NC State University has officially broken ground on Fitts-Woolard Hall, a new $150 million engineering building on Centennial Campus. The 250,000-sf facility was designed by Clark Nexsen and will feature a transparent design that puts “engineering on display.”
The building’s main entry is flanked by a structural testing lab, senior student project space, and a large scale driving simulator that are all visible on the exterior and interior of the building.
Courtesy Clark Nexsen.
Collaboration and interaction will be supported throughout the four-story building in high degrees of transparency. Stairs at the end of the building will act as connecting threads between floors and reveal the building’s structural and mechanical systems as an additional instructional tool. An outdoor terrace, interspersed seating, and an open, collaborative space on the second floor known as “the hearth” will promote socialization and interaction between students.
See Also: South Dakota State University to receive new apartment and townhouse neighborhood
The third and fourth floors, which will be contained in a floating volume, will house faculty offices, graduate student space, and additional classrooms and research labs. Overall, Fitts-Woolard Hall will contain over 100 classrooms and laboratories and house the Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering and the Fitts Department of Industrial and System Engineering.
Skanska is the project’s general contractor.
Related Stories
University Buildings | May 26, 2016
U. of Chicago approves Diller Scofidio + Renfro design for new campus building
With a two-story base and 165-foot tower, the Rubenstein Forum will have room for informal meetings, lectures, and other university events.
University Buildings | Apr 27, 2016
SmithGroupJJR’s Electrical and Computer Engineering Building named 2016 Lab of the Year
Sustainable features like chilled beams and solar screens help the University of Illinois research facility use 50% less energy than minimum building energy efficiency standards.
University Buildings | Apr 25, 2016
New University of Calgary research center features reconfigurable 'spine'
The heart of the Taylor Institute can be anything from a teaching lab to a 400-seat theater.
University Buildings | Apr 13, 2016
Technology defines growth at Ringling College of Arts & Design
Named America's “most wired campus" in 2014, Ringling is adding a library, visual arts center, soundstage, and art museum.
University Buildings | Apr 13, 2016
5 ways universities use new buildings to stay competitive
From incubators to innovation centers, schools desire ‘iconic gateways’ that appeal to students, faculty, entrepreneurs, and the community.
University Buildings | Apr 4, 2016
3 key trends in student housing for Boston’s higher education community
The city wants to add 18,500 student residence beds by the year 2030. CannonDesign's Lynne Deninger identifies three strategies that will help schools maximize value over the next decade or so.
University Buildings | Mar 15, 2016
Behnisch Architekten designs Harvard’s proposed Science and Engineering Complex
The 497,000-sf building will be the home of the John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.
University Buildings | Mar 11, 2016
How architects can help community colleges promote community on campus
Even in the face of funding challenges and historic precedent, there are emerging examples of how partnership between two-year academic institutions and designers can further elevate community on campus. CannonDesign's Carisima Koenig has a few key examples.
University Buildings | Mar 1, 2016
The 5 most questionable college and university rankings of 2015
SmithGroupJJR's David Lantz identifies five of the most flawed higher education rating systems, including ones with arbitrary categories, and others that equate college with a transactional investment.
University Buildings | Feb 29, 2016
4 factors driving the student housing market
In the hyper-competitive higher education sector, colleges and universities view residence halls as extensions of their academic brands, both on and off campus.