CoorsTek Center for Applied Science and Engineering

The CoorsTek Center for Applied Science and Engineering is a state-of-the-art lab, research, and classroom building that co-locates the Colorado School of Mines’ Physics Department and College of Applied Sciences and Engineering. Designed to foster cross-disciplinary research and scholarship while enhancing community partnerships, the building features compelling, technology-rich spaces that facilitate campus and partner events, spontaneous collisions, adaptive learning, and cutting-edge research.

The primary driver for the building was to create cross-pollination amongst the school’s science and engineering disciplines while enhancing community partnerships. This is underscored by the building’s siting at the epicenter of campus. The 250’ long glazed façade facing Kafadar Commons, the campus’s main greenspace, invites visual connections into the building prior to entering. Multiple entrances aligned with campus circulation paths invite the community into a welcoming public space with a variety of collaborative and individual seating options. Flexibly-arranged active learning classrooms are accessed on the same level, while interdisciplinary teaching and research labs and offices are located on Levels 2 & 3. The building’s exterior is comprised of a combination of transparent and opaque elements composed around views and program, utilizing materials rooted in campus context and the Front Range landscape.

The building exemplifies how state-of-the-art facilities can attract and retain new talent while fostering private sector relationships. The Center currently serves as a magnet for new researchers, students, and faculty as well as industry partners.

In collaboration with Bohlin Cywinski Jackson