The project will also enable better consolidation of the Department of Industrial Engineering. We are losing opportunities for our faculty and students to interact with each other, especially across disciplines. Bringing them together in one facility will create a synergy within our research and education efforts that is very exciting. The college is moving quickly with planning and fund raising for the project because of a unique opportunity, says Peercy. When the Centers Building is completed, part of it would be used to house occupants of the Mechanical Engineering Building who must move out during the renovation, he says.
Timing is critical.
If we don't raise enough private funds in time, when the space in ECB is available, there will not be another chance to do it later. There simply isn't enough space elsewhere on the campus for the large number of people and labs that would be displaced. We'd lose our golden opportunity to make this happen. We hope everyone will recognize that we have the chance to leverage state funds with private funds, and also leverage the surge space needed for the project with the Centers Building. It's a combination of factors we'll never see again.