Today, architecture practice the S/L/A/M Collaborative (SLAM) announced that it has merged with Los Angeles–based Frank Webb Architects (FWA). SLAM currently has offices in Connecticut, Georgia, New York, and Massachusetts. FWA's office will become SLAM's first West Coast location.
“When we began speaking with the leadership team at FWA back in 2016, we were amazed at how many ways our two firms were aligned,” said SLAM's president, Robert Pulito, AIA, in a press release. “We have wanted to expand on the West Coast for some time, but this wasn’t just about getting bigger. We were looking for a partner who saw the value in a cohesive team approach.”
Founded in 1990, FWA is known for its work in healthcare design and will operate as a studio under the SLAM banner. FWA's leadership team will join the SLAM executive team as part of the new relationship, with FWA president Gregory Coles, AIA, serving as the principal-in-charge of the Los Angeles studio.
“We aren’t looking at each design studio as a profit center,” Pulito said in the release. “That often creates a competitive and divisive environment instead of a collaborative team whose collective goal is to identify the best possible solution for a client ... . We’re going to bring together the right blend of talent for each project, no matter where in the organization they’re geographically located.”
“The marriage of these two great companies enables us both to grow in new and exciting ways,” Coles said in the same release. “When you combine our talented teams, we are poised to take on even bigger and more complex projects.”
