Lab Project
Profiles
I M AG E C O U RT ESY O F C O A R C H I T E CTS
Project Overview
Sacramento State embarked on an ambitious
expansion plan with direction from their latest
campus master plan. One of the first steps in that
journey is the new, $91 million Ernest E. Tschannen
Science Complex which will feature 94,000 SF
of classroom and laboratory space. This design-
build collaboration with CO Architects and Sundt
Construction broke ground in September 2017 and is
slated for completion in fall 2019.
Solution
The five-story, teaching and laboratory facility will
include an onsite observatory and planetarium,
supporting astronomy and physics programs. It will
also consolidate the College of Natural Science’s
Biology and Chemistry departments under one roof
and include areas that will be open to the public
for community events. Our team came up with
creative designs to tie the new building into the
existing utility system, ultimately minimizing the new
building’s energy demands through daylighting,
optimized lab ventilation, and high-efficiency LED
light fixtures and lab equipment. The complex is
designed to meet the U.S. Green Building Council’s
LEED Gold certifications standards.
Sacramento State,
Ernest E. Tschannen Science Complex
8