Engineering-Science Building, University of California
Santa Barbara, Calif.
CO Architects

Monumental stairs lead to a high-tech lab

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The University of California, Santa Barbara, ranks among the top research schools in the nation. Its new Engineering-Science Building contains roughly 90,000 square feet of research labs, teaching facilities, research labs, conference rooms, and offices for faculty and staff. It is the first of two buildings master planned for a prominent corner at the perimeter of campus. CO Architects sought to define the campus edge and establish a pattern for development on the adjacent site.

A major portion of the building’s ground floor is dedicated to a 20,000-square-foot nanofabrication facility that includes a 13,000-square-foot clean room, in which students and faculty make compound semiconductor devices. This work must take place in a vibration-free environment and the room requires extensive mechanical support spaces. Ironically, the vibration requirements and site considerations forced the architect to locate this clean room, the building’s least public space, in its most prominent location.

Faculty and graduate student offices are grouped into suites separated by small, north-facing courtyards. These offices receive natural ventilation through a coordinated system of operable windows, vents, ceiling fans, light, and ventilation monitors. The building’s exterior materials palette of sandstone echoes natural colors in the surrounding landscape as well as the rose-colored concrete masonry of adjacent buildings.

In order to satisfy zoning limits on height, the architect sunk the building’s first floor below grade. A plaza at this level conceals a service yard, helps link the new building with an existing engineering building, and provides a gathering space for students and faculty. On the building’s second level, which is four feet above grade, a conference pavilion announces the building’s presence on the campus. This airy, porch-like space serves as the primary entrance, allowing users to bypass the nanofabrication facility, and its monumental stair helps link the building to the rest of the campus.

Formal name of Project:
Engineering-Science Building, University of California

Location:
Santa Barbara, Calif.

Gross square footage:
90,000 sq. ft.

Total construction cost:
$27.3 Million

Owner:
University of California, Santa Barbara
www.ucsb.edu

Architect:
CO Architects
5055 Wilshire Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90036
323-525-0500 tel.
323-525-0955 fax