Adam RollinsThis story was originally published in the Government Contracting Pipeline newsletter from Strategic Partnerships, Inc. To have the latest government contracting news stories from across the country delivered straight to your inbox, click here to subscribe.
The University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee (UW-Milwaukee) will spend $369.5 million to build a replacement academic and research STEM facility and complete renovations in the Engineering Mathematics & Science (EMS) building. The project will involve the demolition and redevelopment of the Physics Building to create space for the new structure. Bidding on the project will open in January 2028, with construction anticipated for May 2028.
As part of the university’s plans to demolish the Physics Building, the remaining physics instructional laboratories will be relocated to shell space in a separate building. The facility’s planetarium and observation deck will also be relocated to the Engelmann Hall auditorium. The new Engineering and Neuroscience Building will then be built on the site of the former Physics Building.
The Engineering and Neuroscience Building will feature expanded engineering laboratories and increased capacity for STEM programs. The facility will contain several dedicated spaces for instructional and collaborative learning, including:
- Computing, instructional and research laboratories.
- Active learning classrooms.
- Collaboration and informal learning space.
- Interdisciplinary learning environments.
The project calls for constructing both elevated and underground pedestrian walkways connecting the facility to the renovated EMS building. Additional educational space will be dedicated to the Department of Psychology, including spaces for instruction and research. UW-Milwaukee will comply with the state’s efforts to implement energy efficiency, renewable energy, building resilience and emission reduction throughout construction.
In a related project, the university will fully renovate the EMS building. The extensive renovation work will cover the first through fifth, eleventh and twelfth floors. As part of the renovation work, UW-Milwaukee will build a replacement machine shop on the building’s lower floor. The existing machine shop will be converted into an Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering laboratory suite.
The university will renovate the first three floors of the building into student centered spaces. These areas will feature:
- Makerspace.
- A student success center.
- Instructional laboratories.
- General access classrooms.
- Informal learning areas.
- A re-envisioned entrance and welcome experience.
The building’s systems will also be fully renovated, starting with all restrooms to improve accessibility. Additional work will replace outdated infrastructure systems, fixtures and finishes and ensure the building is up to code with current standards. The project will also replace, renovate or repair the mechanical, electrical, telecommunications and plumbing systems to fix safety issues and eliminate the maintenance backlog.
UW-Milwaukee plans to conduct extensive infrastructure work on the EMS building, notably on the distribution systems for the HVAC, electrical and telecommunication equipment. The project will pressurize the elevator shafts and stairwells, ensuring they are compliant for controlling smoke and exhaust. Finally, the university will complete renovation work on the fire suppression system, fire alarm and smoke detection system and fire pump.
Photo courtesy Michael Barera, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
