The new three-story, 62,000 sq-ft student center boasts multiple innovative technologies. Advanced energy modeling techniques were performed to evaluate the impacts of various energy conservation measures (ECMs), with the project team evaluating energy use intensity (EUI) impacts of different design strategies and integrated them with the contractor's cost estimates to fully understand total benefits.

The project was delivered via design-build, which provided an opportunity for the team to work in a collaborative manner with all partners, including with the university. From a site perspective, the location allowed the design team to reinforce the exposure of key entrances and inform the exterior spaces around the building that tie into the network of open spaces on the campus.

The mass of this 3-story building was lifted off the ground, inviting engagement inside and outside. From a sustainability standpoint, the team coordinated construction materials to minimize loads within the building and choose climate appropriate solutions. These collaborative efforts allowed them to minimize the infrastructure and maximize usable square footage within the footprint.

The team worked to analyze every hour of operation to right-size the equipment and provide innovative solutions, some of which had not been utilized on the campus before. To implement the systems, they provided examples of where these technologies had been utilized for similar building types.