Brown County STEM Innovation Center

THE PROJECT

Project Highlights

Collaborative facility for multiple building partners including Brown County, UW-Green Bay, non-profit and community organizations
Functional and flexible spaces including laboratories, offices, and classrooms
Numerous structural systems integrated into this design required a high level of detail and system interface conditions

Brown County STEM Innovation Center, located on the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay campus, is a flexible, multi-use, collaborative space designed to elevate manufacturing in the Northern WI region and provide opportunities for the next generation of innovators. Funded by the State of Wisconsin, Brown County, and the UWGB Foundation, the two-story, 63,000-square-foot facility includes classrooms, offices, a laboratory, warehouse space, and an on-site greenhouse. The classroom spaces can easily be reconfigured using sliding door and wall partition systems to accommodate the varying needs of each tenant. The multi-tenant building serves as the new home for UW-Green Bay’s School of Engineering, The Einstein Project helping local schools fund science projects, Extension Brown County and Brown County’s Land and Water Conservation departments.

OUR IMPACT

HIGH LEVEL

of detail and system interface

PROJECT ACHIEVED

under budget

OPPORTUNITIES

for the next generation of innovators

Service Provided

Structural Engineer of Record

OUR SOLUTIONS

The two-story STEM Innovation center features a combination of concrete and steel structural systems. While the first floor is slab-on-grade construction, the structural systems on the second floor include a concrete slab-on-metal form deck supported on composite steel beams, girders, and steel columns with some load-bearing precast wall panels. Exterior walls around the warehouse space are insulated precast concrete bearing walls with remaining exterior walls being non-load-bearing light-gage steel stud construction and glazing systems. The lateral load resisting system is a blend of precast/masonry shear walls and structural steel braced frames.

The numerous structural systems integrated into this design required a high level of detail and system interface conditions. MBJ worked with the architect to accommodate roof level changes and overlapping structures that did not always coincide with normal structural support lines in the project. We accommodated these situations using transfer elements, bent/offset beams, and hanger elements to maintain the integrity of the design concept. Areas of exposed structures including the suspended stair structure and large overhang structures also required significant coordination with the architect to achieve the desired vision.