[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/robot_ribbon.jpg” caption=”A robot and a surgical scalpel, controlled by Dean David Wilkinson, was used to cut the ceremonial ribbon, officially opening the new Engineering Technology Building. Photo by Matt Terry. “]There's a new face on Main Street in Hamilton and this one represents a sustainable, high-tech future.

Exactly fifty years after the first engineering building on campus was opened, the five-story, 125,000-square-foot, glass-covered Engineering Technology Building was officially opened today at McMaster University. The building will house more than 2,000 students, professors, researchers and staff and features state-of-the art learning and research facilities, sustainability systems, and novel architectural design.

“This new building is going to represent the face of McMaster for the 21st century,” said Peter George, President of the University. “It is a showcase of the very best McMaster has to offer in terms of the exciting programs it represents and because of the partnerships and collaborations that made it possible. It is a real symbol of the economic renewal of our community and of our leadership in this community and beyond.”

The building is the new home of the McMaster-Mohawk Bachelor of Technology Partnership, the first-year Engineering program, the McMaster School of Biomedical Engineering, the Walter G. Booth School of Engineering Practice, a new Biointerfaces Institute and the Centre for Research in Micro- and Nano-Systems.

“This building is representative of the new era unfolding in the Faculty and for the engineering profession,” said David Wilkinson, dean of engineering. “It incorporates the latest in sustainable design and construction. The facilities and layout encourage interaction among students and professors, and the programs here are opening up new frontiers in teaching, engineering and society.”

The building was designed to achieve Gold certification in the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program, reflective of the Faculty's five-year strategic plan, Engineering a Sustainable Future, which focuses on increased research in sustainability and the development of the 'global engineer'.

Sustainability features of the new building include: rain water harvesting for wastewater flushing and landscape irrigation; automated photo sensor controlled lighting; high recycled content in building materials; inclusion of local slag, a byproduct of steelmaking, to reduce cement content in structural and landscaping concrete; dual duct HVAC system that separates ventilation from space heating and cooling functions, coupled with heat recovery for exhaust air; and integration of mechanical systems with the building envelope and structure, incorporating the thermal mass of the structure as a heat sink.

These features also contribute to the building-as-a-learning-tool design. Structural and mechanical elements throughout the building have been left open to allow students to view its construction and operation.

The building has also been designed to enhance the teaching and learning process. Of note are two elliptical classrooms, among the first in North America, on the building's basement and main floors. The classrooms facilitate interaction between teacher and students, and among students and contain 55 computer work stations and 28 instruction monitors displaying a video signal from the instructor.

Building dedication activities will take place throughout the weekend as part of Homecoming celebrations. For more information, click here.