Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Drexel University: College of Engineering Innovation Studio

  • 09/01/18
Drexel University

PHOTOS © PAUL BARTHOLOMEW and © JEFFREY TOTARO

For Drexel University’s reimagined College of Engineering “Innovation Studio,” Philadelphia’s Coscia Moos Architecture combined the raw edges of makerspace with bright color, glass volumes, and environments designed to encourage interaction and collaboration. The 55,000-square-foot adaptive reuse of a former warehouse puts a sophisticated spin on engineering education for the Philadelphia-based institution.

The design transfers the engineering student experience beyond the academic classroom into an entrepreneurial environment that fosters creativity, exploration, and discovery. By consolidating freshman teaching labs from locations across campus, relocating select electrical engineering researchers, and establishing a home for the university’s new Institute for Energy and the Environment (IExE), the design encourages undergraduate and grad students of all ages and faculty to comingle, share ideas, and elevate Drexel’s STEM education.

Drexel and Coscia Moos envisioned the new facility as a critical part of students’ contributions to the Maker Movement, a trend toward design and development of products brought to market better, faster, and at a lower cost. In fact, freshmen in the College of Engineering work throughout their first year on hands-on multidisciplinary projects encompassing all areas of engineering. They learn to collaborate in teams, solve problems, and experience the real-world challenges of engineers, skills that inform the remainder of their education.

The carefully planned environment features writable walls, acoustical partitions to subdivide the space, movable tables, varied seating, ample electrical outlets, and a host of devices, including 3D printers, welding and electrical testing equipment, heavy machinery, and a wet lab.

Interspersed among the makerspaces are offices and glass-box conference rooms that quite literally put dialogue in the center of the action.

This article originally appeared in the College Planning & Management September 2018 issue of Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • LSU Breaks Ground on $200M Residential Project

    Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, La., recently broke ground on a new residential complex, according to university news. The South Quad residential project will consist of two buildings and add a total of 1,266 beds for freshmen students. The development comes with a price tag of $200 million, and it’s scheduled to open to students in fall 2027.

  • classroom with crystal ball on top of a desk

    Call for Opinions: Spaces4Learning 2026 Predictions for Educational Facilities

    As 2025 winds to a close, the Spaces4Learning staff is asking its readers—school administrators, architects, engineers, facilities managers, builders, superintendents, designers, vendors, and more—to send us their predictions for educational facilities in 2026.

  • Utah Valley University Opens New Engineering Building

    Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, recently held a grand-opening ceremony for the new Scott M. Smith Engineering Building, according to a news release. The facility is one of the largest engineering buildings in the state at almost 200,000 square feet, and it plays home to the university’s Smith College of Engineering and Technology (SCET).

  • Illinois District Boosts Security at High-School Stadium

    Richmond-Burton Community High School in Richmond, Ill., recently announced that it has completed the redesigned entrance to its high school stadium with a new focus on school security and community engagement, according to a news release. The district partnered with Wold Architects and Engineers on the project as part of District #157’s year-long facilities master plan.

Digital Edition