We are excited to announce a recent promotion on the Rockefeller Kempel Architects team! Keith Ireland, AIA is now Director in addition to his role as BIM Manager. Keith is not only a talented architect, but he has devoted the past 15 years to the firm. His level of commitment is rarely seen these days and we want to acknowledge his extraordinary dedication and talent. He also brings a vast knowledge about technology, systems, the industry, and its processes to the team.
We’re honored to share Keith’s architectural beginnings and journey with you. Congratulations Keith!
As early as he can remember, Keith loved building things using Lego’s, Lincoln Logs, and Tinker Toys. He also loved drawing and took art classes whenever available. During one art class, Keith remembers, “We were assigned a project to design a simple house and then build a physical model. From that point, I was hooked on design and knew that I wanted to be an architect.” Keith spent his summers interning at a civil engineering firm and learned how to draft in CAD. After high school, he attended the School of Architecture at USC and continued to intern at architecture firms in Los Angeles. Keith first started working with Rocky Rockefeller shortly after graduating. He was drawn to one of the advantages of a smaller firm - the opportunity for an in-depth learning process through the life of a project.
Fast forward 15 years. Keith has become a licensed architect, a husband, father, and recently welcomed a well-deserved promotion. When asked what he’d like to achieve a year from now as a marker of success in his new role, Keith replied, “I will have succeeded if my knowledge obtained through years of putting drawing sets together and working with ArchiCAD has effectively been passed on to staff to help make our processes more efficient as a company.”
It is true, the knowledge that Keith brings to the team is invaluable and his coworkers often find his expertise a huge advantage on projects during any stage. “Very early on I realized that the only limiting factor here [RKA] is how much you want to be exposed to and take on. I owe most of what I know in the field of Architecture to this office.”
Keith goes on to explain that one key aspect that makes RKA a great place to work is the diversity of projects, the ongoing education that RKA invests in its employees, as well as the hands-on exposure to each step of a project.
Keith has worked on a myriad of projects in his tenure, but none he’s prouder of than his work on Hotel Figueroa. Due to the size and scope of the project, it was very complex and took years to complete. However, the project has been a huge success and has drawn numerous press and accolades while continuing to be an industry inspiration.
Outside of work, you will find Keith taking great pleasure in being a Dad and all that entails. He also enjoys video games, watching anything sci-fi, and to this day he still enjoys building Lego sets which both he and his daughter now share together. Keith is truly one of our most hard-working and talented employees who we are honored to have in the RKA family. His knowledge is invaluable, and we honor that through recognizing his talent and leadership with this promotion of one of our best and brightest employees.