Butler Tech Bioscience Center features hands-on learning in bold new building

An integral component of a well-rounded education involves obtaining real-world experience in your chosen industry. Butler Technology and Career Development Schools is taking that concept to heart by building a 26-acre campus right next to corporate offices that may employ some of the very students getting their degrees next door. By sharing a space with the private sector, the school, which specializes in the cross-section of business and health care, is aiming to be the region’s frontrunner when it comes to providing hands-on training.

This lofty goal, sparked by a partnership between Butler Tech and the West Chester-Liberty Chamber Alliance, was more than a decade in the making and is being heralded as an innovative step forward for the bioscience industry. To ensure the vision had a concrete space in which to be realized, architects from McGill Smith Punshon, Inc. needed to design a structure that would grab attention in the short term, and allow for expansion in the future.  

The first phase of construction was a 32,000 square-foot project that features exterior metal panels selected for their durability and sustainability features. Architects worked with Valley Interior Systems Inc. to install the building’s rainscreen, which was attached to ALPOLIC 4-mm aluminum-faced composite panels finished in Valspar’s Valflon® fluropolymer (FEVE) resin-based coating. The flexible metal panels were a perfect fit for the building’s slope, and the bright red color helps draw attention to the state-of-the-art facility.

Because of its high gloss retention and vibrant pigments, Valflon is a top choice for establishments that are identified by their colors, which is exactly what the designers wanted for this project. Because color was so important to the overall design, architects knew the chosen coating would need to last against weathering agents like acid rain, ultraviolet rays and airborne chemicals. Valflon is highly resistant to all of these factors, which helped architects be even more confident in this coating selection. Valflon adds depth of color and resists natural chalking and fading, allowing for a lengthened lifespan of both the coating itself and the building as a whole.

A second construction phase is scheduled for a future build-out and will include adding an additional 8,000 square-feet of space to accommodate adult programming, and developers hope to bring in private business tenants as well. With a final vision of creating a job-ready campus in which students can study and work in adjacent buildings, the aesthetic appeal is sure to help draw in talent.