Construction of Chapman University’s $130 million Center for Science and Technology – the largest and most expensive building project in the school’s history – has passed the halfway point along Center Street.

Planned to open for the fall semester of 2018, the three-story, 140,000-square-foot center will be divided into two part: the Hall of Science and the Hall of Technology and Engineering, bridged by a grand arch serving as the focal point of the building.

The center will be the new base of operations for the school’s Schmid College of Science and Technology, and will also house university’s upcoming engineering school.

Associate Dean for Academic Programs Chris Kim said moving into the center will be a game changer for Chapman’s science students and faculty.

“It’s not an exaggeration to say this building is going to be really transformative for the sciences,” Kim said.

A rendering of what Chapman’s upcoming Center for Center and Technology could look like. (Courtesy of Chapman University)

A rendering of what Chapman’s upcoming Center for Center and Technology could look like. (Courtesy of Chapman University)

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A rendering of what Chapman’s upcoming Center for Center and Technology could look like. (Courtesy of Chapman University)

A rendering of what Chapman’s upcoming Center for Center and Technology could look like. (Courtesy of Chapman University)



***Halls of collaboration

Close to Argyros Forum, the entrance to the Hall of Science will open up into a 40-foot-tall lobby featuring a ceiling decorated in LED lights forming an “Ulam” spiral – a visual depiction of prime numbers.

Kim said bringing math back into the fold is one of the keys to the new building being an improvement for students and faculty. Until now, a Chapman scientist having a conversation with a mathematician typically involved a hike across campus, Kim said, making close collaboration challenging at times. That hike will be reduced to a quick jaunt up the stairs or a chance meeting in the hallway, Kim said.

“We’ve never really been able to configure our buildings or space in a way where the math faculty are integrated with the scientists. Math is basically the language by which most science operates,” Kim said. “Those types of interactions really can’t be underestimated in terms of their ability to foster new collaborations, new ideas and interdisciplinarity.”

Chances for interdisciplinary work are woven into the building’s design – labs will feature writable glass walls and closely related labs will be placed next to one another, allowing ideas to spill over and mix between disciplines. Students who might have once been separated between buildings will suddenly find each other working in neighboring labs, campus officials said.

Scientific art and other accomplishments will be displayed throughout the building and designs include little touches such as windows using “smart glass,” which can change from clear to tinted as the sun passes over the center.

This all feeds into the idea of “Science on Display,” a key theme the university has established for the building. Kris Olsen, vice president of campus planning and operations, said the hope is even non-science majors will be able to feel the weight of the work being done in the center’s halls.

A worker walks through Chapman University’s new Center for Science and Technology which is under construction in Orange, on Tuesday, May 16, 2017. (Photo by Nick Agro, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Parrish Dyer, senior project manager, points of the amenities of Chapman University’s new Center for Science and Technology in Orange, on Tuesday, May 16, 2017. (Photo by Nick Agro, Orange County Register/SCNG)

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Visitors stands overlooking the athletic field are built into the side of Chapman University’s Center for Science and Technology in Orange, on Tuesday, May 16, 2017. (Photo by Nick Agro, Orange County Register/SCNG)

A soon to be built archway which will connect the science and technology wings of Chapman University’s Center for Science and Technology in Orange, on Tuesday, May 16, 2017. (Photo by Nick Agro, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Chapman University’s new Center for Science and Technology is under construction in Orange, on Tuesday, May 16, 2017. (Photo by Nick Agro, Orange County Register/SCNG)



***Space for learning

Andrew Lyon, dean of the Schmid College of Science and Technology, said Chapman’s new science center is being designed as a place students can linger and learn, not just as a place to go to do lab work.

“We now know as educators that learning just inside the classroom is really not the only way to go about this,” Lyon said. “When we think about how people advance their scholarship, it’s not just in the laboratory or in front of the computer. I often tell people that most of my research grants and the most successful research ideas I’ve had, have come in a discussion over a cup of coffee with a colleague.”

The center is being designed with at least 25 places outside of the lab to study, including alcoves peppered through the building, a stairway equipped with an 80-inch display for students to use and even the visitor bleachers at Wilson Field will be connected for use on days when a game isn’t being played. Outdoor study areas will still be equipped with USB chargers for students to use while they work in the fresh air.

Lyon said he’s looking forward to seeing faculty and students set free in the new building – an exciting element for him, he said, will be seeing what the university’s scientists can accomplish with the constraints of a limited work space removed.

“It’s not just that it allows us to do science – we’ve been doing tremendous science for a long time now. What it really allows us to do is go beyond and ask even more impactful questions, and work in a more substantial way with our students to answer those questions,” Lyon said. “It’s kind of like the shackles are being taken off.”

The building is expected to be completed in June 2018, with faculty and students moving in by the fall.

Chapman’s Center for Science and Technology, by the numbers

$130 million to build

18 teaching labs and 22 research labs

140,000 square feet of building, with 145,000 square feet of underground parking

76,000 cubic yards of earth dug out before starting construction

2,740 tons of steel used

2,000 miles of cable running through the building

600 feet of building stretching down Center Street

344 parking stalls being added in two underground levels, replacing the 123-space Argyros parking lot

150 to 170 workers a week working on the construction now, with 200 a week planned in the summer months