WMU Richmond Institute for Design and Innovation
Project Details
Client
Western Michigan UniversityLocation
Kalamazoo, MIScale
29,140 square feetCost
$3,800,000Completion
2018In collaboration with local businesses, Western Michigan University has created an industrial design program at their Kalamazoo campus. WMU brought in Progressive AE to transform the first and third floors of Central Kohrman Hall into the Richmond Institute for Design and Innovation.
Central Kohrman Hall was originally built in 1966 with traditional classrooms and engineering labs. The new program required a complete gut of the first and third floors to create new, state-of-the-art spaces. The first floor includes administrative offices, exhibit space and presentation classroom. Two fully working shops also comprise the first floor – a more traditional style shop with large machines, and one to support the more sophisticated needs of innovative technology.
The third floor will be redefined into three high-tech studio spaces to support students and staff. Each studio is broken up between individual work stations and group collaboration space. A classroom fills the center of the floor with floor-to-ceiling marker board walls on either side. Faculty offices are also located on the third floor to facilitate interaction between staff and students.
Photo Credit: Western Michigan University’s Office of Marketing and Strategic Communications
