Westborough, MA, 1969, Pierce & Pierce Architects
The Duplicon Co. was a metal stamping company founded in Westborough, MA by Johan and Thomas Andersen. The brothers originally founded the company in an old cement block theater located at the intersection of Route 9 and 495. The company saw rapid growth and in 1969 expanded their factory to include a new tool-making facility designed by Pierce & Pierce.
In order to attract top talent, Duplicon wanted to take advantage of the sweeping views the site offered in order to attract top talent. The result was a building designed to be both a factory and a modern white collar office. An acoustic baffle system was hung from the steel joists which often make up warehouse ceilings to hide clutter and dampen the noise of the machinery as well as give the building a more finished feel. To control sunlight in the space, the exterior roof overhangs the large windows and white enamel louvers were placed between the matching coated steel columns.
After Duplicon was acquired by ZERO Manufacturing in California, the site was bought by the Howard Johnson Corporation and was eventually razed for what is now the Doubletree Inn in Westborough.
Source:
New England Architect and Builder Illustrated, April 1970.
The Westborough Patch, “Westborough History…The 1880 Club Controversy” by Glenn Parker.
“On the Beaten Path: Westborough, Massachusetts” by Allen, Kristina Nilson.
Leave a Reply