BUILT TO LAST:
New building ready for generations of innovation
 ore than 250 college faculty, staff, students, alumni and friends gathered in the soaring main auditorium of the new Mechanical Engineering Building one crisp October morning, eager to celebrate a new engineering feat: the building itself.
Shared by the UW-Madison Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering and the Department of Mechanical Engineering, the building recently underwent a $50.5 million construction and renovation project—the only major overhaul since its construction in 1930—that now will give its occupants technological flexibility for years to come. The college dedicated the building in an October 26 ceremony in the building atrium. “What I really appreciate in this renovation is that they kept the essence and the soul of this building, and simply updated the interior components to be competitive in today’s marketplace,” says Professor Harry Steudel, who chaired the ISyE department throughout the planning and construction phases of the building.
A hallmark of the building is its flexible design, with teaching and lab spaces that can evolve as the field of engineering evolves. Steudel says that before the construction, the building had so little dynamic space that he often taught his team-based class in the lobby. Now he holds such sessions in the four teaching labs: financial engineering, human factors, simulation, and team dynamics. The rooms are arranged to promote teamwork and creativity, but can be easily redesigned to adapt to changes in industrial and systems engineering.
Through multimedia technology and wireless Internet service, students can access data resources, consult with experts, and simulate systems for problem solving, says Patti Brennan, professor and chair of industrial and systems engineering. “What we’re doing, in making space available for students that can be quickly repurposed to fit new directions in teaching and research, is essential for schools of engineering,” says Brennan.
To read more about this milestone, visit www.engr.wisc.edu/alumni/perspective/34.1.
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