In the Press

An Interview with SOM’s Colin Koop and Daniel Cashen

Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP (SOM) is one of the largest and most influential architecture, interior design, engineering, and urban planning firms in the world. Founded in 1936, the firm has completed more than 10,000 projects across 50-plus countries. The firm is renowned for their iconic buildings and their steadfast commitment to design excellence, innovation, and sustainability. Collaboration is a guiding force at SOM. They believe the best results stem from an ongoing dialogue with all stakeholders. There are no pre-established formulas at SOM. They design each project to meet specific needs and conditions. Colin Koop is a Design Director and Dan Cashen is a Senior Designer in Roger Duffy’s (Design Partner) studio of SOM’s New York office. …

[Koop]: SOM’s approach to design is integration, plain and simple. We continue to uphold tectonic clarity and a program-driven approach as fundamental design principles. But the real uniqueness of our firm is how architects and engineers come together to make great architecture. …

[Cashen]: SOM will continue to push the forward the idea of an integrated practice that leverages technology to tackle complex problems. I also think that our design process will be better informed and more intelligent as we streamline our early-phase design work. Across the globe, we’ll continue to centralize our resources to produce results that fit within a singular framework.