Dartmouth College - Engineering and Computer Science Center

Where Computation and Engineering Connect

This LEED Platinum certified academic interdisciplinary research facility fulfills an acute space demand for cutting edge engineering and computer science research at Dartmouth College. Programming includes teaching in biotech, energy technologies, cyber-security, and other areas of research that contributes to the advancement of knowledge and problem solving in critical fields. The design of the building is organized around interaction and collaboration to promote synergies between fields that spark discovery and solutions to global science and engineering challenges.

The interior experience is one of openness and transparency. The central atrium forms the social hub of the Center, providing an array of collaboration spaces and allows fellow researchers, students, and visitors to view the work happening within the surrounding lab spaces. The building is designed to take advantage of a campus context of brick academic, research, and student residential life structures. The building fits comfortably within this context and reflects a balance between the expression of contemporary research environments and respect for traditional building typologies.

Primary exterior materials include brick, granite, copper, and aluminum windows/curtainwall with triple glazing for enhanced thermal performance. The exterior façade has been designed and constructed to target high energy savings and sustainable design. A below-grade parking garage contributes as well and is a significant investment in both the preservation of the rural scale of the surrounding neighborhood, and of the character of the Dartmouth campus. Removing a previous through street and relocating parking spaces below-grade had made the West End of the campus more pedestrian friendly. The garage features a below-grade loading dock that eliminates the need for two above-ground loading docks, which significantly contributed to a reduction in the volume of vehicular and service traffic on the Dartmouth campus.

Click to watch a video on the innovation behind the Dartmouth Center for Engineering and Computer Science.