of Hanover Park, Illinois.

The firm was tasked with reflecting the LinkedIn brand and the history of Omaha throughout two connected, state-of-the-art, five-floor office buildings totaling 400,000 square feet. “From workstations to common areas to cafeterias, music studios, and respite rooms, every part of our design had to tell that story,” says Gary Schellerer, VP and partner, ER2 Image Group. “Each floor is designed with a unique theme that mixes LinkedIn culture with a splash of local flavor and connection.”

ER2’s Applied Surfaces division meticulously produced a variety of multidimensional custom displays paying homage to corn, nearby Offutt Air Force Base, and Omaha history throughout the massive space, ensuring each floor’s design matched its designated color scheme of orange, yellow, green, blue, or red. In total, the team output more than 1.5 miles of DreamScape Terralon Smooth wallcovering and 3000 linear feet of 3M Crystal Glass Finishes 7725SE-314 Dusted Crystal film.

A smattering of projects from the enormous job: The firm direct printed 1/2-inch acrylic; printed, finished, and fabricated reclaimed local wood; designed, engineered, dye-sub printed, and finished a custom parachute wall with house Celtic fabric with grommets, rope, and stitching; printed and mounted various vinyl elements; designed and produced custom illuminated displays and dimensional displays using wood, acrylic, and metal; and custom-made café food stall signage. ER2 used an EFI Vutek H5 flatbed, EFI Vutek 3r+ roll-to-roll press, HP Latex 3600 printer, MultiCam 3000 router, Zünd G3-L3200 digital cutter, and Zünd G3 3XL-1600 digital cutter.

“The LinkedIn Omaha office, without a doubt, represents our most customized project to date, with so many individual elements presenting their unique style practically everywhere you look,” Jason Dillas, managing director of Applied Surfaces, ER2 Image Group, says. “We’re not talking one room, one department, or one floor. We’re talking a level of design that touched every inch of the operation.”