In this project, Auburn University envisioned one of the country’s most capable structural design labs. The completed Advanced Structural Engineering Laboratory provides 47,000 square feet of state-of-the-art engineering testing capabilities and equipment for research engineers, faculty, and graduate students as they work to solve the nation’s growing infrastructure issues.
The facility includes a high-bay laboratory with a 30-foot-tall strong wall and strong floor capable of handling extreme structural testing loads, fabrication and workshop spaces that can replicate hurricane-level loads, and one of only geotechnical test chambers in the country. It was the first project at the university that utilized heavy timber construction, combining exposed glulam and CLT timber with concrete and steel to demonstrate different structural systems.