Commercial Design Awards

Commercial Design Awards 2023 Winner: Health Care

Excel Dental’s new office is an efficient yet welcoming and relaxing space offering general dental services.

By Tessa Cooper

Jul 2023

CDA 2023 Health Care winner interior photo

Photo by Bon AperatureThe eco-friendly felt panels that hang on the walls of Excel Dental help absorb sound. “We wanted there to be some sort of wow factor in the lobby and to do something unique,” says Rose Monahan of James Decor. “The blue color is very vibrant and plays along with their logo colors.”

Category: Health Care

Project Goal: To transform Excel Dental’s new office into an efficient yet welcoming and relaxing space to offer general dental services.

Architect
Rob Haik, hdesigngroup

Project Manager
Bryon Oster, hdesigngroup

Designers
Marnie Eckels, James Decor
Rose Monahan, James Decor

If you were to glance into Excel Dental’s new office at 1701 James River Rd. in Ozark, it would be easy to mistake it for a spa.

Upon stepping into the lobby, Dr. Tracy Davis and Dr. Jim Oslica’s patients meet a serene space that encourages any emerging dental anxieties to melt away.

The same relaxing color scheme of blues and grays carries on into the exam and procedure rooms.

Davis was highly involved in the design process and worked with the teams at James Decor and hdesigngroup to create this office that marries form with function. One key change was raising the building’s roofline, which dramatically changed the exterior and interior appearance.

“The owners wanted to transform an existing shopping plaza and convert half of the building into their new dental office,” says Bryon Oster, project manager at hdesigngroup. “We wanted the new Excel Dental entry to stand out amongst the other tenant entrances to clearly define where users should enter. We achieved this by removing a section of the existing roof above the new waiting area and building a tower element with clerestory glazing that provides a lot of natural light into the space. [This also] created a more inviting and comfortable environment for waiting clientele.”

Reception at renovated Excel Dental space.

Photos by Bon AperatureThe eco-friendly felt panels that hang on the walls also help absorb sound. “We wanted there to be some sort of wow factor in the lobby and to do something unique,” says Monahan. “The blue color is very vibrant and plays along with their logo colors.”

Photos by Bon AperatureWhen choosing furniture and fabrics, Eckels and Monahan selected pieces that were commercial grade but still had a luxe look.

Photos by Bon AperatureMarnie Eckels and Rose Monahan with James Decor worked on creating a reception desk with a handicap accessible lower section.

Interior designers Marnie Eckels and Rose Monahan with James Decor offered their design and sourcing expertise to create spaces that were aesthetic but practical. For example, the front desk design features an agate-patterned design. It has the appearance of a natural stone or a resin pour, but it’s actually durable commercial-grade wallcovering that can withstand the frequent traffic the front desk receives. “We didn’t want it to have that sterile medical facility feel, so we focused on using natural wood tones and light stone finishes,” Eckels says.