The EB III dedication was held on Wednesday on Centennial Campus. EB III houses the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and the Joint N.C State-UNC Department of Biomedical Engineering.
The welcome note during the dedication event was delivered by Louis Martin-Vega, dean of engineering at N.C. State. Martin-Vega said that the aim was to move the entire college of engineering to the Centennial Campus.
“It has been 100 years since the first engineering department was started at Weston Hall [at N.C. State]. So today we are also celebrating the centenary of engineering presence on campus,” Martin-Vega said.
Martin-Vega said the students and faculty have moved into the new building.
“About 1,400 students, faculty and staff are working in EB III,” Martin-Vega said. “It contains state-of-the-art labs.”
EB III is a 248,291-square foot building containing around 80 labs, a wind tunnel facility, classrooms and offices for faculty and graduate students. The cost of the building is $103.7 million and the funding was an appropriation from the state legislature. It also has the first green roof on Centennial Campus, which is estimated to save 25 to 50 percent on heating and cooling costs.
Lawrence Davenport, chair of the Board of Trustees, said it had been two-and-a-half years since the EB III groundbreaking.
“I would like to thank the Board of Trustees for their vision. This event is a celebration of the legacy of N.C. State. The College of Engineering is one of the keys to get our economy in line,” Davenport said.
Chancellor Randy Woodson said he was proud to be a part of N.C. State.
“People are so passionate about N.C. State,” Woodson said. “The people who will be working in EB III can help solve some of the world’s problems like energy, [and] better health services. They have the ‘can do’ attitude,” Woodson said.
Woodson said the faculty was excited about moving to EB III.
“The new building should bring jobs to North Carolina in the future. It should deliver on the promise of what a future economy should be like,” Woodson said.
According to Woodson, the University’s engineering program has left a mark.
“The manifestation of what engineering can do for N.C. State can be seen in the Wall Street Journal. Recruiters rank us over Harvard. N.C. State is ranked 19th among all universities for recruiter picks. People who hire the graduate students know that they are the best and can hit the ground running,” Woodson said.
Joe Hackney, speaker at the North Carolina House of Representatives, said “this is a celebration of the choice the legislators have made in the investment of the future. In EB III, the right investment has been made.”
Hackney said the University was the top choice for the recruiters.
“When we ask the recruiters what makes them come to N.C. State, they say that there are a lot of talented people who are well-educated,” Hackney said. “This is to celebrate the investment for the jobs of the future and North Carolina moving ahead in competition with other states.”
“It feels good to be back,” said Jim Yocum, the executive vice president of DestinationRx, Inc. and N.C. State mechanical engineering alumnus.
Yocum said the new labs in the building provided improved tools for the faculty and students, and he praised the interdisciplinary approach practiced at EB III.
“When different disciplines are bridged, they are challenged outside the orthodoxy. That is when new things are invented. When you get skill sets from different fields, you get fireworks. My major takeaway from N.C. State is collaboration,” Yocum said.
EB III is one of the series of engineering buildings being built. Engineering buildings IV and V, also to be located at Centennial Campus, are awaiting approval by the North Carolina General Assembly.
Afsaneh Rabiei, a professor in mechanical engineering, said she liked the new building.
“The labs are good and there is power available in the labs. It is a clean new facility. I hope all this will motivate students and help hire talented faculty. I hope this translates into a better future for the mechanical engineering department,” Rabiei said.
Kalie Porterfield, a senior in mechanical engineering said that she like the new facilities.
“They are state-of-the-art, new and well-organized. There is also a lot of gathering space,” Porterfield said.
Sean Webb, a graduate student in aerospace engineering, said he liked the central air conditioning in the new building.
“I also like the landscaping outside. There is enough shelf space for the lab equipment, which is very delicate,” Webb said.
Alex York, a postdoctoral student in mechanical engineering, said that the new labs ensured safety.
“These labs have safety measures in place. They also provide much improved capabilities when compared to the old lab [in Broughton Hall]. We can run more versatile experiments using these high-tech lab instruments. The labs are also very clean,” York said.
