Newlab at Michigan Central Wins Fast Company Innovation by Design Award!

DBI wishes to congratulate CIVILIAN and Newlab on winning the 2024 Fast Company Innovation by Design Award for Interior Design! DBI led the project as Newlab’s owner’s representative and worked closely with the project’s designer, Nicko Elliott of CIVILIAN, to establish the project’s program, vision, and development strategy. The award is the result of years of planning and collaboration by all parties involved, including Newlab, CIVILIAN, DBI Projects, and Ford.

In its profile of the project, Fast Company referred to Newlab at Michigan Central as, “a locus of technologies, investors, and the tools it takes to build stuff.” It credits CIVILIAN’s interior design with doing “a remarkable job of balancing those very different uses.” The article highlights the building’s industrial aesthetic, complimenting the signature reception area, and praises the mixture of both formal and casual workspaces, meant to inspire collaboration between tenants.

Since Newlab’s genesis, DBI has been involved at each step along the way, starting with Newlab at the Brooklyn Navy Yard. DBI led the development of the Navy Yard project from conceptual planning and financing through completion. DBI is honored to be a part of the transformation of an underutilized property in Detroit’s Corktown neighborhood, building on the firm’s broad portfolio of work managing conversions of historic structures into spaces that inspire creativity and innovation.

We are immensely proud of this award-winning project and of our continued partnership with Newlab and CIVILIAN.