Schweitzer Engineering Laboratory (SEL) opened a $20 million R&D facility in February of 2020 in West Lafayette, Ind. Located in Purdue University's Discovery Park District, the three-story, 100,000-sf building offers leading-edge laboratory and support space for electric power research, development, and manufacturing.
Georgia College broke ground in February of 2020 on the $22.1 million Integrated Science Complex in Milledgeville. Designed by Cooper Carry, the 43,000-sf facility will provide flexible research labs, faculty offices, teaching labs, imaging and microscopy suites, collaboration and study spaces, and a botany terrace. The labs will be interconnected by a linear equipment corridor accessible to all science faculty and students.
Beloit College dedicated the Powerhouse in February of 2020 in Beloit, Wis. Designed by Studio Gang, the $38 million project included the redevelopment of a decommissioned power plant to create a unique campus hub housing a recreation center, a student union, and an athletics facility. The 120,000-sf riverside complex offers a 160-seat auditorium, meeting and seminar rooms, informal gathering spaces, a swimming pool, a 10,000-sf fitness center, a 17,000-sf recreational gym, a 200-person event space, an elevated indoor track, and a café.
The University of California, Irvine broke ground on a $185 million health sciences complex in February of 2020. Supporting an innovative curriculum based on integrative health, the five-story, 108,200-sf Susan and Henry Samueli College of Health Sciences will adjoin the four-story, 71,500-sf Sue and Bill Gross School of Nursing to create a vibrant nexus for learning, research, and clinical training.
Florida State University dedicated the $65 million Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Science building in February of 2020 in Tallahassee. Designed by Bohlin Cywinski Jackson to foster interdisciplinary collaboration, the eight-story, 130,500-sf facility collocates departmental space previously scattered in eight disparate locations. The building provides 23 research labs, eight teaching labs, a 100-seat active-learning classroom, a 280-seat auditorium, a meteorology broadcasting studio, a seismometer suite, student lounges, and a rooftop terrace.
As Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) experiences exponential growth of its online programs, it continues to invest in its physical campus, most notably in a new college of engineering. While the university is not looking to increase its on-campus enrollment, it is expanding its offerings on its Manchester, N.H., campus, with new facilities, an academic quad, two new residence halls, and a large greenspace. The centerpiece of this investment is the $45 million, 68,000-sf College of Engineering, Technology and Aeronautics (CETA), the first new academic building added to the Manchester campus in over a decade. The CETA building, which opened in January, is SNHU’s first new facility devoted to engineering technologies, and will help expand access to STEM education in the New England region.
Radford University opened the Artis College of Science and Technology in February of 2020 in Radford, Va. Designed and engineered by CannonDesign, the $34 million project included a complete renovation of Reed Hall and Curie Hall, as well as construction of the connecting Center for the Sciences, a two-story collaboration hub offering meeting rooms, a commons area, study spaces, and offices.
Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey and RWJBarnabas Health are planning to break ground in fall of 2020 on the $750 million Cancer Pavilion in New Brunswick. Created in partnership with the New Brunswick Development Corporation (DEVCO), the 12-story, 510,000-sf structure will enable the consolidation of key cancer services in a single integrated location.
Kettering University broke ground on the $63 million Learning Commons in January of 2020 in Flint, Mich. Designed by Stantec as a vibrant laboratory for experiential learning, the four-story, 105,000-sf facility will provide a digital library, a 300-seat auditorium, maker spaces, conference rooms, media resource centers, dining amenities, and collaborative project studios where students can work with faculty and industry partners. Illuminated by natural light, the structure will feature flexible, technology-rich gathering areas with writable surfaces.
The University of Alabama at Birmingham is planning to construct the $78.5 million Science and Engineering Complex. Designed by Goodwyn, Mills and Cawood, the 145,784-sf multidisciplinary facility will house interactive research labs, technology-rich classrooms, faculty and staff offices, and multiple collaboration rooms for team learning. The first phase of the project will create a $64.5 million, 115,000-sf structure accommodating the Department of Biology, the Department of Physics, and lab and support space for the Department of Chemistry.
Maker spaces, active learning labs, and multidisciplinary collaboration spaces have become essential elements for educational engineering facilities nationwide, as academic institutions respond to the demands of modern industry. In addition to providing the robust infrastructure and fabrication tools engineering students need to develop practical skills, another important element of these space types is an emphasis on teamwork, entrepreneurship, and commercial viability. This means positioning maker and capstone project spaces in close proximity to meeting rooms, support spaces, and team collaboration zones. High-profile maker spaces also serve to help institutions increase industry partnership opportunities as well as student and faculty recruitment.
Rowan University is constructing the $46.7 million Discovery Hall in Glassboro, N.J. Providing a holistic learning environment for STEM programs in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, the four-story, 68,000-sf facility will offer six active-learning classrooms, six lecture classrooms, two conference rooms, student collaboration spaces, and faculty offices.
Central Michigan University opened the $26 million Center for Integrated Health Studies in January of 2020 in Mount Pleasant. Supporting an interdisciplinary pedagogy for the delivery of team-based care, the 50,000-sf facility features the Interpersonal Education Center housing a two-room simulation suite with advanced mannequins, as well as eight patient exam rooms for interactive scenario training.
The University of Iowa opened the $96.3 million College of Pharmacy in January of 2020 in Iowa City. Designed by OPN Architects and The S/L/A/M Collaborative, the 228,371-sf facility features a pharmacy practice simulation center, 23 instructional spaces, 16 flexible research labs, collaboration areas, and a 128-seat lecture hall for team-based learning. The structure stands six stories above grade, with a lower level housing two sterile production lines, a warehouse, and a vault to store controlled substances.
The University of Maryland is constructing the $60 million E. A. Fernandez IDEA Factory in College Park. Supporting the Clark School of Engineering's mission to innovate, design, and engineer for America (IDEA), the five-story, 60,000-sf building will feature open student workspaces, prototyping suites, and studios for design and instruction. The multidisciplinary facility will physically connect to the Jeong H.
