Press Clippings
FM Data Monthly
July 2001

Facility Profile: Sonoma State University
Jean and Charles Schulz Information Center By: FM Datacom

The 215,000-sf Jean and Charles Schulz Information Center at Sonoma State University (SSU) has already changed student traffic patterns. Situated on the west side of the campus, it serves to connect and transition the residential community and the academic community, and is quickly becoming the new center of the campus. The three-story, steel-frame structure with its 53'-high clock tower is the largest addition in the University's 40-year history and was awarded the 2000 Distinctive Project Award from the Western Council of Construction Consumers.

The $43.5-million Information Center is a high-tech facility containing a 140,000-sf library and a 2,500-sf Information Technology Center. The Technology Center brings together campus computing, media, and telecommunication services that were previously spread among several buildings. Self-instructional computer labs provide access to networks, distributed databases, computer graphics, spreadsheets, and other general purpose computing functions for students and faculty.

The building houses a 950,000-volume collection with half the volumes shelved in open stacks. Unique to Sonoma State University is the Automated Retrieval System (ARS), a computer-operated storage and retrieval system for the remaining 450,000 volumes, stored in more than 6,000 bins, with each bin holding up to 750 pounds. The ARS can store up to seven times the amount of traditional open shelving. Only three other universities in the country use the ARS: California State University, Northridge; the University of Eastern Michigan; and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Requests for a book in the ARS system can be made from any computer terminal. A robotic arm within the ARS retrieves the storage bin containing the requested, bar-coded book and delivers it to a pick-up station. Library personnel then send the book to either the first or second floor circulation desk via an automated electric track vehicle system that travels throughout the building. In as little as 10 minutes, a student can pick up the requested book from the circulation desk. The ARS increases storage capacity and prolongs the life of the books.

A new, user-friendly integrated library catalog system is named “Snoopy” in honor of Jean and Charles Schulz, who donated $3 million to the operation of the building. Snoopy's multi-tiered client/server architecture offers a Web-based approach to system design—enabling the library to provide powerful connections, extensive search capabilities, and ease of use. Users can perform online searches from anywhere on or off campus.

There are approximately 4,000 jacks throughout the building that can be configured for voice, data, or video. The building is also set up for wireless Internet use. Accessible raceways embedded within the floor slabs, know as an “electrified floor system,” provide for future connections and power.

The building also symbolizes a unique partnership between SSU and the Cotati-Rohnert Park Unified School District. In exchange for the district's $5-million contribution to construction costs, the Information Center is electronically linked to Cotati-Rohnert Park schools, operating as a telecommunications hub for both the campus and the school district. Other partnerships include supporting K-12 school librarians through the North Bay Cooperative Library System, delivering books and other materials to the libraries that belong to the system in the six-county region. Through the Sonoma County Office of Education, SSU will instruct teachers on using the Internet as a teaching resource.

The Information Center includes an art gallery and the Charlie Brown Café, more than 1,000 reader seats, automatic sliding glass entry doors, automated security systems, moveable walls for added flexibility, an interactive video conference room, extensive 24-hour computer labs for students, and meets Seismic Zone 4 requirements.

The Schulz Information Center is one of several projects SSU has undertaken as part of its seven-year building plan. Already completed are Sauvignon Village, a $21-million apartment complex housing 900 students, a $650,000 Environmental Technology Center, and a $15-million renovation to the Salazar Building, which previously housed the campus library and is now being converted to classrooms and offices. Future projects include a world-class music center with a 1,400-seat concert hall and a $40-million University Center. SSU currently has an enrollment of 7,400 students and anticipates that number to grow to 8,000 in the next 10 years.

Project Information

Building Owner: Sonoma State University
Owner Contact: Bruce Walker, Facilities Architect
Building Location: Rohnert Park, Calif.
Project Type: New construction
Principal Building Function: Library and Technology Center
Architect: ED2 International, San Francisco

Consultants

Construction Manager: O'Connor Construction Management, Pleasanton, Calif.
Landscape Architect: MPA Design, San Francisco
Structural/Civil Engineer: Rutherford and Chekene, Oakland, Calif.
MEP Engineer: Flack + Kurtz, San Francisco
Cost Estimator: Davis Langdon Adamson, San Francisco
Builder: McCarthy Building Companies, Roseville, Calif.
Project Delivery Method: General Contractor

Project Start Dates

Planning/Programming: August 1992
Design: October 1992
Construction: May 1998
Project Completion Date: August 2000
Total Design Time: 36 months
Total Construction Time: 24 months
Construction Cost: $35.4 million
Total Project Cost: $43.5 million
Occupancy Cost: $13,467
Cost per SF: $162.79

Building Information

Total NSF: 157,893
Library: 140,084
Information Technology: 15,309
Computer Laboratory: 2,500
Total GSF: 215,000
Building Efficiency: 73%
Building Population: 2,599
People Density: 83 gsf/person

Approximate Allocation of Occupied Space

Administrative Offices: 9%
Classrooms: 6%
Labs and/or Technical Space: 2%
Library: 60%
Public Use: 3%
Support Space: 20%
Office/Workstation Size: Varies from 110 sf to 200 sf
Special Equipment: Automatic Retrieval System and Electric Track Vehicle System
Overall HVAC Requirements: 1 cfm/nsf
Overall Power Requirements: 10 watts/nsf
Structure Foundation Type: Moment resisting steel frame with concrete on metal decks and concrete slab on grade. At the Automatic Retrieval System area, a concrete mat foundation over concrete driven piles was utilized.
Casework: Modular plastic laminated casework and custom wood casework with agglomerated marble tops

Equipment & System Suppliers

Air Handlers: McQuay International, Staunton, Va.
Aluminum Storefronts and Windows: Arcadia, Stamford, Conn.
ARS Manufacturer: HK Systems, Salt Lake City
Built-up Roofing: Johns-Manville, Denver
Carpeting: Interface, Atlanta
Custom Casework: Burnett & Sons and Mill & Lumber, Sacramento, Calif.
Electrified Metal Decking: Robertson, Pittsburgh
ETV Manufacturer: Translogic Corporation, Denver
Hydraulic Elevators: Thyssen, San Leandro, Calif.
Metal Decking: Verco Manufacturing Co., Phoenix
Modular Casework: Dow Diversified, Costa Mesa, Calif.
Preformed Metal Roofing: BHP, Sacramento, Calif.
Signage: Vomar, Van Nuys, Calif.

Reprinted with Permission © July 2001 from FM DATACOM, a registered product of Tradeline Inc., a provider of leading-edge resources to facilities planning and management through conferences, publications, and the Internet community. Visit www.TradelineInc.com or www.FMDATA.COM for more information.

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