Officially opened on May 10, 2012, as a part of
University at Buffalo's 2020 Strategic Plan, construction of Barbara and Jack Davis Hall, known as Davis Hall, started in 2009 with ground-breaking and finished in late 2011 with a construction cost of $75 million including nearly $49.6 million from
New York State
New York, officially the State of New York, is a state in the Northeastern United States. It is often called New York State to distinguish it from its largest city, New York City. With a total area of , New York is the 27th-largest U.S. sta ...
funding and the rest from corporate and individual endowments.
Besides
UB Engineering, Davis Hall is the new host to both Computer Science and Electrical Engineering departments featuring several new laboratories and research centers.
The building is constructed by
Turner Construction and its exterior design is a reminiscent to printed circuit board representing interaction among faculties and students and is designed by
Perkins and Will
Perkins&Will is a global design practice founded in 1935. Since 1986, the group has been a subsidiary of Lebanon-based Dar Al-Handasah (Arabic: دار الهندسة). Phil Harrison has been the firm's CEO since 2006.
History
The firm was establ ...
firm.
The building is constructed in accordance with
LEED
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a
green building certification program used worldwide. Developed by the non-profit U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), it includes a set of rating systems for the design, construction ...
's Gold certificate standards.
Naming
The building is named after industrialist-turned-political candidate
Jack Davis and his wife Barbara, who made the largest endowment ($5 million) among individuals to fund the project.
The couple made their first donation of $1.5 million to fund the project in 2008.
Jack, a UB Engineering graduate in 1955,
and his wife donated an additional $3.5 million to the project making themselves the people who have made the largest endowment in university's history with $5 million endowment.
Tenants
Departments
The building is the new home to Computer Science and Electrical Engineering departments.
However, the building supports five other departments such as Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering, Industrial and Systems Engineering and Chemical and Biological Engineering.
Labs
Notable features
Facilities and research centers
* of
Cleanroom space
* Two
3D Electrical Engineering Labs
* A smart room
* A surgery lab
* A multimedia lab
* A security lab
* Two visualization labs
* Eleven flexible, multi-purpose labs
* Center of Excellence for Document Analysis and Recognition (CEDAR)
* Center for Unified Biometrics and Sensors (CUBS)
Center for Unified Biometrics and Sensors (CUBS)
/ref>
LEED gold certificate
On April 4, 2012 it was announced that the building has been certified "Gold" by LEED
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) is a
green building certification program used worldwide. Developed by the non-profit U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), it includes a set of rating systems for the design, construction ...
.
References
{{University at Buffalo, The State University of New York
University at Buffalo
University and college buildings completed in 2011
University and college academic buildings in the United States
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design gold certified buildings
2011 establishments in New York (state)