Robins & Morton and Auburn University’s College of Architecture, Design and Construction (CADC) recently celebrated the dedication of the Robins & Morton Construction Field Laboratory.
A facility of the CADC’s McWhorter School of Building Science, the first-of-its-kind lab will advance hands-on education and research. It was made possible with support from its namesake construction firm valued at more than $1.3 million.
“The field lab is a teaching and research facility that allows our students and faculty to experience the full range of construction management, including building assemblies in full scale and testing new construction materials and processes,” CADC Dean Vini Nathan said. “We are thrilled that this facility is the first and only one of its kind in the U.S., which gives our students a distinct advantage in the competitive building construction industry.”
Representatives of Robins & Morton joined CADC leadership, faculty and students for the March 4 event. The Robins & Morton Construction Field Laboratory, located on the university’s campus in Auburn, Alabama, recreates an active construction site, complete with a classroom that resembles a project office and indoor and outdoor spaces to demonstrate building processes.
SEE ALSO: Unsung heroes - Two hurricanes couldn't stop this project team
“We believe field experience is critical to a successful a career in our industry,” Robins & Morton Chairman and CEO Bill Morton said. “The field lab allows students the opportunity to combine experience in the field with a formal classroom education. We’re very excited to have this opportunity to partner with Auburn University to advance the learning process for the next generation of construction professionals.”
The field lab will provide opportunities for visiting tradespeople to demonstrate their crafts to students and for other construction professionals to work with students outside the classroom. “One of the biggest challenges we see recent graduates face when they begin their careers is adapting to the pace and complexity of a construction project and understanding how to collaborate with project team members and trade contractors,” said Aimee Comer, Robins & Morton’s Vice President of People & Development.
The McWhorter School of Building Science will use the field lab for faculty research and to support community services project such as builds for Habitat for Humanity. In addition to the classroom building, the field lab includes:
• A steel building with four 30-foot high bays, two of which are fully enclosed
• Multiple Conex units that can serve as demonstration stations, project stations or for tool and equipment storage
• Outdoor spaces for large equipment demonstrations.
The school will also use the lab to host outreach events, including the Construction Management Summer Academy for Young Women and the Building Construction Summer Camp for rising high school juniors and seniors, already scheduled for June.
Related Stories
| Jun 12, 2014
Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects' design selected for new UCSC facility
The planned site is a natural landscape among redwood trees with views over Monterey Bay, a site that the architects have called “one of the most beautiful they have ever worked on.”
| Jun 12, 2014
Austrian university develops 'inflatable' concrete dome method
Constructing a concrete dome is a costly process, but this may change soon. A team from the Vienna University of Technology has developed a method that allows concrete domes to form with the use of air and steel cables instead of expensive, timber supporting structures.
| Jun 11, 2014
5 ways Herman Miller's new office concept rethinks the traditional workplace
Today's technologies allow us to work anywhere. So why come to an office at all? Herman Miller has an answer.
| Jun 9, 2014
6 design strategies for integrating living and learning on campus
Higher education is rapidly evolving. As we use planning and design to help our clients navigate major shifts in culture, technology, and funding, it is essential to focus on strategies that help foster an education that is relevant after graduation. One way to promote relevance is to strengthen the bond between academic disciplines and the campus residential life experience.
| May 29, 2014
7 cost-effective ways to make U.S. infrastructure more resilient
Moving critical elements to higher ground and designing for longer lifespans are just some of the ways cities and governments can make infrastructure more resilient to natural disasters and climate change, writes Richard Cavallaro, President of Skanska USA Civil.
Sponsored | | May 27, 2014
Grim Hall opens the door to fire safety with fire-rated ceramic glass
For the renovation of Lincoln University’s Grim Hall life sciences building into a state-of-the-art computer facility, Tevebaugh Associates worked to provide students and faculty with improved life safety protection. Updating the 1925-era facility's fire-rated doors was an important component of the project.
| May 20, 2014
Kinetic Architecture: New book explores innovations in active façades
The book, co-authored by Arup's Russell Fortmeyer, illustrates the various ways architects, consultants, and engineers approach energy and comfort by manipulating air, water, and light through the layers of passive and active building envelope systems.
| May 19, 2014
What can architects learn from nature’s 3.8 billion years of experience?
In a new report, HOK and Biomimicry 3.8 partnered to study how lessons from the temperate broadleaf forest biome, which houses many of the world’s largest population centers, can inform the design of the built environment.
| May 13, 2014
19 industry groups team to promote resilient planning and building materials
The industry associations, with more than 700,000 members generating almost $1 trillion in GDP, have issued a joint statement on resilience, pushing design and building solutions for disaster mitigation.
| May 11, 2014
Final call for entries: 2014 Giants 300 survey
BD+C's 2014 Giants 300 survey forms are due Wednesday, May 21. Survey results will be published in our July 2014 issue. The annual Giants 300 Report ranks the top AEC firms in commercial construction, by revenue.
