The Robert Day Sciences Center (RDSC) has opened at Claremont McKenna College. Commissioned in 2020 and completed in 2025, the new pedagogical complex marks BIG’s first built project in LA and the first completed building in Danish firm’s masterplan for CMC’s Roberts Campus. Designed to achieve LEED Gold, the solar powered building is composed of a series of rectangular prisms punctuated by triangular glazing and capped with a dramatic canopy. Located on the eastern edge of the campus, the center houses a range of laboratories, classrooms, offices and mixed-use spaces that will service gene, brain and climate research.
“Bjarke’s rotating stacks create opportunities to learn at the intersections. The wood fuels our social warmth. The glass cuts through the barriers. The beautiful finishes and spectacular public art inspire our humanism. This is a carved jewel for Claremont McKenna College. A gem for the ages.”
— Hiram Chodosh, President of Claremont McKenna College
Spatial arrangement
The 12,500-square-meter center is organised into two parallel wings supported by wooden trusses, with a series of stacked volumes rising above the ground floor. Each pair of rectangular prisms is rotated 45 degrees from the level below, creating a central void that forms a vast atrium. This deliberate spatial arrangement serves as a vertical commons, visually connecting all floors and encouraging interaction among students and faculties that might otherwise be siloed.
“We envisioned the Sciences Center as a series of parallel volumes placed side by side, with a central public space that mirrors the orientation of the campus mall. The atrium becomes a lively arena where academic and social interactions flourish. Even though each of the individual building volumes are rational, flexible and capable of being computer labs or wet labs, the open atrium in between becomes a Piranesian social space where you can see fellow students, faculty, colleagues, and professors from every level.”
— Bjarke Ingels, Founder of BIG
Structure and materials
The facade is made from board-formed panels of glass fibre-reinforced concrete. The wood-like texture of this material contrasts pleasantly with the gloss of expansive glazing, but its benefits lie in its durability and fire resistance—both necessary for life in modern laboratories. The project uses high-performance glazing and entrance systems that were chosen for their thermal efficiency and weather resistance. Triangular steel trusses clad in Douglas fir support bridges and floor slabs between the rotated volumes; deliberately left exposed, the trusses make the structure part of the center’s unique architectural language.
Interior design
Throughout the building, warm wood cladding and concrete floors are accented with the school's signature colours of red and gold. At the heart of the building, a sculptural work—Magnetic Field by Damián Ortega—that represents the Earth’s magnetosphere appears to float in orbit above cafe goers, students and teachers. The BIG-designed interiors are designed to accommodate future scientific innovation, incorporating elements such as reconfigurable classrooms and modular seating.
Renewables and rewilding
The roof of the building is completed with 11,000 square feet of photovoltaic panels that the architects write will generate around 341 megawatt hours of electricity annually—heavily reducing reliance on the grid. This solar array is complemented by a range of rooftop terraces located on the corner perimeters of each of the rectangular volumes. Landscaped with native flora, these multifunctional spaces provide panoramic views of the mountains to the north, the campus to the west and the sports bowl to the east.
Sustainability
Targeting LEED Gold, the center integrates sustainability across energy, materials, water and indoor environmental quality. Its solar panels, daylight-filled atrium and efficient HVAC systems reduce operational energy and carbon emissions, while durable materials help extend the building’s lifespan. Rooftop gardens help support biodiversity while reducing the heat load of the building, and flexible labs and classrooms allow the space to adapt over time, reducing future renovation needs. Together, these measures demonstrate a layered and resilient approach to sustainability.
“This gorgeous architecture amplifies and elevates a revolutionary vision for higher learning at a critical moment in the well-being of our species, our brains, our planet. We can no longer rely on siloed disciplines within the sciences or between the sciences, social sciences, and the humanities to meet the challenges and opportunities of our time.”
— Hiram Chodosh, President of Claremont McKenna College
