Wallace Design Collective

Another year has gone by; it sure did go fast! So, let us reflect on the past year. We have had quite a year here at Wallace Design Collective. The year's biggest news was bringing KSi Structural Engineers into the Wallace team. With offices in Atlanta and Nashville, KSi increased our presence in Atlanta and gave us a new market in Nashville. These additions had a large part in producing a banner year for the second year in a row! Hot tip: it helps to bring a great, strong company like KSi on board.

Over the past two years, Krista and I have combined to write 65+ blog posts. This year, we focused the blog on less engineering technical blogs and more on our people. Some were still technical blogs like "How Safe Are Storm Shelters?," "CA Challenges on Coda at Tech Square," and the importance of roof consulting and pavement management for schools in our "School's Out!" series. Others were much more personal, like our "Spotlight on Dena Dye" piece, "Everything is (Not) Awesome (All The Time)," or "Wallace Lifers." We highlighted a few of our services, such as landscape architecture, collaborations with the A. Zahner Company, and others. We had a few more posts directed at our incoming professionals, including spotlighting our 2022 interns, reporting on our interns on site visits, and offering tips in "Conquer the Career Fair." We even worked in a few fun posts like "Why Is the Bob Dylan Center in Tulsa?", "For the Love of Maths," and "Frights from the Field." Most importantly, we had posts about helping the community with "40 Acts of Service" and "Giving Tuesday."

What surprised us most about writing for the blog?

Kyle: The most surprising thing this year came just a few weeks ago when my phone rang, and it was a parent in the Atlanta area who wanted to ask about my blog post about school pickup and drop-off design. It's the kind of experience that you hope for but never expect. It is just great to see that people are actually reading our blogs other than our parents and co-workers.

I was a bit surprised at how much research was required to cover topics I did not know much about. Since we focused more on non-technical blogs this year, I did much more research than I expected.

Krista:I guess I'm always pleasantly surprised at how much I learn in the research process of writing these posts. This year, some research that still stands out to me: all of the Bob Dylan fun facts and Tulsa connections, the impactful, unique outreach the USA BMX headquarters is bringing to the Tulsa community (plus all the AEC challenges in the design and construction of the stadium!), and the fascinating peek into Wallace Design Collective's mystical metal facade design work with Zahner. In every article, I'm talking to someone new or digging into an eye-opening topic. For me, it's always a blast to collect new info and perspectives, see where they take me, and then figure out how to communicate my inspirations in a fun, fresh, and educational way.

What were our favorite blogs to write:

Kyle:My favorite blog to write was "Company Culture." We have such a great culture here at Wallace. It was fun to see what other people had to say about it since I asked company leadership as well as some of the younger staff and new hires.

My second favorite was the Halloween blog "Frights from the Field - Engineers on Site Trips!". Our staff has been in some very interesting and unusual places for this job. Some of it can be spooky, but it is usually a funny story when you return home.

Krista:Hmm…I think my favorite has to be "1 + 1 > 2: KSi Structural Engineers Joins Wallace Design Collective." It was so interesting to hear from both KSi's and Wallace's leadership about why each side was excited to join forces and how the companies genuinely complement each other with what they bring to the table. Also, it's such a fun story about Kurt's positive run-in with a little firm called Wallace Engineering years earlier – who would have thought Wallace and KSi would end up teaming up down the road?

I also enjoyed hearing what our Wallace ladies had to say about their experiences in the field for “Women Construction: Advice for Female Engineers Facing Sexism in the Field." Hearing their insights, reflecting on my own experiences, and presenting real-world advice from our collective perspectives was a thought-provoking exercise that felt important, like someone out there needed it.

What were your favorite blogs to read:

And now, the deep dive into the numbers! Our favorite thing as engineers: give me the data and let me create spreadsheets to sift through it and find the trends!

**Disclaimer - the data used to rank our most awesome blogs is based on data gathered on December 8, 2022.**

LinkedIn:

1) "Company Culture"

With a top-notch culture like ours, this blog was sure to win some accolades.

2) "4 Ways Landscape Architects Are Helping Bring the Stress-Relieving Wonders of Nature to All"

Everyone is looking for ways to reduce the stress in their lives, especially in times like these. This blog sure helped people understand and implement landscaping stress busters.

3) "Tornado Season Is Here: How Safe are Storm Shelters and Safe Rooms?"

When you live in the heart of Tornado Alley, storm shelters are a big deal. Lots of people have one in their homes and surely had their curiosity sated about how they are designed.

Facebook:

1) "Zahner and Wallace: A Glimpse into the Artful Engineering Collaboration Behind Iconic Metal Facades"

If you have been around for 120 years, you are definitely doing something right. So naturally, it is no surprise that a blog about such a great company we get to collaborate with would do so well.

2) "Frights from the Field" and "Why is the Bob Dylan Center in Tulsa?"

The first tie ever recorded for our blog! It seems our Facebook fans enjoy funny stories and reading about cultural icons.

Wallace.Design:

1) "Why is the Bob Dylan Center in Tulsa?"

A lot of the data can be murky, but this was not. It was ranked nearly twice higher as the next closest blog in almost every category on our website. Bob Dylan crushed all!

2) "1+1>2: KSi Structural Engineers Joins Wallace Design Collective"

KSi joining Wallace has been an incredible journey and was sure to get some attention because of KSi's outstanding reputation.

3) "Company Culture"

Was there a blog you felt like should have made the top three? Please feel free to comment and let us know what you think about this year's stellar batch of blog posts.

Is there a topic you would like to see us blog about? Please leave a comment or reach out to Krista or me, and we will try to cover it in 2023.

Lastly, thanks to all of our readers! So many thousands of readers - tens of thousands, I am sure, if only I could figure out how to properly sift through the social media analytics.

Happy Holidays and Cheers to 2023!