[ Flad & Associates ]
From designing Genentech in San Francisco to Bayer in Connecticut, the architecture firm of Flad & Associates has been a leader in the industry for over 70 years. When it came time to improve their leadership online, they turned to CPID.

[ Situation ]
Flad and Associates knew that it was time for an online upgrade. As a pioneer in the architecture field, Flad wanted a site that would compliment their history and experience. In preparation for the redesign, CPID analyzed their previous site:

• The overall look did not distinguish Flad from the competition
• Uneven layout suggested an unprofessional image
• Navigation could be improved
• The graphics did not establish an effective impact on a user
• The content was presented in a dry and ineffective manner
• Too much like a ‘brochure,’ instead of an interactive presentation
• The site wasn’t listed in the major search engines, like Yahoo!, Lycos or InfoSeek
• The site would not load a majority of the time, suggesting a connectivity problem with the server

[ Solution ]
The CPID Team went to work. Before we coded a single HTML tag or illustrated any graphics, CPID developed the “blue-prints” for their new site:

• Create awareness of Flad philosophy and services
• Construct an on-line photo gallery and present monthly articles
• Reorganize sections, making it easier for the user to navigate
• Build a flexible site capable of expansion and additions
• Feature Flad principals and their work, creating a more “humanistic” touch to the site
• Integrate the graphics from section to section with a uniform style
• Properly submit the site to search engines and Internet guides to increase site traffic
• Move the site to a much more stable server

[ Result ]
Working closely with the Flad marketing team, CPID relaunched the Flad Web on May 1st, 1997. Styled as a monthly magazine, the site is an interactive online presence that “plays like a CD-ROM.” Traffic is up, the site’s connectivity problems are gone, and the Flad Web has become a superior communications tool.

“As an architecture firm, we strive to be on the cutting edge of functional, novel design,” say Ralph H. Jackson Jr., AIA, President of Flad & Associates. “We felt our web site should reflect our strong level of design, while communicating who we are as a firm in an easy-to-read way. The new look does all that. It’s exciting to access.”