Construction of the first building in the Santa Rosa, Laguna campus, the Tony Tan Caktiong Innovation Center, has begun.
Facilities Management Office (FMO) Asst. Director Albert Surla told the Varsitarian the center was estimated to cost more than P100 million and could be operational by next year.
Scale models of the building, which was named after Jollibee Foods Corp. founder and UST Faculty of Engineering alumnus Tony Tan Caktiong, are on display at the groundbreaking ceremonies. pic.twitter.com/EqjI9E8P8n
— The Varsitarian (@varsitarianust) December 21, 2020
The three-story structure is being built by Mundo Builders Inc. Casas+ Architects designed the innovation hub.
Named after UST alumnus and Jollibee Foods Corp. founder Tony Tan Caktiong, the structure will be an annex of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST)-TomasINNO Center, a technology business incubator launched in the Sampaloc campus in 2019.
FMO Director Fr. Dexter Austria O.P. said the construction of TTCIC was expected to last 12 to 18 months, noting that the Covid-19 pandemic had slowed down work.
“[W]e tend to be slow in implementing things, pero we’re doing everything that we could to expedite everything,” Austria said.
Engr. Judex Jinang, project manager of Mundo Builders Inc., told the Varsitarian that excavation and delivery of materials was ongoing.
Works expect to lay concrete and fabricate the structural steels by mid-February.
UST administrators held groundbreaking rites for the building on Dec. 21.
Vice Rector Fr. Isaias Tiongco, O.P. said during the groundbreaking rites that the new innovation hub would be “ready to meet challenges brought about by changing tides in education.”
Prof. Maribel Nonato, vice rector for research and innovation, said the new hub aimed to “bring research back to society.”
“This is a good first step in making the UST Santa Rosa UST’s innovation-driven campus,” she said.
In a message, Tan Caktiong said that innovation plays a vital role in achieving a “smart, inclusive, and sustainable” economic growth.
Carmelo Casas, chief executive officer of the Casas+ Architects firm, said the three-storey building would use “state-of-the-art technology and materials, with the design’s philosophy paying homage to the University’s timelessness.”
UST officials buried a time capsule that contained a copy of the building’s plans, a photo of UST officials with Tan Caktiong, a photo during the kickoff meeting of the project and a UST calendar.
The innovation hub is expected to be operational by the first quarter of 2022, according to UST’s website. Jamilah B. Angco
