The Textile Building recently received a new name in front of its doors—Gavin Engineering Research Laboratory—indicating its upcoming renovations.
With the help of Carol Ann and Charles E. Gavin’s $8 million gift, the College of Engineering will renovate the Textile Building into a state-of-the-art research laboratory, according to the “Because This is Auburn” quarterly campaign newsletter.
The University will supply the rest of the funds for the $15 million project, according to the newsletter.
Though the college discontinued the polymer and fiber engineering major, Austin Phillips, communication specialist with the College of Engineering, said the research facility will serve as the future of the polymer and composite industry.
“It’s going to let us build on a long tradition that we have in the textile industry that served our country and specifically the southeastern region for decades,” Phillips said. “What the Gavin’s generous gift has allowed us to do is build on this history of the program and vault into the 21st century to make it one of the premier polymer and composite programs in the nation.”
The college will transfer the equipment from the L-Building and shop buildings into the new research facility before razing them, according to Phillips. The college will then build an Engineering Student Achievement Center, which is to be completed in 2019, Phillips said.
The research center will also contain "traditional research laboratories, a paper machine used in microfibrous materials and a lab for the Nuclear Power Generations Systems Program, as well as a new wind tunnel system and a series of hands-on student project areas and collaborative meeting spaces," according to the campaign newsletter.
Displacing classes in the L-Building and shop buildings is still in the works, but faculty members have already started to transition to better serve students in different departments, Phillips said.
Martha Koontz, communications and marketing specialist with Facilities Management, said the Textile Building will be vacant when renovations begin.
“Right now it looks as though we will begin construction in the spring of 2016,” Koontz said.
The Gavin project completion date is August 2017, according to Koontz.
“We are planning on redeveloping the center of the rear side of the (Gavin) building to create a second entrance that will coordinate with the forthcoming Engineering Student Achievement Center,” Koontz said.
There is no timeframe on the demolition of the L-Building and shop buildings yet, according to Koontz, and Facilities is still early in the design phase for what the achievement center will house.
The Gavin’s gift has allowed developments like the student achievement center while allowing the College of Engineering to continue to update its facilities, according to Phillips.
“The Textile Building served our students for 80 years, and we’re hoping that this new facility is going to be able to serve our students for the next 80 years,” Phillips said.
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