How do you design a new facility for flexibility that can be adapted to future needs in both learning styles and technology?

Santa Clara University Harrington Learning Center, Sobrato Technology Center, & Orradre Library

This new 194,000 s.f. academic facility was designed for students and staff to collaborate, learn, and teach in this innovative, intellectual heart of the Santa Clara campus.

Customized Solution

The 4-story learning center is steel framed with a combination of eccentric and concentric braced frames for seismic protection.
The project contains an Informational Commons space, Technology Center, cafe, and state-of-the-art library with an ASRS book retrieval system capable of storing 1,000,000 volumes on special shelving.
The library building is situated in the heart of the campus and its’ terra cotta, travertine, and limestone exterior complement the surrounding campus buildings, many of which are historic.
High and open 14′ ceilings provide ample natural lighting, while the length of the building horizontally tiers and protrudes at 90-degree angles to provide dynamic space for reading, meetings, computer labs, editing rooms, and exhibit space.