The side of the Biomedical and Materials Engineering Complex that is not under construction. Credit: Daniel Bush | Campus Photo Editor
For Buckeye faculty and students, the school year is well underway, but so is on-campus construction.
A new complex is soon to be established on Ohio State’s Columbus campus, with updated facilities and laboratories that involve student involvement, hands-on learning and better student-to-teacher interaction. The new Biomedical and Materials Engineering Complex is expected to be completed and opened by May 2026.
After the demolition of Watts Hall and the renovation of MacQuigg Hall, Brooke Bartholomew, spokesperson in administration and planning, said that the “construction is at 75% completion.” They are currently progressing towards the construction of the interior design of this $94.3 million project.
The planned complex will be located near High Street and Curl Hall, making it an attraction aimed to contribute to student involvement and collaboration with its new facilities, said Michael Hagenberger, the associate dean for facilities and capital planning.
With biomedical engineering majors specializing in making technologies that create solutions to health and healthcare challenges, first-year students will have facilities like the “Makerspace” for hands-on learning, Hagenberger said.
“The students will have access to the new College of Engineering Makerspace where they can ideate, create, and prototype academic and personal concepts,” Hagenberger said in an email.
With his role in the current project, Hagenberger said he finds it crucial to give students the space they need to apply their learning.
In addition to this Makerspace, the complex will also include an Impact Lab in the building, giving students the opportunity to explore topics in both an international and local context.
The Impact Lab will also support students minoring in humanitarian engineering along with many other interdisciplinary student groups, Hagenberger said.
“Co-locating the Makerspace and Impact Lab with the new first-year engineering labs will make the building a hub for student collaboration starting in their first semester on campus.”
First-year students will have more classroom space for better faculty-to-student interaction, and reduced classroom sizes from 72 students to 36, Adam Carberry, chair of the Department of Engineering Education, said in an email.
“The combination of reduced class sizes and updated, flexible classroom spaces will undoubtedly enhance the teaching and learning experience for all stakeholders,” Carberry said
