College of Engineering Research & Teaching Space 2 (West 2)

The PSU College of Engineering Research & Teaching Space 2 Building (West 2) is a multi-story (4-story plus a basement) 105,000 gross square foot facility with an estimated construction value of $63M. The building will be attached to the new West Deck parking deck, which will be constructed first, however, the West 2 construction schedule will overlap with the parking deck project for several months of concurrent construction. The West 2 Building will be Penn State University’s new “Engineer’s Toolbox” with a high-bay research space housing multiple College of Engineering programs including: The School of Engineering Design, Technology, and Professional Programs (SEDTAPP); the Learning Factory; the Factory for Advanced Manufacturing Education (F.A.M.E.) Lab; and some research components of Architectural Engineering and Civil & Environmental Engineering. The building space will consist of teaching and research space, general purpose classrooms (GPC’s), offices, conference space, a computational computer lab, and “build” studios in a highly collaborative environment showcasing “engineering on display”. This new, modern, iconic landmark building will be visitors’ introduction to the College of Engineering as the starting place for recruiting and orientation tours and home for all first-year engineering students.
West 2 will have a two 48-seat active learning General Purpose Classrooms on the lower level, as well as several studio spaces for engineering design. The “build” spaces, wood and metal shops, and “Learning Factory” will be areas where students learn about and utilize tools and machinery such as welding, 3D printing, and laser cutting. The research high-bay area, located between the main West 2 building and the West Parking Deck, will consist of a 25’ x 60’ reaction floor and 30’ high reaction walls to enable testing forces from multiple directions. West 2 features Cross Laminated Timber (CLT) decking currently cutting edge in the United States construction industry. Rather than a tradition slab on metal deck building, this building will have steel beams and columns, with a timber deck and concrete topping slab. The CLT decking is also a fitting design compliment to the wood curtain wall system with triple-pane glazing to enhance the thermal comfort along the building’s expansive east facing facade viewing the re-design quad.
The duration of the multi-prime contract construction period is scheduled for 23 months, from October 2020 to August 2022.