Thanks to its sheer breadth of experience in primary, secondary and higher education projects around the globe, Arup has great understanding of campus planning, building design and operations in this market.
Arup understands the concerns and aspirations of education clients, who range from state and public sector bodies to commercial or private providers and private institutions. The firm's work in education includes facilities for children such the Druk White Lotus School and library in Ladakh, India and campus projects for Princeton University, Columbia University and the University of California system in the USA.
Learning environments by design
Arup is committed to providing better learning environments for students of all ages through good design. Its school designs range from low-cost templates for village school buildings in developing countries, to Building Schools for the Future projects and the John Madejski Academies in the UK, and the planning of new or expanded education campuses such as the University of California Merced campus.
Many of Arup's broad technical, engineering, analytical and soft skills are applicable to design for the education estate. The firm works with clients across all phases of education building projects, from needs assessment, capital planning, master planning, project management, design and construction, through fit out and commissioning, to post-occupancy support and facilities management.
Facilities to enrich academic life
Arup specialists are skilled in designing all types of academic facilities, including libraries, laboratories, residential dormitories, lecture theatres and faculty buildings, as well as those that enrich the cultural life of the campus.
Over the years, Arup has completed museums and galleries such as the Jack S Blanton Museum of Art for the University of Texas, performance spaces, including the recital hall at St Hilda's College, Oxford and the Mondavi Center at Davis, plus sports halls like the Kenyon College Athletic Facility, OH, for top academic institutions worldwide.
Education facilities are assets that can attract top researchers and students to one institution over another and, in this, design matters. Arup's global teams have long experience of working with star architects with the "wow!" factor, as with Renzo Piano’s Fogg Art Museum at Harvard and Zaha Hadid's Innovation Tower for the Hong Kong Polytechnic University.
The sustainable campus
Arup appreciates that education facilities occupy a social setting. The firm is well-placed to design the whole sustainable "campus", not just standalone green buildings. It has an excellent reputation for high-performance buildings of low environmental impact, such as Northern Arizona University's Applied Research and Development building and the Bond School of Sustainable Development in Queensland, Australia.
Backroom essentials for the functions of every campus are also well covered by the firm's skills and services offering. Arup has designed systems for heating and ventilation such as the University of California at Merced's award-winning central utility plant. Lighting design, traffic and transportation infrastructure, utility networks, urban planning, feasibility studies and sustainability framework strategies are likewise part of Arup’s comprehensive offering. The firm can also provide design and advisory services on the renovation and restoration of heritage buildings, landscape architecture and even writing campus guidelines for education clients.