University of Maryland Jeong H. Kim Engineering Building

The new Jeong H. Kim Engineering Building at the University of Maryland’s main campus in College Park houses some of the most sophisticated laboratories in the country. The 155,000 GSF building is equipped with 16 multidisciplinary research laboratories, as well as six educational laboratories. Each laboratory is built so that it can be adapted as technology advances.

The main building entry features a three-story rotunda made of an aluminum storefront system. The main lobby is composed of terrazzo flooring and base and a combination of ground-faced CMU, painted drywall, metal column covers and metal panels. In addition to the main entry rotunda, the first floor includes seminar rooms, laboratories, classrooms and faculty offices. The second floor consists of a Class 1000 cleanroom, a lecture hall, laboratory space and faculty offices. The third floor consists of primarily laboratory space and faculty offices.

Research at this facility is devoted to nanotechnology, information technology, biotechnology, microelectronics, sensors and actuators, transportation systems, and space systems. Micro-fabrication cleanrooms, populated with state-of-the-art equipment, enable the development of new miniaturization technologies that include micro- and nanoelectronics, optoelectronics, micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS), and bio/chemical sensors and systems. The facility’s 10,000-square-foot cleanroom is comparable with those of the best university and government research laboratories.

Building the cleanroom — a space that minimizes pollutants and other airborne particles to protect processes that are sensitive to environmental contamination — was among the most challenging tasks of this project. The architects and the engineers provided a specific construction protocol for the team to follow to ensure that the area was able to meet the strict air cleanliness requirements. The 10,000 SF clean room is comparable with those of the best university and government research laboratories. A microfabrication clean room, the facility has state-of-the-art equipment, which facilitates the development of new miniaturization technologies that include micro- and nanoelectronics, optoelectronics, microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), and bio/chemical sensors and systems. Despite the challenge of building such a space, the Jeong H. Kim Engineering Building was completed on schedule.