Engineering Education and Research Center UT Austin Campus, EERC Texas Building, Architecture
Engineering Education and Research Center (EERC)
The Cockrell School of Engineering at The University of Texas design by ENNEAD Architects, USA
Sep 26, 2017
Location: The Cockrell School of Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin, Texas, USA
Design: ENNEAD Architects
Engineering Education and Research Center (EERC), UT Austin Campus
photographs © Cockrell School of Engineering-The University of Texas at Austin
Engineering Education and Research Center (EERC), UT Austin Campus, Texas
Engineering building, EERC at UT Austin. The building’s design, centered around the idea of Transparency and Unification, defines a new paradigm for engineering education and research through the integration of undergraduate project-based learning, interdisciplinary graduate research, and a Center for Innovation focused on entrepreneurship.
On September 28, the Cockrell School of Engineering, Education Research Center (EERC), one of the top programs in the country, will officially open its 430,000-square foot glass-filled new facility, designed by Ennead Architects to unite various engineering disciplines, from undergraduate to post-doctorate under one breathtaking glass roof.
As separate academic “silos” become obsolete and researchers rely more and more on input and technology from multiple disciplines, academic institutions have turned toward building plans that connect different specialties through proximity and direct pathways. Ennead has not only joined previously balkanized departments by housing them in the same building, but unified them further with architectural elements by creating specialized facilities for electrical, computer, aeronautical, chemical, petroleum, mechanical, civil and other engineering programs, while enabling connections and collaborations among them all.
Engineering Education and Research Center Set to open in 2017, the Engineering Education and Research Center (EERC) will transform the UT Austin campus and further the Cockrell School’s culture of innovation through multidisciplinary teaching and research.
At a glance:
• 430,000 square feet of space in two connected eight-story towers, located at the corner of San Jacinto Boulevard and Dean Keeton Street
• State-of-the-art classrooms, project centers, research labs, an engineering library and a café
• Central hub for engineering student services
• New home for the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, the Cockrell School’s largest department
Photos below © ENNEAD Architects
Background on the building
Over the past decade, Cockrell School and UT Austin leadership have made a commitment to enhancing engineering education in the 21st century. In fall of 2013, the UT System Board of Regents approved a $310 million funding plan, allowing construction to begin.
Last year, the 50-year-old Engineering-Science Building was demolished to make way for the EERC.
Inside the building
• The National Instruments Student Project Center will offer 23,000 square feet of space for designing and creating.
• The 299-seat James J. and Miriam B. Mulva Conference Center and Auditorium will become the Cockrell School’s largest teaching space and a venue for visiting thought leaders and experts from around the world.
• 50,000 square feet in the EERC’s north tower will be dedicated to large-scale, multidisciplinary research labs. The south tower will house seven electrical and computer engineering research spaces.
• The Texas Instruments teaching and project labs will give electrical and computer engineering undergraduates space to build sensors, robots and wearable technologies.
• The Innovation Center will be the Cockrell School’s first space dedicated to entrepreneurship training and commercialization programming.
• Overlooking Waller Creek, the E-Loft will provide an inspiring study and meeting area for engineering students.
Philanthropic support
More than 280 alumni, corporate partners and friends have helped the Cockrell School raise over $65 million — the most ever raised for a building at UT Austin.
Lead donors include:
• Miriam and James Mulva, former chairman and CEO of ConocoPhillips, $20 million
• James Truchard, co-founder, president and CEO of National Instruments, $10 million
• Renda and Rex Tillerson, CEO of ExxonMobil, $5 million
• Javaid Anwar, founder and CEO of Midland Energy and Petroplex Energy, $4 million
• Texas Instruments, $3.5 million
• Qualcomm, $2 million
Engineering Education and Research Center UT Austin Campus images / information from ENNEAD Architects
Location: Dean Keeton Street, Austin, Texas, USA
Website: The Cockrell School of Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin
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