Tallest mass timber academic building on the East Coast completed at UPenn
The tallest mass timber academic building on the East Coast, Amy Gutmann Hall, at the University of Pennsylvania was recently completed. The six-story, 116,000 sf building is intended to connect occupants, who work in a digital realm, back to the natural world.
The structure maximizes views and daylight, integrates ecological environments into interior spaces, and incorporates sensory stimuli that encourage collaboration and comfort.
The facility houses three floors of teaching labs, active learning classrooms, and collaborative workspaces, and three floors of research centers. The two-story main entrance features a green wall, exposed mass timber framing, natural and stained wood finishes, a balcony, and an intimate reading room.
The ground floor serves as a home base for data science and AI programming, with a gracious student commons and small cafe, a quiet reading room, group study areas, and a lecture hall. On the third floor, a data science and AI hub encourages researchers from across campus and the private sector to gather through programs and events.
The upper three floors are organized into large, flexible “neighborhoods” of 35 to 40 researchers, each linked to adjacent labs through shared collaboration zones. Small, open kitchenettes are strategically positioned throughout the research zones to bring researchers together for informal, serendipitous conversations that foster community and support a shared sense of vibrancy and innovation.
A larger kitchen and break room, located on the fifth floor, serves the entire research community and host community events.
The mass timber system significantly reduces its carbon footprint by 52% relative to concrete, and 41% relative to steel, according to a news release. The building’s sustainable design features include a high-performance envelope and cooling and heating systems that reduce the building’s energy consumption by nearly 20%.
Low-flow plumbing fixtures and fittings reduce indoor water usage by 33%. High-performance windows and skylights provide balanced daylighting and views throughout, with more than 77% of regularly occupied spaces offering views to nature.
A 12,000 sf green roof minimizes the building’s heat island effect and impact on wildlife habitats. The frit pattern on the curtain wall, designed in collaboration with Andrew Cudless of Matsys, marries biomorphic patterns with computational design, further reinforcing the building’s identity. The project is targeting LEED Gold certification.
Lake Flato, with KSS Architects as Associate Architect, designed the building that was named for the university’s longest-serving president. It is a vibrant and dynamic hub for cross-disciplinary collaborations focused on harnessing the power of data and AI.
Owner/developer: University of Pennsylvania / Penn Engineering
Architect of Record & Design Architect: Lake Flato
Associate Architect: KSS Architects
Structural & MEP engineer: Buro Happold
General contractor: Gilbane
