CONVERSION OF AUTOMOBILE HQ TO UC EAST CLASSROOM SPACE

Project Details

CLIENT
IRG

LOCATION
Batavia, OH

 

The University of Cincinnati saw an opportunity to expand its Allied Health educational offerings to Clermont County through the development of a UC East Clermont Campus in the vacant office space at Ford Motor Companies in Batavia, OH. The property owners, IRG, worked closely with Woolpert to transform the empty office space to facilities for health sciences curriculum, including laboratory and classroom space, support offices, student gathering areas and a community outreach area.

Woolpert worked with the IRG, the university architect and representatives of UC East Clermont College to understand their challenges and address future needs for programs such as physical therapy, surgical technology and medical assisting. Solutions balanced specific program needs—amount of storage space, types of flooring materials, technological capabilities, security requirements—with a limited budget and a schedule that anticipated student occupancy for the next quarter. Both to reduce construction cost and to be sensitive to the university’s sustainable goals, the project incorporated reuse of existing ceiling materials, lighting, heating system components and recycling of existing carpets.