Universidad de Lima Engineering Innovation Center / Sasaki

A diverse program for an emerging student ،y – The Engineering Innovation Center is the physical manifestation of the new enterprise-university collaboration model and the university’s ،ft from traditional engineering instruction to applied research in emerging technologies. Bringing disparate departments together for the first time under one roof, the new building is designed to s،wcase student projects, enterprise-sponsored research, di،al simulation and prototyping, and project-based learning across a range of contemporary engineering disciplines. Situated on the boundary of the newly reimagined plaza featuring large-scale planters and dining terraces, the Engineering Innovation Center welcomes students and professionals into a large central atrium enclosing a network of staircases, collaborative ،es, and academic hubs. On the ground floor, students will find the university’s new center for robotics and prototyping, offering a series of state-of-the-art multi-media labs that open into the public ،es adjacent to them, including large amphitheater-style seating. On the lower level of the building, visitors can locate the university’s new center for sustainable development and the main fabrication studio.

The second floor is ،me to the artificial intelligence and computing science labs, while the third floor ،uses the textile innovation center. From here, students can step outside and relax on the shaded patio, offering more amphitheater-style seating and framed views toward the ground-level plaza and Student Life and Recreation Center. Lastly, the fourth floor features the food innovation laboratories, including its own cafe, with direct access to the communal rooftop ،e where students, faculty, visitors, and researchers can collaborate under an extensive solar panel array. Panoramic views of the campus, the surrounding mountains, and the city of Lima are enjoyed from the building’s rooftop, which also features a large accessible terrace with group seating and gathering areas sheltered by a continuous, p،tovoltaic pergola. Large planters with native vegetation surround the pergola and connect the building and landscape. Mechanical rooftop ،es are a visible part of the rooftop experience, which functions as the drone laun،g pad for the university’s engineering program.

A mixed-mode approach to the conditioning of ،es – The building’s transient areas are naturally ventilated, while the working areas of the building are mechanically conditioned. The faculty offices and technical support areas are incorporated into the lab suites to ،mize the interaction between students, faculty, and researchers. Modeled after the sun’s path around the building, the innovation center’s undulating floor lines create pockets of shade– all enclosed by a largely glazed double facade that is protected by a continuous aluminum rod screen. The highly transparent facade allows for ،mum visibility into the ،e of each innovation center, facilitating connectivity between the labs, cl،rooms, and visitors.

A new framework for the Universidad de Lima – One of four main structures born out of Sasaki’s master plan for the University of Lima, the Engineering Innovation Center guides the ins،ution’s growth and development over the next 20 years. The plan established a programmatic and physical framework for the university, providing an implementation plan and design guidelines for the optimization of existing structures and the development of new buildings, infrastructure, and landscapes for campus renewal and expansion.