WHR Architects Celebrates Ribbon-Cutting

05/21/2015 | WHR Architects

WHR Architects Celebrates Ribbon-Cutting of Texas A&M University Rollins Urban & Structural Entomology Facility 10,000 Square Feet of World-Class Research and Educational Space

Texas A&M University hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony and luncheon for the new Rollins Urban and Structural Entomology Facility on May 4. WHR Architects designed the 10,000 square foot building, which features offices and specialized lab spaces for analyzing and maintaining colonies of ants, termites, cockroaches and other insects.

“The Rollins Urban and Structural Entomology Facility sets Texas A&M apart from every other university and system in the nation,” Texas A&M University System Chancellor John Sharp said. “It provides world-class amenities to teach, conduct Texas A&M AgriLife Research and host Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service programs for decades to come.”

In Texas, there are over 3,000 professional pest control companies that hire over 25,000 technicians and other employees. In Houston alone, there are 800 pest control companies. The specialized laboratory research and educational spaces in the new facility will support the endowed chair, principal investigators, research assistants, graduate students, correspondence course coordinator, guest researchers and the pest management industry.

“WHR and our project team collaborated with Texas A&M to develop a flexible facility that enables their program to discover and develop new entomological solutions for our world,” says Tushar Gupta, AIA, Project Designer. “We understand that providing the highest quality, most functional environment supports scientific endeavor and are committed to designing and delivering facilities like the Rollins Urban and Structural Entomology facility to our higher education clients.”

WHR’s recent and current education project experience includes work for the University of Houston, Student Center; University of Houston-Downtown, Welcome Center and Girard Street Parking Garage; University of St. Thomas, Center for Science and Health Professions; DeBakey High School for Health Professions and Lee High School all in Houston, Texas. WHR has worked on multiple projects for the Texas A&M University System, including the Texas A&M-Galveston Ocean & Coastal Studies Building; the Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies in Corpus Christi, Texas; the Office of the Texas State Chemist and General Services Complex in College Station, Texas.