Stubbins Associates
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Architecture, Engineering, Interior design, Planning |
| Predecessor | The Kling-Lindquist Partnership, Inc.; Stubbins Associates |
| Founded | 2007 |
| Founder | Vincent G. Kling, Hugh Stubbins |
| Defunct | 2011 |
| Fate | Acquired by Jacobs Engineering Group |
| Headquarters | Philadelphia , United States |
Area served | United States, China |
| Products | Architectural and engineering services |
| Parent | Jacobs Engineering Group (since 2011) |
KlingStubbins was a multidisciplinary firm specializing in architecture, engineering, interior design, and planning, with its main office located in Philadelphia. Additional branches were situated in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Raleigh, North Carolina, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., and Beijing. In recognition of his contributions, founder Vincent G. Kling received the Frank P. Brown Medal from the Franklin Institute in 1982.
Firm history
The formation of KlingStubbins occurred in 2007 through the combination of The Kling-Lindquist Partnership, Inc., established by Vincent Kling in 1946 and known as Philadelphia’s largest architectural firm, and Stubbins Associates, founded in 1949 by Hugh Stubbins, FAIA, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Among Vincent Kling’s significant works is the Bell Atlantic Tower (completed 1991), which ranks among Philadelphia’s tallest structures. He also worked alongside urban planner Edmund Bacon.
Stubbins Associates was responsible for designing landmark high-rises including New York’s Citicorp Center, the headquarters for the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, and Japan’s tallest building at the time, the Yokohama Landmark Tower. The two firms began collaborating when Kling joined forces with Stubbins Associates in 2003 and officially merged on January 1, 2007. This union broadened their expertise to encompass engineering, interior architecture, landscape design, and facilitated the launch of multiple regional offices.
During the 1970s, Michael Paul Smith, who later created the miniature village Elgin Park, contributed as a model maker within the company.
In 2011, KlingStubbins was acquired by Jacobs Engineering Group and now functions as part of their Global Buildings division.
Notable designs
- Campbell's Employee Center, located in Camden, New Jersey, completed in 2010
- Autodesk AEC Headquarters in Waltham, Massachusetts, finished in 2008
- AT&T Headquarters at Basking Ridge, New Jersey (constructed between 1971 and 1974)
- United States Postal Service Processing & Distribution Center in Philadelphia, completed in 2006
- Merck Research Laboratories in Boston, completed in 2005
- University of Colorado Health Sciences Center Research Complex I, located in Aurora, Colorado, finished in 2005
- The Venetian Resort in Las Vegas, completed in 2003
- Wyeth Headquarters Phase II in Collegeville, Pennsylvania
- Bell Atlantic Tower in Philadelphia, completed in 1991
- Penn Center development during the 1950s in Philadelphia
- GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceutical R&D Headquarters Complex at Research Triangle Park, North Carolina
- Dow Jones & Company Corporate Office Facility situated in Princeton, New Jersey
- SAP AG America Corporate Headquarters located in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania
- International Monetary Fund Headquarters (Phases I–III) in Washington, DC; developed from 1971 to 1999
- Congress Hall (Berlin)
- Yokohama Landmark Tower situated in Yokohama, Japan
- Lankenau Medical Center based in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania
- Veterans Stadium located in Philadelphia
- Citigroup Center situated in New York City
- North Shore High School located in Glen Head, New York
- Ronald Reagan Presidential Library at Simi Valley, California
- One Cleveland Center located in Cleveland
- Federal Reserve Bank of Boston headquarters
- PacWest Center situated in Portland, Oregon
- Salesforce Tower located in Indianapolis
- Nashville City Center based in Nashville, Tennessee
Publications
Both Kling-Lindquist and The Stubbins Associates have released multiple architectural monographs. Their inaugural joint publication, titled KlingStubbins: Palimpsest, was published in 2009 by Images Publishing. Building on thorough internal research focused on laboratory design, KlingStubbins issued a design guide called Sustainable Design of Research Laboratories: Planning, Design, and Operation through Wiley in 2010. This work emphasizes interdisciplinary methods for achieving sustainable design and enhancing energy efficiency in research laboratories.
Project delivery innovation
KlingStubbins pioneered the use of the Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) model in New England with the design and construction of the Autodesk Headquarters in Waltham, MA. Unlike conventional project delivery systems where owners engage architects and contractors under separate agreements, IPD consolidates these parties under a single contract. This collaboration accelerates project completion, shares both liabilities and financial rewards among owner, architect, and builder, and streamlines communication. The approach garnered global acclaim for its innovative framework, leading to an expedited timeline, absence of legal conflicts, and no change orders throughout the building process.
Honors and awards
- Autodesk AEC Headquarters, Waltham, MA, USA, 2008
- Kling inducted into the National Academy of Design, 1964