The building’s programming and design stress the need to eliminate traditional departmental boundaries, and focus on the integration of shop, lab, classroom, and computer space for the Mechanical, Civil, and Biomedical Engineering Departments and the newly merged Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Department, all which previously had dedicated and specialized resources.

The building received a LEED™ silver certification from the U.S. Green Building Council  and incorporates several sustainable design techniques including the use of natural daylight in 75 percent of the building’s interior spaces including a  below-grade floor; the use of high performance glass; mechanized sunshades with solar tracking on the exterior façades; a raised floor air displacement system, which will reduce cooling loads; an integrated retention basin that captures storm water for landscape irrigation; increased insulation at walls and roof; the use of materials with high recycled content.

Recently completed, the building houses a centralized student machine shop, rapid prototyping facilities, biomedical/chemical engineering labs, studio classrooms, design fabrication and assembly spaces, a lecture hall, project display areas, and a lounge/study area.

Project Information
Building Owner:		Northwestern University
Building Location:		Evanston , Illinois UNITED STATES
Project Type:		New Construction
Principal Building Function:		Academic facility
Project Delivery Method:		Lump Sum
Project Timeline		Oct 2005 Completion Last known status: Completed
Construction Cost:		$25,000,000
Cost Per Sq. Ft:		$500
		About These Cost Figures
Building Information
Project Includes:		Education Education: Classroom Education: Computer Lab Education: Lecture Or Seminar Hall Education: Student Center Engineering Interdisciplinary Research
Total GSF:		84,000
Project Team
Profile Created 10/01/2005
Last Updated 03/19/2007
About the Reported Cost Figures The cost figures reported are supplied by the firms that submitted these projects for publication, which in most cases are the designers or builders. Whereas these sources are intimately familiar with their projects, they may not be fully aware of the owners' finally-realized and recorded costs. In some cases, costs are truly and completely accounted for, and in others they represent a near approximation of the final costs. Costs have not been adjusted for year of construction, nor has any attempt been made to make regional cost adjustments. Further, costs are not comparable on any kind of detailed standard costing model. Hence, it is possible for the cost of one building to include a steam boiler, while the cost of a comparable building might not include the boiler, if steam is being supplied from an already existing campus grid. Or, in another case, a building might include excess boiler capacity to supply steam to another building. Some submittals include fees or unusual site improvements as part of the construction costs, which others do not.