By Julia Weiss
The new Emerging Technology and Entrepreneurship Complex (ETEC) on the UAlbany’s Harriman Campus, currently under construction, is expected to be completed the summer of 2021, and will be home to everything from cyber to weather to homeland security.
Photo Credit - Habib Affinnih / ASP
Project Manager Jeff Graham Giving a Tour of the Interior Features of the ETEC Building
BUILT FOR COLLABORATION
“We’ve organized the space so that people have to talk to each other, see each other. Really to have some synergy and collaboration,” said Jeffrey Graham, Project Manager of the ETEC site.
Most of the space within ETEC is not assigned to any one subject in order to encourage.
“Proximity to other members of the University community will promote our working together with them in multi-disciplinary collaborations,” said George Berg, an associate professor in the CEHC.
On top of increasing collaboration, UAlbany administrators are looking to solidify the college’s reputation as a research school.
“UAlbany is actually an R1 Doctoral University, the highest tier of research institutions,” said UAlbany spokesperson Mike Nolan. “Most students might not realize that, and ETEC is a way we are trying to fix that.”
The inclusion of the National Weather Service on the fourth floor, with space for their equipment on the roof, is one example of a greater emphasis on research.
Photo Credit - Habib Affinnih / ASP
Heat Pumps which will be Used to Heat and Cool the ETEC Building with Geothermal Energy
YOU’RE WELCOME, ENVIRONMENT
The complex will also be eco-friendly.
190 underground geothermal wells under the parking lot will provide the energy for the heating and cooling system for the building.
“We're not using fossil fuels to make heat. We're using what we already have in the earth. However, there will be some electricity used to convert the heat,” Graham said. “UAlbany is conducting a big solar project on the podium, and we're dedicating the energy from that to this building.”
Those solar panels should be completely installed by the time the ETEC building is up and running in 2021, according to Graham.
Clocking in at 246,000 square feet and six floors, with a max capacity of roughly 2,000 students, ETEC will be the largest academic building on campus.
ETEC’s energy costs will be only 30% of what they would have been if traditional energy forms had been used.
The structure is currently around 45% complete.
For more updates on the project, a time-lapse video is available on Twitter @ualbany
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