William Eckhardt Research Center (WERC), The University of Chicago

Thornton Tomasetti, the international engineering firm, has been named structural engineer of record for the new William Eckhardt Research Center (WERC) at The University of Chicago, a $215-million, 265,000-square-foot project located at the existing Research Institutes Building at 5630 – 5650 South Ellis Avenue.

Thornton Tomasetti Principal Carol Post, Project Manager Helen Torres and Project Engineer Lauren DiPalma of the Chicago office of Thornton Tomasetti, are heading up the assignment for the firm.

Key Points

• The existing Research Institutes Building, Low Temp Building and the Astronomy and Astrophysics Center will be demolished for the construction of this project.

• The project consists of five stories above grade with an enclosed mechanical space on the sixth floor, and two stories below grade. The roof over the mechanical space is approximately 120 feet above grade.

• The project is a cast-in-place concrete structure. The two-story, 45-foot deep basement will utilize slurry wall construction for the basement wall.

• Facilities will include laboratories, offices and conference rooms. The project also will house the new Institute of Molecular Engineering with a 9,200-square-foot clean room and an imaging suite below grade.

• The project extends to the face of the existing Bio-Psych Building and is approximately 18 feet from the existing Accelerator Building. A Level 2 bridge will provide a link between the new project and the Accelerator Building.

Supporting Materials

University of Chicago

About Thornton Tomasetti (www.ThorntonTomasetti.com)
Thornton Tomasetti is a leader in engineering design, investigation and analysis serving clients worldwide on projects of all sizes and complexity. With practices in building structure, building skin, building performance, construction support services and property loss consulting, Thornton Tomasetti addresses the full life cycle of a structure. We have supported clients working in more than 40 countries, with projects that include the tallest buildings and longest spans to the restoration of prized historic properties. Founded in 1956, today Thornton Tomasetti is a 550-person organization of engineers and architects collaborating from offices across the United States and in Asia-Pacific, Europe and the Middle East.

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Contact
Great Ink Communications – 212.741.2977
Eric Gerard/Lindsay Church/Mitchell Breindel

Thornton Tomasetti – 917.661.7800
James M. Kent, JKent@ThorntonTomasetti.com