Katerra was a technology-driven offsite construction company founded in 2015 that provided fully integrated, end-to-end building services. The company brought Silicon Valley-style technologies and efficiencies to building design, materials supply and construction, and also partnered with architects, cities, governments and companies to develop sustainable practices and smart urban planning.[1]
Design and History
Pentagram designed a comprehensive brand identity for Katerra that raised the profile of the company and helped convey what it did. The project encompassed brand strategy and messaging, iconography, promotional materials, packaging and livery, environmental graphics, website and digital applications, and a brand animation.[1]
Pentagram worked closely with Katerra leadership on the program. Founded in 2015, the fast-growing company was no longer really a startup, already one of the top 25 multifamily general contractors in the U.S. with a $1 billion valuation and more than 1,500 employees globally, and it wanted to look like an established brand. It also required a brand architecture that could expand along with it as it moved into launching a portfolio of products.[1]
The identity was developed by Pentagram’s New York office, with a project team including Brankica Harvey, Pedro Mendes, Jack Collins, Shannon Jager and Paul Yoon.[1]
Katerra Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States on June 6, 2021, after attempts to shore up its finances floundered.[2]
Meaning and Symbolism
The first challenge for the designers was to develop a brand story, a narrative of how Katerra worked, to form the basis of the identity. The company’s design approach linked standardization with customization, and the brand identity was inspired by foundational systems that are both unique and patterned, such as tree rings, urban grids, topography and fingerprints.[1]
The Katerra icon evokes these sources with a “K” formed by lines that radiate from the shape of the letter. The ends of the lines are cut with angles, like joinery in construction.[1]
Typography and Design
The specialization of the angled line cuts extended to the letterforms of the wordmark, set in a custom font with angled ends and apexes. Graphic elements embraced Katerra’s contemporary, streamlined and sustainable approach, using the visual language of construction and building as a starting point.[1]
The typography balanced simple functionality with elegance, combining the neutral sans Univers with the serif Publico Banner Light. A limited color palette of construction-oriented orange, black and gray appeared in skewed shades that felt more modern. The designers developed a system of custom icons that used the line weights and angled cuts from the Katerra “K,” and the symbol’s radiating lines were extended into a series of different geometric patterns.[1]
The Pentagram team also created a brand animation that illustrated the design and construction process and brought the identity to life.[1]
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