Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Keene State College: TDS Center

  • 08/01/14
Keene State College: TDS Center

PHOTOS © CHUCK CHOI

In 2013, Keene State College’s Technology, Design and Safety Center (TDS Center) earned LEED Platinum certification by the U.S. Green Building Council/Green Building Certification Institute. This designation was given to the building based on its energy efficiency and the materials used to build the structure. The building was designed by Boston-based architecture firm Architerra and engineered by Rist Frost Shumway Engineering, based in Laconia, NH. The TDS Center is home to Keene State’s Sustainable Product Design and Innovation, Architecture, and Safety and Occupational Health Applied Sciences programs. As a result of the TDS Center’s energy efficiency, Keene State College is the third largest producer of solar energy on the Public Service of New Hampshire (PSNH) system.

“The TDS Center effectively integrates with our programs for effective teaching and learning — student learning was our top priority all along,” says Keene State’s vice president for Finance and Planning, Jay Kahn. “This building demonstrates sustainable design and construction, while providing a space that is welcoming to our campus community and the broader community. The TDS Center was created with these priorities in mind — the solar array, which was supported financially by businesses and organizations in our community, made it possible to achieve LEED Platinum certification.”

“It was a pleasure to work with the Keene State College administration and faculty and USNH [University System of New Hampshire] leadership. From day one, they insisted on an energy-efficient design. The secret triumph of this design is its conventional cost, popularity among students, opportunity to integrate the building into teaching curriculum and 60 percent modeled energy savings compared to a baseline building, met in part by an integrated solar array which is both cost-effective and educational,” says Ellen Watts, Architerra principal.

Keene State College is online at www.keene.edu.

This article originally appeared in the issue of .

Featured

  • Illinois State University Breaks Ground on College of Fine Arts Transformation

    Illinois State University in Normal, Ill., recently held a groundbreaking ceremony for the Wonsook Kim College of Fine Arts transformation project, according to university news. The series of new constructions and renovations will upgrade spaces in Centennial East, the Center for the Visual Arts, and the Center for the Performing Arts, as well as replace the existing Centennial West facility with a new Commons Building.

  • Kimball International Releases Curated Design Support Program

    Commercial furnishings company Kimball International recently announced the launch of a new end-to-end design support program, DesignSuite. According to a news release, its goal is to guide architecture & design professionals and dealer partners through the process from vision to specification.

  • UNT Dallas Holds Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony for $100M STEM Building

    The University of North Texas at Dallas in Dallas, Texas, recently celebrated the opening of its new, $100-million STEM Building, according to local news. The ceremony on Dec. 2 preceded the first day of classes in the facility on Jan. 12, 2026.

  • Full Sail University Announces First Student Housing Facility

    Full Sail University in Winter Park, Fla., recently announced that development has begun on its first student housing community, according to a news release. The university is partnering with Nvision Development for construction and long-term management of the facility, which will stand five stories and have the capacity for more than 570 beds.