Engineering

Western Washington University is planning to construct the $68 million Kaiser Borsari Hall in Bellingham. Designed by Perkins+Will, the 40,000-sf structure will accommodate the school's growing programs in computer science and electrical engineering. The collaborative four-story building will provide experiential learning venues, teaching and research labs, classrooms, offices, breakout areas, a multicultural student lounge, a commons, and a mechanical basement.

Cranfield University completed construction in December of 2020 on the Digital Aviation Research and Technology Centre (DARTeC) in the United Kingdom. Designed by Burrell Foley Fischer, the £65 million complex provides technology-rich laboratory environments adjoining a live aerodrome with a hangar, a 737-400 aircraft, and a digital air traffic control center with next-generation radar systems. The innovative facility also includes open offices and a two-story atrium with integrated breakout areas to promote interaction and collaboration.

The University of California, Santa Barbara opened the $56 million Henley Hall in December of 2020. Housing the Institute for Energy Efficiency, the three-story, 50,280-gsf (29,292-asf) structure provides 17 research labs with a combination of wet and dry modalities, a 124-seat lecture hall, conference rooms, collaborative breakout areas, and faculty and administrative offices.

The University of Florida broke ground in December of 2020 on the $150 million Malachowsky Hall for Data Science & Information Technology in Gainesville. Designed by Bohlin Cywinski Jackson, the 263,000-sf facility will be a dynamic research hub for the application of computing, communication, and cyber technologies to a broad spectrum of areas including health care, pharmacology, security, and fundamental science.

The University of Wisconsin-Platteville broke ground on the $55 million Sesquicentennial Hall in November of 2020. Designed by BWBR Architects, the 99,200-sf facility will provide collaborative research and learning environments for programs in engineering, computer science, and sustainable and renewable energy systems (SRES).

The University of Oregon dedicated the first phase of the Phil and Penny Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact in December of 2020 in Eugene. Designed by Ennead Architects and Bora Architects to encourage interaction and collaboration, the $225 million, 160,000-sf building offers leading-edge biomedical laboratories, core facilities, classrooms, and an innovation center.

Carleton University began construction in November of 2020 on the CAD$16 million Engineering Design Centre in Ottawa. Enabling undergraduate students to engage in hands-on, experiential learning, the collaborative 25,000-sf facility will provide design studios, workshops bays, instructional venues, meeting rooms, and formal and informal interaction areas. A maker space on the ground floor will accommodate sophisticated equipment including 3D printers, injection molders, and laser and water jet cutters.

The University of Texas at El Paso opened the $93.5 million Interdisciplinary Research Building in September of 2020. Designed by Perkins+Will, the 156,000-sf project provides collaborative research labs, a vivarium, imaging suites, core labs, a visualization suite, conference rooms, an atrium, an auditorium, and academic and administrative offices. Housing teams from multiple departments, the flexible facility can be easily adapted to accommodate changing program requirements.

BMW Group opened the FIZ Projekthaus Nord complex in Munich in September of 2020. Representing an expansion of the company's existing R&D campus, the collaborative facility provides 1.6 billion square feet of space for engineering, research, collaboration, and administration. Comprising two office structures and a test-bench building, the integrated complex offers a dynamically connected work environment enabled by 20,000 servers and a data storage capacity of 90 petabytes.

Wayne State University opened the 100,000-sf STEM Innovation Learning Center in Detroit in October of 2020. Designed as a campus hub for project-based learning and discovery, the interdisciplinary facility features flexible classrooms, wet and dry teaching labs, maker and hacker spaces, a 3D printing lab, and a student commons. Small groups can meet and interact in collaboration zones with integrated whiteboards and projection screens.

California State University, Dominguez Hills completed construction in September of 2020 on the $71.5 million Science & Innovation Building in Carson. Designed by HGA Architects and Engineers with Research Facilities Design (RFD) as laboratory design consultant, the 87,000-sf facility provides classrooms, labs, and faculty offices to support programs in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

Merck KGaA opened the $58.5 million Centre for Electronic Applications in September of 2020. Located on the company's headquarters campus in Darmstadt, Germany, the 118,400-sf facility will accelerate the discovery and development of next-generation materials for semiconductors and displays. Providing collaborative lab and office environments for 140 employees, the structure features a sophisticated building façade with dynamic liquid crystal windows that can be easily adjusted to minimize glare and heat gain. Construction began on the project in summer of 2017.

Kajima Corporation, one of Japan's largest construction companies, broke ground in August of 2020 on the $100 million Global Hub in Singapore. Designed to accelerate the creation of new building technologies, the 141,000-sf innovation center will feature a comprehensive robotic solutions suite. The Kajima Technical Research Institute Singapore (KaTris) will be located in the facility, which will leverage advanced automation and digitalization systems to optimize energy performance and reduce carbon emissions.

Northwest Vista College broke ground on the $34 million STEM Building in September of 2020 in San Antonio. Designed by Overland Partners, the 52,550-sf facility will accommodate innovative programs in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Offering project-based learning environments and flexible, general-purpose classrooms, the multidisciplinary structure will include teaching labs, tutoring suites, outdoor classrooms, and faculty and administrative offices.

The University of Nevada, Reno opened the $92 million William N. Pennington Engineering Building in August of 2020. Designed by H+K Architects, the 100,000-sf facility offers dedicated space for the departments of chemical and materials engineering, civil and environmental engineering, electrical and biomedical engineering, mechanical engineering, and computer science. The collaborative four-story building provides 40 labs, a 200-seat classroom, two computer labs, 40 faculty offices, and 150 graduate student workstations.