Industry News

Retail technology company NCR Corp. has cut $78 million annually from its worldwide facilities operating budget by reducing leases and selling under-utilized properties. By implementing electronic technology for mobile employees, NCR has been able to reduce the need for office space, cut operating costs, and consolidate workers. Last year, NCR sold 49 acres to the University of Dayton. Over five years, NCR has reduced its leased and owned properties from approximately 800 to 300 facilities and will continue to evaluate its needs.

Southern Methodist University opened its new $16 million Embrey Engineering Building in Dallas for the fall semester of 2006. Through sustainable design technologies, the three-story facility will save approximately $70,000 annually in energy costs and will seek LEED® Gold level certification. The cost of meeting the LEED® criteria added three percent to the project's construction cost. Sustainable design features of the engineering facility include: 

UC Berkeley will open the $162-million Stanley Hall in January of 2007. The 285,000-sf biosciences and bioengineering facility will house approximately 40 research labs, administrative and bioengineering department offices, and up to 10 core facilities. One of these core facilities, the 11,000-sf Biomolecular Nanotechnology Center, will manufacture chips for biochemical and medical applications. Stanley Hall will serve over 30 faculty and over 100 graduate students and is designed to foster multi-disciplinary collaboration.

Hofstra University has completed its new $16-million academic and performing arts facility on its South Campus in Hempstead, New York. The 86,000-sf, four-story building provides performance space for music, dance, and drama, three floors of faculty offices, a 225-seat black box theater, and soundproofed orchestra and music rehearsal spaces. The facility was designed by architect Marty Kapell of Manhattan and built by contractor E.W. Howell of Woodbury.

Texas Southern University has completed its new 165,000-sf Science Center. The four-story, $30-million facility features a full-height atrium and biology research and teaching labs for faculty and graduate students. The center also houses space for chemistry, mathematics, the Environmental Toxicology Ph.D. Program, and the NASA Research Center for Biotechnology and Environmental Health. Texas Southern is also constructing a $15-million, 82,000-sf Public Affairs, Liberal Arts, and Behavioral Sciences building.