This project is a two-story, 57,342 square foot new building for Vincennes University that provides classroom and workshop space for the Applied Technology School.  It is located in Fort Branch on a hill to the east of U.S. 41 and has an impressive entrance view.  Silver Creek Engineering designed all structural components and sealed drawings submitted to the state.  We developed loads, designed the gravity and lateral resisting system, produced drawings, reviewed shop drawings and submittals, and provided construction support and site observations.

The building structure is composed of steel beams and joists with a structural concrete slab.  The exterior facades are covered in brick masonry veneer.  The presence of several factors, including the open structural floor plan to facilitate later room layouts, masonry walls to provide durability, and the building's location, created the need for a very difficult seismic force resisting system.  A combination of intermediate steel moment frames and special concentric braced frames were used.  This system resulted in large gusset plates but fewer frames and therefore a very open floor plan.