The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford recently opened a new engineering and information technology building that adds urgently needed lab and instructional space to the campus.
The 38,880 sf structure is the new home for the study of Mechanical Engineering Technology, Energy Engineering Technology, and Computer Information Systems & Technology, the latter of which had previously been spread out among multiple buildings.
The $17.69 million facility includes engineering labs, engineering shops, computer labs, the campus data center, active large group classrooms, and faculty and staff offices. The design strategy aligned all functions to open to a two-story collaborative center to enhance visibility, accessibility, interactions, and team building. Additional design features include:
- A centralized commons provides a more social, collaborative, team-based learning model for the campus.
- A cantilevered metal clad faculty office “bar” floats above a mostly glass enclosed collaborative first floor providing a dynamic north edge for the newly formed quad.
- The same module footprint for labs and classrooms enhances flexibility.
- A thick building footprint and strategic integration of glass reduces energy usage while preserving access to daylight and views.
- Exposed ceilings in the shared, centralized maker hub puts building systems on display.
Engineering technology students have access to hands-on labs. A maker space contains milling machines, lathes, welding equipment, metal cutting technology, and 3-D printers and scanners.
Mechanical engineering technology students can design and build a prototype for an industrial process, then test them in labs for fluid dynamics, thermodynamics, strength of materials, and electrical circuit operation. Energy engineering technology students learn about geology, combustion, automation and sensors, biofuels, wood chemistry, wind and solar power, and the chemistry of petroleum and natural gas.
Faculty from the engineering and information technology programs look forward to collaborations, such as competitive team activities, that will benefit both programs. The maker space is an attraction for prospective students in both areas.
“The energy between computer information systems and engineering is important for students,” said Dr. Ken Wang, associate professor and director of the computer information systems and technology program. “They are complementary programs.”
On the building team:
Owner and/or developer: University of Pittsburgh at Bradford
Design architect: HED
Architect of record: LGA Partners
MEP engineer: HED
Structural engineer: HED
Lab Planner: HED
Information and Communications Technology design: HED
Civil Engineer & Landscape: PVE, LLC
General contractor/construction manager: Rycon Construction Inc.
Related Stories
| Nov 1, 2010
John Pearce: First thing I tell designers: Do your homework!
John Pearce, FAIA, University Architect at Duke University, Durham, N.C., tells BD+C’s Robert Cassidy about the school’s construction plans and sustainability efforts, how to land work at Duke, and why he’s proceeding with caution when it comes to BIM.
| Oct 13, 2010
Editorial
The AEC industry shares a widespread obsession with the new. New is fresh. New is youthful. New is cool. But “old” or “slightly used” can be financially profitable and professionally rewarding, too.
| Oct 13, 2010
Campus building gives students a taste of the business world
William R. Hough Hall is the new home of the Warrington College of Business Administration at the University of Florida in Gainesville. The $17.6 million, 70,000-sf building gives students access to the latest technology, including a lab that simulates the stock exchange.
| Oct 13, 2010
Science building supports enrollment increases
The new Kluge-Moses Science Building at Piedmont Virginia Community College, in Charlottesville, is part of a campus update designed and managed by the Lukmire Partnership. The 34,000-sf building is designed to be both a focal point of the college and a recruitment mechanism to get more students enrolling in healthcare programs.
| Oct 13, 2010
Residences bring students, faculty together in the Middle East
A new residence complex is in design for United Arab Emirates University in Al Ain, UAE, near Abu Dhabi. Plans for the 120-acre mixed-use development include 710 clustered townhomes and apartments for students and faculty and common areas for community activities.
| Oct 13, 2010
New health center to focus on education and awareness
Construction is getting pumped up at the new Anschutz Health and Wellness Center at the University of Colorado, Denver. The four-story, 94,000-sf building will focus on healthy lifestyles and disease prevention.
| Oct 13, 2010
Community college plans new campus building
Construction is moving along on Hudson County Community College’s North Hudson Campus Center in Union City, N.J. The seven-story, 92,000-sf building will be the first higher education facility in the city.
| Oct 12, 2010
Holton Career and Resource Center, Durham, N.C.
27th Annual Reconstruction Awards—Special Recognition. Early in the current decade, violence within the community of Northeast Central Durham, N.C., escalated to the point where school safety officers at Holton Junior High School feared for their own safety. The school eventually closed and the property sat vacant for five years.
| Oct 12, 2010
University of Toledo, Memorial Field House
27th Annual Reconstruction Awards—Silver Award. Memorial Field House, once the lovely Collegiate Gothic (ca. 1933) centerpiece (along with neighboring University Hall) of the University of Toledo campus, took its share of abuse after a new athletic arena made it redundant, in 1976. The ultimate insult occurred when the ROTC used it as a paintball venue.
| Oct 12, 2010
Owen Hall, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Mich.
27th Annual Reconstruction Awards—Silver Award. Officials at Michigan State University’s East Lansing Campus were concerned that Owen Hall, a mid-20th-century residence facility, was no longer attracting much interest from its target audience, graduate and international students.
