Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/175815
PHOTOS: CHRIS BOLIN Trades and Technology Complex – SAIT by Godfrey Budd he three-building Trades and Technology Complex at SAIT Polytechnic has been designed and built to mesh nicely with some of the anticipated human resource requirements in Alberta. The new 740,000-square-foot complex will focus on education and the training of tradespeople and technologists for three main sectors – energy, construction and manufacturing. Plumbers, electricians, welders, carpenters, sheet metal workers, refrigeration mechanics, steam itters and millwrights as well as various kinds of engineering technologists – civil, electrical and petroleum, among them – will be trained at the new complex. Additionally, the new complex has the potential capacity for an additional 8,100 full- and part-time students in skill-based training each year. The buildings are designed to provide students with simulations of real-world conditions, systems and challenges. "We're using the buildings as teaching tools. Many of the complex's building systems are visible and accessible, so students are exposed to the systems. Students will be asked to investigate speci ic systems and components. The training will simulate real-world conditions. For example, plumbers might be working beside electricians, so lab and practice spaces, with different dedications, would be near each other," says Boris Dragicevic, associate vice president of facilities management and campus expansion. The biggest of the Trades and Technology Complex's three buildings is 440,000 square feet. The other two buildings are 260,000 and 40,000 square feet, respectively. "The building size, scope and location were based in part on what other buildings students were using. The building where power engineers are trained is next door to the power plant, for example. The design and layout are also to help students navigate the campus easily. Many apprentices are here for only eight weeks at a time before returning to work," says Dragicevic. T Trades and Technology Complex – SAIT p.54-59SAIT.indd 55 OCTOBER 2012 /55 9/11/12 11:53 AM