Noblis Headquarters

Noblis, Inc., a nonprofit national science, technology, and strategy organization, was in the market for a refreshed office for their Washington, D.C. metropolitan headquarters. Our team, having worked with Noblis for 20 years, designed the existing space over a decade ago, but the company’s processes and structure had changed since.  

SmithGroup partnered with Noblis to analyze how their employees worked in order to design a space that could help them achieve their mission of better collaboration. Through SmithGroup’s open floor plan design, neighborhoods were created that offer varying scales and variety in space types, choice and flexibility. The design doubled the number of meeting and collaborative spaces, supporting how employees wanted to work.

In addition to typical office, meeting, and social spaces, the program called for a 200-seat auditorium, a main café/social space to house 100, secure research labs and a reimagined Noblis Innovation & Collaboration Center (NICC), which is a unique space that enables staff to demonstrate the essence, history, and story of Noblis to clients and potential clients. These were all strategically located on the main floor to encourage staff to engage with each other, while also making it more accessible to visitors.

With newly designed headquarters that accommodates the company’s progress, growth, and processes, Noblis is rebranded as both a trusted partner, and a forward-thinking organization to its employees and clients.