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New name and new identity for Purcell Miller Tritton
Purcell Miller Tritton has changed its name to Purcell and refreshed its visual identity to reflect the aspirations of the practice and the values of its founder.
Purcell Miller Tritton was established in 1947 by Donovan Purcell, a fellow of Corpus Christi College in Cambridge where he taught at the School of Architecture. Shortening the practice’s name to Purcell is a fitting tribute to his dedication to architecture and conservation – a legacy that still underpins the way the practice works today.
In the last decade Purcell has grown and diversified, and in 2011 opened an office in Hong Kong. Last year the output from the Hong Kong studio accounted for 11% of turnover.
The practice’s CEO, Mark Goldspink said: “The firm’s new visual identity reflects the diversification and growth of the practice over the last ten years, which is an evolving business mix of heritage consulting, conservation and new build contemporary architecture. It also recognises the aspirations of the next generation, the successors of the practice.”
Mark Goldspink brought in design consultancy Kimpton Creative to advise on a rebranding strategy and the design of a new visual identity. Out went the rather staid image, and in came a fresher more contemporary look, with a timeless and classical feel. Both clients and staff were interviewed and the whole process took twelve months.
“Where the rebranding exercise was really valuable was in starting a debate internally about who we thought we were and where we wanted to go. The rebranding strategy was reinforced by the results of an Employee Engagement Survey. Members of staff were asked 66 questions and were encouraged to make verbatim comments. The areas of questioning were around engagement, communications, management and leadership,” Mark said.
Staff stated they were committed to making Purcell a great place to work, were proud to work for the practice, and found their jobs both challenging and interesting. The areas highlighted for improvement were areas that Purcell had already started to improve, such as performance discussions, development plans and pay and reward.
Since the survey Purcell has implemented career development key performance indicators (KPIs), succession plans and talent reviews, and a more formal time- off-in-lieu (TOIL) process. Staff can take up to 75 hours (2 weeks per year) if they have accumulated extra time outside contracted working hours. A cycle-to-work scheme, season ticket loans and student bursaries are all other benefits the practice offers. Leadership coaching is due to begin this spring.
Aside from the company name and visual identity, nothing has changed. The practice will continue to expand in its core markets and offer the professional and creative service it has become respected for.
Purcell operates across eight sectors, including residential, cultural, places of worship, education, public, regeneration, hospitality, workplace, transport and healthcare. Current projects includes the Story Museum in Oxford; an eco-hotel in St Helena; the mixed-use redevelopment of a former pottery works to provide a hotel and conference and education facilities; and a £100 million holiday village and sustainable housing development in the historic Penhros Estate in Anglesea, North Wales.
Purcell’s recent achievements have been recognised in a string of awards. These include the AJ100’s ‘Practice of the Year’ award in the North West, North East and Yorkshire; a ‘Building Conservation’ award for Tudor House Museum in Southampton and the recent Europa Nostra award for the meticulous restoration of Leighton House Museum in London. The practice has also been shortlisted for ‘Public Building of the Year’ category of the 2012 Building Awards for work at the National Maritime Museum.