College of Engineering

Watch Us Grow

Engineering expansion includes two buildings featuring interdisciplinary learning and manufacturing and construction labs

As construction progresses for the 100,000-square-foot Ashraf Islam Engineering Building, Tennessee Tech’s engineering corridor continues to leap forward with a second, companion building approved for funding by the state. The college's new Advanced Construction and Manufacturing Engineering (ACME) building received capital funding of $57.4 million in Tennessee’s fiscal year 2022-2023 state budget, with total project costs estimated at $64.4 million.

The two buildings serve as companion buildings to provide interdisciplinary learning spaces and industry-grade advanced manufacturing and construction labs to equip the engineering workforce of tomorrow.

“Hand-in-hand these two new buildings show prospective students the entire path from concept to analysis, collaborative design, further analysis, and testing of ideas in the lab,” said Joseph C. Slater, dean of the College of Engineering. “Students who experience both buildings will be able to see and understand the entire process of creation that engineering represents.”

With more than 2,600 students, the College of Engineering is Tech’s largest college, with nearly 27 percent of Tech’s total student body.

Construction on the Ashraf Islam Engineering Building, funded by the state in last year’s budget along with donations including a major gift from Tech alumnus Ashraf Islam, began in Fall 2021.

“This tremendous support from the state is an incredible endorsement of who we are and what we do in the college. This is an unprecedented opportunity to meet the needs of industry with innovation and a career-ready workforce. We are grateful to the state, and to our generous donors and industry partners who continue to believe in our ability to build the engineering workforce of tomorrow,” Slater said.

Advanced Construction and Manufacturing (ACME) Building

"Making" on a Grand Scale
The Advanced Construction and Manufacturing (ACME) building is envisioned as a laboratory space featuring industry-grade manufacturing and testing equipment and spaces to enrich student learning and expand innovation in industry partnerships.

By paralleling the equipment requirements of industry in learning laboratories, Tech can create opportunities for industry-sponsored student and faculty projects by exceeding the capabilities typical in an academic setting. Consolidating machine shops into a single space will enable students to collaborate across disciplines and learn the most current skills needed in the workplace. Students will experience real-world practices in advanced manufacturing and construction, fabrication, machine learning and cyber-physical systems, industrial robotics, mechatronics, and concrete and steel manufacturing and testing.

"To be the best we can be, our students need to make large items with concrete, steel, and other materials. We need a maker space, Tech-style, where our students can create and build on a grand scale," said Joseph C. Slater, dean of the College of Engineering.

Labs and equipment currently planned for the building include:
- A new, separately housed, 6,000-square-foot foundry for state-of-the-art metal casting and materials research, nearly doubling the size of the current foundry.
- An Advanced Manufacturing Lab for instruction and research in advanced manufacturing processes and techniques.
- A Materials Characterization Lab and Material Formulation Lab for students and faculty to learn and research the newest construction and concrete materials available.
- A Load Frame (testing) Lab
- A state-of-the-art PLC Lab and Robotics Lab for learning to automate and protect cyber-physical systems.
- A 13,000-square-foot Machine Shop will consolidate Tech's current shops into one, open space and a new, 8,000-sq. ft. Fabrication Lab. Together the spaces will feature welders, CNC mills, lathes, metal presses, metal tube benders, band saws, drill presses, 3D printers, water jets, laser engravers, and injection molding.
- A Computer Lab to support CAD/CAM 3D modeling work for manufacturing.
For information about the college's programs involved in the ACME Building, Manufacturing and Engineering Technology and Civil and Environmental Engineering, contact us at engineering@tntech.edu.

Ashraf Islam Engineering Building

Breaking New Ground in Engineering Innovation

Tennessee Tech University broke ground on its first new engineering facility in 50 years in September 2021. The 100,000-square-foot, $62 million Ashraf Islam Engineering Building will anchor Tennessee Tech’s engineering corridor and fuse innovation, smart building technology and a living water laboratory to foster interdisciplinary and collaborative learning while inspiring new generations of engineers.

Designed to reflect the cross-disciplinary nature of the modern engineering workplace, the building will bridge artificial boundaries between disciplines to offer students the opportunity to apply their skills outside of the classroom to solve complex engineering problems.

The Tech community kicked off construction with a groundbreaking ceremony to celebrate the history, legacy and future of the university’s flagship engineering programs and showing appreciation for donors and state support.

Read details about the building and its groundbreaking in our newsroom: COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING BREAKS GROUND ON NEW $62M ENGINEERING BUILDING

VIEW LIVE CONSTRUCTION WEBCAM