S+T & Marine Science Centers
Savannah State University
Savannah, GA

Architect and Engineer of Record, Hussey Gay Bell, in collaboration with Lord Aeck Sargent, provided overall design services for this challenging project which consisted of the design and construction of approximately 47,000 SF total of research facilities that house laboratories for six existing degree programs in the College of Science and Technology including: Marine Science, Environmental Science, Chemistry, Forensic Science, Electrical Engineering Technology, Civil Engineering Technology, and Computer Science Technology.

Specifically, the project involved the design and construction of two separate facilities on separate properties. The scope of work on the main campus consisted of the design and construction of a 2-story, 29,848 SF Science and Technology building beside the existing Kennedy Fine Arts Building near North Tompkins Road which includes teaching, research and support lab spaces as well as offices, conference rooms and classrooms. The labs in the main campus building include: structures, civil materials, soil mechanics, and fluid mechanics. Lab equipment includes: tilting flume, hydraulics tank, aerobic digester, anaerobic digester, sedimentation tank, gantry crane, and MTS material testing machines.

The offsite property site scope of work included design and construction of a new, 17,738 SF Marine Sciences, Deep Water Site facility on an acquired 3.43-acre commercial waterfront property formerly known as the Italian Club at Livingston Avenue featuring an 800 ft long dock. Spaces include teaching, research and support lab spaces as well as offices, conference rooms and classrooms which are used for teaching and researching dolphins, fish ecology, environmental toxicology and coastal biophysics.

Project challenges included the design and construction of two concurrent projects in separate locations, design of a saltwater piping system, design and permitting of an 800 ft long dock to provide deep water access for the marine science program, and off-site sanitary sewer connections all of which was successfully managed, mitigated and completed on time during a construction period delayed by two named hurricanes.

Ultimately, this project resulted in the successful completion of Savannah State University’s 46th building located on its historic 200-acre campus nestled in coastal Georgia. The project was constructed via Design-Bid-Build by Savannah-based CPPI of Georgia within its Stated Cost Limitation of $15.62 million.