Plumbers Local 130 UA Training Center

Chicago, Illinois

Firm

Gensler

Client

Chicago Plumbers Union Local 130

Area

45,651 sq.ft.

Completion Date

07/2017

The Plumbers Local 130 UA Training Center unites people, place, and process to create a vocational training facility that attracts and inspires new generations of plumbers. Materials synonymous with the plumbing trade—copper pipe, galvanized steel, and black pipe—inspire the building’s palette.
Gensler’s approach to this facility was to showcase the important work plumbers perform within each aspect of the built environment. Every pipe is displayed and fully reconfigurable, and the whole building functions as a living classroom for apprentices. Unique, purpose-built educational spaces, such as “hot works” classrooms and a three-story workshop mimicking a traditional Chicago three-flat, enable apprentices to apply and test concepts in real-life scenarios. These concepts, supplemented by the building’s photovoltaic and water reclamation systems, harness plumbers’ commitment to building sustainably.
The stunning design of this state-of-the-art training facility in the heart of Chicago’s West Loop equips the future of skilled labor with the tools to learn real-world skills, and apply them to projects in Chicago and beyond.