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UNC Charlotte

As North Carolina continues to elevate its profile as a home for science and technology-related businesses and careers, the development of state-of-the-art STEM education facilities is critical. UNC Charlotte’s New Science Building will help the university meet growing demand and enrollment, which has increased 142 percent since 1985, when the current home for chemistry and physics was constructed. Notably, 50 percent of UNC Charlotte’s students with declared majors are in STEM-related fields.

*Image Credit: Payette 3D VIZ Group

project narrative

This interdisciplinary research and education facility will establish a modern, collaborative environment for scientific exploration. Home to Chemistry, Biology, and Physics, the building’s program emphasizes the undergraduate learning experience while meeting increased demand for graduate research space. It features instructional and teaching labs for chemistry, physics, and biology as well as a balance of formal and informal spaces for students to engage with each other and faculty.

The expansion of undergraduate research opportunities is also being prioritized, focusing on integrating interdisciplinary research space to support the science program’s overall mission. A 100-student classroom accommodates larger groups and complements additional classroom space, labs, and student study and support areas. While the new science building is the central focus, this project is distinguished by the inclusion of a new regional utility plant, data center, and café. Each of these components offers a benefit to the campus and student body, with the café in particular promoting a dual social and academic atmosphere.

Williams college
Wachenheim science center

In 1968, architect Benjamin Thompson built the Bronfman Science Center at  in Williamstown, Massachusetts.
But after almost 50 years, Bronfman lacked function. It didn’t have the space, flexibility or laboratory facilities to handle students’ increased interest in the sciences and the increased scope and complexity of faculty research programs.

Williams college
Wachenheim science center

Williams College is renovating and expanding its science center facilities to create needed labs and classrooms, to modernize facilities, and to bring them into compliance with modern academic and code standards. The North addition includes the removal and replacement of Bronfman Science Center with a similarly sized building which will house more flexible space, including classrooms, a large auditorium, labs, offices, and collaborative spaces for Math/Stats, Psychology, and Geoscience Departments.

Wesleyan University
Shanklin renovation

Wesleyan is finalizing plans for a new science building, which is under review by Wesleyan’s Board of Trustees.
In addition, the historic Shanklin building, which was dedicated in 1928 as the Shanklin Laboratory of Biology, would be preserved and restored under the recent proposal. Construction, including a regrading project, would begin in 2026 and will be completed by 2028. The College of the Environment will move to the renovated space and occupy the second and third floors. The Center for Integrated Sciences will occupy the first floor.

*Image Credit: Payette 3D VIZ group
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The entire site would feature a network of accessible pathways and formal and informal gathering spaces linking Exley and Science Library with Shanklin and the new science building. All projects will help modernize Wesleyan’s current programs and allow faculty and students to be equipped with better teaching and learning facilities. The projects are being funded through institutional funds and private support.

Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary (MEEI) feasibility study

(MEEI) is located in the West End and Beacon Hill neighborhoods of Boston. The facility has 42 beds and treats patients with diseases related to the eye, ear, nose, throat, head, and neck. MEEI was founded in 1824, and is currently ranked among the nation's best hospitals for ophthalmology and otolaryngology. MEEI is an affiliate of Harvard Medical School.
This study is about feasibility study to expand and improve the existing program between multiple facilities.

University of Pittsburgh
Scaife Hall

Sixty-five years after breaking ground for Scaife Hall, Pitt readies for a renovation and expansion that’s fit for the future of med ed.
The spaces will be more collaborative with ton of natural light beside a large lecture hall.

*Image credit: Payette 3D VIZ group

In the existing lecture rooms, seats are bolted to the floor in the direction of the stage. The auditoriums and classrooms in the new seven-story wing will make it easier to break into groups and flip lectures (so learners can present from their seats). Team- and problem-based learning will get a boost. The school will renovate existing group spaces and build more. Labs will be flexible, too. The set-up will change depending on whether the class is Medical Microbiology or Digestion and Nutrition, for example. The Gross Anatomy lab on the top floor will be able to incorporate virtual technologies with traditional anatomy dissection and teaching methods.

*Image credit: Payette 3D VIZ group