2025
Cherry Hill, New Jersey
Architecture
Interiors
Lighting Design
Furnishings
Public / Interiors / Workplace / Education
The Bannett Group, Ltd
The Bannett Group, Ltd
Beam's Custom Woodworking & Cabinetry
FormaSpace
Michael Stavaridis
Melitta North America's M-Lab was conceived as a new type of collaborative coffee laboratory and educational center developed by the 125-year-old German company's Cherry Hill team. Located in 3,000 square-feet in a corner of Melitta's roasting facility, the M-Lab offers flexible gathering and laboratory spaces to the coffee industry including opportunities for small batch roasting, cuppings, lectures and retreats.
The project also included the renovation of the plant's 1,000 square foot lobby and retail showcase spaces.
The project is conceived of as a set of wooden boxes that capture the most important functions of the project hierarchically: the Melitta Showcase where current products are displayed alongside historic company products in a type of museum store, and the M-Lab Arena where innovative coffee industry representatives gather for lectures, cuppings and displays.
Organized in the "donut" of space around the Arena, are the secondary and support spaces: Green Coffee Lab, Lounges, Conference Room, etc.. These spaces are brighter and quieter.
Formwork worked with furniture companies DWR, Audo and Grand Rapids Chair Company. Custom cupping tables were designed by formwork and fabricated by NJS Contracting.
A controlled color strategy using a range of light warm neutrals and warm natural materials allows the appearance of brand-related reds to stand out. The most important equipment, the small batch roaster that makes the M-Lab such a valuable testing ground for new flavors, is featured through a large window onto the factory floor centered in the Arena space.
Various layers of light allow for flexible working, presentation and feature lighting throughout the project. Lighting controls were designed to allow for quick transformations and for ease of use.
