GMB Architecture + Engineering designed the Automotive Technology Training Center for Ivy Tech Community College in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Ivy Tech Community College is Indiana’s only full-fledged community college with more than 40 campus locations across the state. As the largest post-secondary public educational institution in Indiana, Ivy Tech is embracing its vision as an engine for economic transformation, preparing students for careers that will grow the future economy.

Due to an expected increase in job postings and demand for Ivy Tech Community College’s Automotive Technology program, the college aspired to build a new Automotive Technology Training Center at their Indianapolis campus. The program enrolls nearly 300 students in the program and anticipates doubling enrollment with the opening of the new center.

Situated in the city’s International Marketplace District, the facility was made possible through a variety of automotive and community partners and serves as an exciting and inspiring place where students will be certified and trained for the high-wage, in-demand jobs in the automotive industry.

The design team spent time during the extensive Design Workshop phase at the beginning of the project to understand the program needs and ultimately develop an agreed-upon concept with all stakeholders and community partners. This new, 59,000-square-foot facility reinforces the state-of-the-art instruction from masters of the industry in a safe and secure environment. The design helps to foster a collaborative environment that fuels relationships between students, faculty, and partners, balanced with places for students and staff to refresh and focus, enhancing students’ retention of applicable and working knowledge.

The program is looking to grow their partnerships with local automotive corporations who will use the space for training purposes. Classes are taught by Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) Master certified instructors using more than 100 training vehicles to help students build career advancement skills and explore manufacturer-specific diagnostic service tools and information. Boasting an already astounding 100% job placement, the program is ever-evolving with the input from industry partners who look to the program as a direct pipeline for the highly skilled employees they need. There is also a focus on creating a space that is desirable, durable, timeless, and flexible for students to engage with and where future technology is supported.

In addition to learning the technological skills needed for today’s industry in state-of-the-art classrooms and labs, including corporate labs for GM ASEP and Toyota T-TEN, students receive training in a variety of areas of expertise in facilities designed to emulate real automotive work environments. The facilities are designed to be open and flexible to the current and future learning needs of students in the program, providing space for both hands-on and cognitive skills training to prepare graduates to diagnose and service the high-tech systems found on modern vehicles.

Design: GMB Architecture + Engineering
Contractor: Pepper Construction
Photography: Studio 13