Dedication Ceremony Held for Robins & Morton Construction Field Laboratory

Auburn University’s College of Architecture, Design and Construction and Robins & Morton recently celebrated the dedication of the Robins & Morton Construction Field Laboratory, located in Auburn, Alabama.

A facility of the CADC’s McWhorter School of Building Science, the first-of-its-kind lab will advance hands-on education and research. It was made possible with support from its namesake construction firm -valued at more than $1.3 million.

The Robins & Morton Construction Field Laboratory, located on the university’s campus, recreates an active construction site, complete with a classroom that resembles a project office and indoor and outdoor spaces to demonstrate building processes.

The field lab will provide opportunities for visiting tradespeople to demonstrate their crafts to students and for other construction professionals to work with students outside the classroom.

“One of the biggest challenges we see recent graduates face when they begin their careers is adapting to the pace and complexity of a construction project and understanding how to collaborate with project team members and trade contractors,” said Aimee Comer, Robins & Morton’s vice president of people & development.

The McWhorter School of Building Science will use the field lab for faculty research and to support community services projects, such as builds for Habitat for Humanity. In addition to the classroom building, the field lab includes:

• A steel building with four 30-foot-high bays, two of which are fully enclosed
• Multiple conex units that can serve as demonstration stations, project stations or for tool and equipment storage
• Outdoor spaces for large equipment demonstrations

The school will also use the lab to host outreach events, including the Construction Management Summer Academy for Young Women and the Building Construction Summer Camp for rising high school juniors and seniors, already scheduled for June.