VESTAL — Binghamton University’s new smart-energy research and development (R&D) facility will accommodate R&D initiatives for the departments of chemistry and physics. The school formally opened the new $70 million, 114,000-square-foot Smart Energy Building on Aug. 31, according to a university news release. The Smart Energy Building is part of the university’s Innovative Technologies Complex (ITC), […]
VESTAL — Binghamton University’s new smart-energy research and development (R&D) facility will accommodate R&D initiatives for the departments of chemistry and physics.
The school formally opened the new $70 million, 114,000-square-foot Smart Energy Building on Aug. 31, according to a university news release.
The Smart Energy Building is part of the university’s Innovative Technologies Complex (ITC), located at 85 Murray Hill Road in Vestal.
Laboratories, classrooms, and offices are included in the project, which aims to provide space for faculty, students, and industry scientists and engineers to work side by side to create new energy technologies and maintain and expand the regional workforce.
“This opening is a turning point in the history of Binghamton University,” President Harvey Stenger boasted in the release. “The Innovative Technologies Complex was constructed with the intent of adding research facilities, but this new Smart Energy Building integrates the basic sciences of chemistry and physics into the ITC.”
During the design and construction phase of this project, the investments made to build the smart energy R&D facility generated an economic impact of $90.7 million on the Broome/Tioga County region, Binghamton University said.
The expenditures also supported 915 local jobs, including 366 direct construction jobs, the school added.
The building’s features include photovoltaic panels on the roof to produce electricity, hydronic radiant heating in the floor, controlled LED lighting, individual space monitoring to reduce air flows and energy use, and water-cooled equipment wherever possible to conserve energy. LED is short for light-emitting diode.
The two-story building features ornate custom steel in public areas, as well as a basement and a green roof.
Natural stone landscaping and grading complement the Center of Excellence, Biotechnology, and Engineering and Science buildings.
The university first broke ground on the facility in the summer of 2014.
The Smart Energy Building is a “direct result” of the NYSUNY 2020 plan that Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the state legislature approved in 2012, the school said.
