PHOTOS BY BRANDON SULLIVAN PHOTOGRAPHY Conrad Masterson builds his business by focusing on what clients really want—and what employees need. "The first thing I learned when I entered the shade sail industry was to focus on what the customer really wants,” says Conrad Masterson, president of SHADE Industries, Phoenix, Ariz. “That may sound [...]

Architectural sculptor Cliff Garten used lotus blossom imagery in his hanging sculpture at The Vermont luxury apartment building to reflect the culture of the surrounding Koreatown neighborhood in Los Angeles. Cascade Architectural’s Fabricoil™ coiled metal mesh complements the “Heart of Compassion” sculpture while disguising the parking ramp. Photo: “Los Angeles Opens its Heart of [...]

Kengo Kuma has been making headlines since the 1990s with designs that describe “an architecture of relations, respecting its surroundings instead of dominating them,” including the Suntory Museum of Art in Tokyo, Bamboo Wall House in China and Besançon Art Center in France. Photo: ©Masao Nishikawa Shang Xia, a high-end retailer purveying the [...]

While it’s unlikely that an EDAG Light Cocoon will be roaring down a street near you anytime soon, polyamide parts are already used in automotive manufacturing. However, 3-D printing (or additive manufacturing) for complex vehicle structures is a potentially revolutionary notion. Photo: EDAG Engineering AG. What do 3-D printing, sportswear fabric and a [...]

Clad in high-performance thermal clothing, Erik Weihenmayer crests the Continental Divide in the Colorado Rockies. “Your gear is so important. You are pretty comfortable if you’re in the right gear, layered up and moving,” he says. Weihenmayer will be the keynote speaker Oct. 8 at IFAI Expo in Anaheim, Calif. Photo: Skyler Williams. [...]

Despite legislative and legal challenges, now is the time to prepare for new requirements in 2016. Although the Affordable Care Act (ACA) has been around since 2010, despite more than 50 Congressional attempts to repeal it, its shaky financial footing may do it in. The ACA’s sharply increasing health care costs were highlighted in the [...]

Each Refuse Goods product is made to order from scraps left over after lighting and furniture manufacture. The small pieces are heat-fused into larger pieces to make pouches and bags. Photo: Refuse Goods. Seattle-based Resolute designs and manufactures decorative lighting fixtures to architects’ specifications, using mostly American-made materials to create unique, elegant solutions [...]

Inflatable pontoons make this bicycle water-stable and easy to maneuver for a low impact ride on open water. Photo: Schiller Bikes Taking the bike out for a spin is a whole new adventure on the Schiller S1, a bicycle built for water. No heavy boats, paddles or special equipment are needed; bikers can [...]