By Michael White
Contributing Writer
Over the summer, work began on St. Bonaventure’s brand new business building.
The 26,000 square-foot William E. & Ann L. Swan Business Center, which will rise in front of Plassmann Hall will provide students with state of the art classrooms, financial services labs and corporate boardroom simulators.
“It will really give our students the opportunity to experience a real-world environment,”said Brenda McGee, senior vice president for finance and administration. “(Construction) has gone perfectly with no sign of slowing down or signs of difficulty to date. The features inside the building will be something unique on campus.”
The new building will produce 54percent less carbon compared to similar buildings, according to McGee.
The building’s proposed two-story glass wall will face the north to prevent heat gain inside of the building.
The choice of energy efficient, low-mercury, fluorescent light bulbs will help keep costs running low. A networked lighting system will turn on or off depending on the available daylight. The override control system around the perimeter, main lobby and adjacent corridor of the building will turn the lights off when daylight can illuminate the areas naturally, according to McGee.
To encourage students to practice a greener conscious lifestyle, there will be recycling bins located in the corridor and atrium for students along with a bottle-filling station to wane the dependency of plastic bottles on campus, according to McGee.
These added features will help to reduce the amount of energy used inside. The building’s materials are also long-lasting and durable to minimize the need for replacements in the future, said McGee.
