A big congratulations goes out to the University of Dayton for receiving their first LEED certified project through the U.S. Green Building Council.  The University of Dayton and GE Aviation teamed together to build the GE Aviation Electrical Power Integrated Systems Center also known as EPISCenter.  The project received LEED gold certification from the Council.  The $53 million EPISCenter Project provides high tech facilities to allow commercial and government researchers to test electrical power systems in airplanes. The 138,000-square-foot facility employs 70 research personnel.  That employment figure could grow to 200 research employees within five years.

The Kleingers Group provided civil engineering, surveying, landscape architecture and zoning entitlement services on the project.  Our contribution to the LEED design included high efficiency parking stall layouts and the design of sustainable rain garden infrastructure throughout the site.  We would like to thank our fellow team members on a successful project:  Hastings & Chivetta Architects, the University of Dayton, Heapy Engineering, Shell & Meyer, and CityWide Development.

Photo Credit: GE Aviation

After a decade of planning, the new $46 million, 203,000 sq. ft. Armstrong Student Center  facility opened it’s doors for the first time last week on the Oxford campus of Miami University. Many events were scheduled to celebrate this wonderful space, including building tours and a well attended building dedication ceremony.  The new student center is a combination of new construction and retrofitting existing structures.  The new student center is three floors and will be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.  The center includes a theater, offices for student organizations, meeting rooms, and several dining facilities.

A second phase of the project will create additional meeting rooms and a new dining facility. The second phase is expected to be complete by 2017.  The Kleingers Group is proud to have been part of this great achievement for Miami’s Students and Alumni alike.

One of the cornerstones of The Kleingers Group culture is the importance of giving back to our community. Many of us serve on a variety of boards and committees serving the A/E/C industry as well as community-based organizations. We would like to make note of some recent appointments:

Dave Cox, PS was appointed by Ohio Gov. John Kasich to serve on the State Board of Registration for Professional Engineers and Surveyors for a term beginning January 29, 2014, and ending September 28, 2018.

Lynne Nischwitz, RLA was appointed to the position of VP of Legislative Affairs for the Ohio Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architecture.

Tim Casto, PE was selected to serve on the statewide American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) Ohio Transportation Committee.

Jay Stewart, AICP, Esq. was re-elected to serve as President of the Deer Park Community Improvement Corporation.

The Kleingers Group recently participated in a special program coordinated by the Dayton Chamber of Commerce Minority Business Partnership intended to introduce high school students to careers in engineering, architecture, design and construction. A number of Dayton-area design and construction professionals developed an after-school program with topics related to design and construction. Seventeen students at Thurgood Marshall High School met once a week for 10 weeks this fall to learn about site planning, building and interior design, scheduling, cost estimating, financing, construction methods and other topics taught by local design and construction professionals. Ameen Bakare from The Kleingers Group taught the first session on site design back in September.

Recently, the students completed the course with a field trip to Miami University. The students toured the Western Residence Hall projects that are currently under construction. They also visited the Schools of Engineering and Architecture. Jim Kleingers accompanied the students on the trip.