NDSU Sugihara Science Hall & Skyway

Design team
Tony Wolf; Brian Berg; Brian Lapham; Craig Peterson; Leah Fagerland; Cesar Honorio-Arroyo

Sugihara Hall has created a shared state-of-the-art home for North Dakota State University’s chemistry and geoscience departments. Sugihara is a four-story laboratory-intensive building that incorporates right-sized labs with teaching labs, graduate student workspaces, classrooms and a variety of student support and study spaces — all within an energy-efficient design. The building has more than 80 fume hoods, a chemical storage room, proper chemical storage in the labs, and a new rock sample processing and storage. A backup generator protects sensitive research.

One of the main project goals was making science and research accessible to students and visitors. The building was constructed on the corner of two main thoroughfares into campus. This makes it easy for students, visitors and anyone passing through campus to see into the lab and research spaces.

To further the visual impact of the work and learning within Sugihara’s walls, the building was designed in an L shape. This created a quad-like space in the middle of the site for students to gather, study and pass through on their way to the Memorial Union or other buildings on campus.

The courtyard serves as a new main point of entry to the Memorial Union, a main hub of student and visitor activity on campus. This proximity and high visibility show how highly the university values the presence of science and STEM classes on campus.

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