The “Innovation, Science and Technology Building (IST)” at Florida Polytechnic University is situated in Lakeland approximately 50 miles to the south-west of Orlando. The ovals two-storey building makes a very technical impression but harmonises with the lake surrounding it and with the attractive scenic setting.

The complex contains offices for the department, teaching rooms and the first fully digital university library with terminal access to 135,000 e-books. Building costs for the futuristic complex amounted to around 60 million US dollars.

Two walk-arounds enclose the oval shape of the building, one on the ground-floor and one on the first floor. BEGA LED floodlights blend perfectly with the filigree wall and ceiling structure enclosing the walkways. In the day time, the ceiling casts interesting shadows. At night, the rooms are bathed in a uniformly pleasant light thanks to the efficient luminous flux and the beam angle of the floodlights.

Two large stairs, one at each end of the oval, lead to the upper floor into the heart of the building: the multi-purpose library and the student learning spaces with their high ceilings and an impressive roof window structure.

The skylights have a complex sunshade system of motorised aluminium blinds that can be raised and lowered like giant wings. This protects the rooms from strong direct sunlight and overheating. The wings of the roof structure are formed by 94 individually adjustable slats. When all the blinds are closed, enough daylight still gets into the space and the floor is covered with a series of geometrical shadows.

The structure of the building consists mainly of aluminium, concrete and glass. At night, BEGA floodlights illuminate the insides of the nested aluminium ribs of the pergola.

Client 
Florida Polytechnic University

Architect 
Santiago Calatrava, FAIA

Light planning
Alfonso Architects

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