Harvard Sees Completion of New Science Complex

Harvard University recently saw construction finish on its new Science and Engineering Complex (SEC), located across the Charles River from its main campus in Cambridge, Mass. The complex, designed by Behnisch Architekten, is set to open to students in fall 2021. The eight-story structure covers more than 540,000 square feet and features classrooms, laboratories, collaboration spaces, and more designed to foster interdisciplinary study.

The newest addition to the Allston campus offers street-level makerspaces and teaching labs visible to passersby, increasing engagement with the local community. The lower floors offer classrooms, teaching labs, and amenity spaces—some of which function as fixed-seating classrooms, while others are active-learning spaces designed to allow a wider variety of layouts and activities. The facility will serve as the home to a large part of Harvard’s John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Science (SEAS) and welcome researchers and students in fields including robotics, computer science, electrical and mechanical engineering, bioengineering, materials science, and more.

The facility’s upper floors will feature almost 70,000 square feet of wet research lab space for biology, chemistry, physics, optics, and electronics classes and research, as well as about 24,000 square feet of dry research labs for computer science. Flexible lab environments leave room to repurpose various spaces later on as needs change.

The team from Behnisch Architekten, tasked with making the SEC the “healthiest building on the Harvard campus,” created a design that garnered LEED Platinum and Living Building Challenge Petal certifications in Materials, Beauty, and Equity. Materials used are free of a specific set of harmful chemicals, comply with the LBC Red List, and conform to the standards of Harvard’s Healthier Building Academy.

The building contains the world’s first hydroformed tensile façade system, reducing solar heat from glazed daylighting openings and using high-comfort radiant systems for indoor climate control. Its water-based heating and cooling systems use one-third of the energy of air-driven systems. The two fast, daylit atria and interior partitions reflect daylight deep into the building’s interior. It also features five acres of roof terraces with vegetation.

About the Author

Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • Florida Elementary School to Undergo $47M Reconstruction

    The School District of Osceola County in Kissimmee, Fla., recently announced a partnership with construction firm Skanska to reconstruct Reedy Creek Elementary School, according to a news release. The $47-million project will involve the new construction of a 96,000-square-foot academic center, renovating the remaining facilities, a full-site redevelopment, and demolishing portions of the existing school.

  • Kimball International Debuts Health & Education Experience Center

    Kimball International recently opened a new facility at its corporate headquarters in Jasper, Ind., that will act as a hands-on showroom for a variety of its furniture products and solutions, according to a news release. The 13,000-square-foot Health & Education Experience Center was originally designed by Gensler as the headquarters for Kimball International’s National brand.

  • Gretna East High School

    Gretna East High School

    Established in 1999, the Education Design Showcase is a vehicle for showing off innovative — yet practical — solutions in planning, design, architecture, and construction. Gretna East High School has been recognized with an EDS 2025 Project of Distinction award in the category of New Construction.

  • Abstract colorful arrows in front of a contemporary university building

    Spaces4Learning 2025 Trends in Higher Education

    With 2025 well underway, it’s time to take a look at some broader trends submitted by you, our Spaces4Learning readership. We asked for your thoughts on topics like classroom design, health & safety, materials & construction, and technology in both K–12 and higher-education environments. Below is a roundup of 2025 trends in higher education from the experts in the trenches.

Digital Edition