Barrett Industries is a leader in providing innovative infrastructure solutions throughout the United States. In 2019, the company celebrated 40 years with the Colas Group. This milestone inspired the company to start an employee focused campaign called the “40 Weeks of Barrett.” To recognize the important contributions of their employees Barrett asked OtherWisz to design a commemorative coffee table book to give to their employees.
Large photos span both pages in the book design, including clustersing photos around a descriptive caption. The layout emphasizes the beauty of the photos but provides a comfortable reading experience with the typography.
The 96-page hard cover book is an extension of the Barrett Industries brand, filled with images and stories that illustrates the growth of the company and the impact their employees have had over time. It was planned as gift to be delivered to their employees at the end of the year-long anniversary celebration.
Establishing an on-brand visual style for the book
Initially, OtherWisz was given access to the company’s expansive photo library to research and plan the 96-page book. The initial outline was for the book to be a historical document of the company’s 40-years and the individual histories of their subsidiaries. As employees read the book they are led through the years with vintage photos, narrative and graphics, color-coded for each decade, and it was our job to make this an engaging experience.
The timeline graphic was created to visualize the contents of the book. Information graphics guide viewers throughout each decade, which is color coded using Barrett’s brand colors.
The book’s design began by creating layout concepts and determining how they could be adapted across the different sections of the book. The book’s design takes into consideration the existing Barrett Industries brand, utilizing the same colors and type treatments that are applied across their website and other collateral to keep a consistent brand image.
Information graphics visualize the company’s growth
To support the framework of the book, OtherWisz designed informative graphics to help visualize the growth of the company. This included an overall timeline graphic of the company’s history, used at the beginning of the book to provide an overview of their growth. Then each section of the book included custom-designed maps to help further show the growth of the company as it began to expand its influence across the eastern United States.
Each decade is accompanied by a map that shows the company’s growth, listing the location on the opposite page.
Creating a narrative to define the company’s history
The book recounts each decade with a narrative written and edited by OtherWisz from client supplied information. The content presents the legacy of the company over the past four decades, illustrating their history, their people, their innovative products and the growth of the paving industry itself. Using Barrett’s resource library, OtherWisz combed through thousands of photos to match with the written story, which was an intensive part of the process. Specific subsidiaries are highlighted in their own chapters along with special construction sections that detail Barrett’s diverse products and services.
The design of this spread is purely image focused with a caption nestled in the cluster of images, comparing the plant’s evolution over time.
Down to the details: project management is key
Over the course of the project, we made sure the book was on track for completion within the expedited timeframe. The production of this book required thorough and attentive project management to keep the work organized and on track. Starting in late Summer, the book was designed, developed, written, edited, printed and delivered in time to be mailed as an employee holiday gift.
This map shows the journey the Barrett Industries ambassador van took around the northeast, stopping at key locations for the company.
In addition to the book, OtherWisz has also provided Barrett with a new employee website, business cards and email newsletter template all aiding to their year-long celebration, check it out here!
Featured Image: The Barrett Industries book is contained in a custom designed sleeve — the book itself is matte black with custom gold foil logo commemorating their 40th anniversary.
