One of several redesigned research laboratories	Modernized organic chemistry laboratory
A common room	A chemistry classroom

Faculty and staff members began moving back into the Seaver Laboratory for Chemistry, better known as Seaver North, this summer after a yearlong renovation that cost about $14 million.

"This is very nice," said Wayne E. Steinmetz, Carnegie Professor of Chemistry, as he surveyed his new surroundings, with brimming boxes piling up outside his office door. "My new office is a little smaller than my old one, so I've had to do some serious culling."

But Steinmetz said he doesn't mind trading storage space for the advantages resulting from the renovation, which began in May 2000. Following a redesign by RBB Architects of Los Angeles, Seaver North was hollowed to its shell and rebuilt to better reflect the way chemistry is taught today. Laboratories are spacious and have been laid out with efficiency, convenience and safety in mind. Spaces have been reconfigured for modern uses, including a lab for molecular biology, a computer lab, and an instrument suite housing a powerful nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometer and other high-tech devices for complex chemical analyses.

Adaptability has been designed into the structure, which also underwent seismic refitting beyond that required by building codes. In some labs, wiring and plumbing have been moved overhead so that tables underneath can be rearranged as needed. A blocky "chiller room" on the building's south side contains ventilation equipment not just for Seaver North, but also for Seaver South, which is scheduled for future renovation, and for a planned new life sciences building.

When Seaver North was built nearly four decades ago, it was considered an exceptional science facility for a small liberal arts college. That sense of quality has been renewed with the renovation, said Steinmetz, who has taught at Pomona since 1973. "This brings us back to the front of the pack," he said. "We have flexibility and versatility for the next 40 or 50 years."

Related Links

Pomona College Chemistry Department
http://www.chemistry.pomona.edu/