Ero Architects

UTRGV Science Building

University of Texas Rio Grande Valley
  • Client

    University of Texas Rio Grande Valley

  • Budget

    $28,000,000

  • City

    Edinburg

  • Sq. Ft.

    193,000

Description

ERO designed the structural framework for UTRGV engineering building. The 193,000 gsf building required three wings: the south wing with four large auditoriums and three smaller classrooms; the west wing with 16 biology teaching laboratories, and seven chemistry teaching laboratories; and, the north wing with research labs, research support facilities, and faculty and administrative offices, including the Dean of the Science and Engineering Office.

ERO was brought in on the project to solve several design challenges caused by the Edinburg site. The science building had to be scaled to match the scale of the adjacent UTRGV Engineering building. It also had to be scaled to fit onto the footprint available. The greatest challenge was vibration levels of the building itself. Vibration had to be negligible to avoid being picked up on the high-powered microscopes used by scientists, researchers, and students. The structural solution is a pan joist system. Vibration was mitigated further using a stiff concrete pad and locating controllable vibration sources near beams/support intersections and on concrete pads.

The building was tied into the campus-wide chiller plant system and met all guidelines and design standards of the UT University System. The building was designed to wrap around the planetarium thus salvaging it for continued use. The entry lobby design used high levels of colored concrete preserving the Louis I. Kahn design influence on campus.

Services Rendered
Structural Engineering
Next Project

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