Skanska to construct $69M Va. Tech building

Virginia Tech’s $69.5 million Undergraduate Science Laboratory Building will be constructed by Skanska and completed by April 2024, the Swedish builder announced Monday. Virginia Tech announced plans for the building in late March, and construction started in April.

The 102,000-square-foot building will provide teaching and laboratory space on the university’s Blacksburg campus. It will be four stories and have 26 wet, dry and specialty laboratories to be used by the colleges of science, engineering, College of Natural Resources and Environment and the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. The new building will also have graduate teaching assistant workspaces, classrooms, collaboration spaces, informal study areas, and space open to students at all hours.

The first floor will have what Virginia Tech calls the Discovery Suite, which includes wet and dry lab maker space that will “foster experiential learning by providing the space and equipment needed for student-led science projects conducted as part of a class or in partnership with industry,” Jill Sible, associate vice provost for undergraduate education, said in a statement.

Over the past 15 years, the number of undergraduates enrolled in science, technology, engineering, math and health science majors has increased 60%, according to the university, growing from 8,000 students to nearly 13,000.

The building was designed by Portland, Oregon-based ZGF Architects LLP. It will meet or exceed LEED Silver certification for sustainable design.