Carnegie Mellon University desired to provide flexible, adaptable, and sustainably designed laboratory and office spaces for various organizations that are working in collaboration with the university. The steeply sloped and compact building site limited options for configuration and orientation. The resulting building configuration was greatly influenced by the University's master plan. The campus' main east/west pedestrian path, linking dormitories to student life facilities and classroom buildings, is proposed to extend directly through the site, over Junction Hollow, a deep valley with a railroad below, to the Carnegie Museum property on the other side, and on to the rest of the Oakland's business and cultural amenities. This pathway is integrated into the design of the new building via its entrance and lobby on the east and extends out to the future bridge on the west. This connection is also expressed on the west elevation that faces the Carnegie and the rest of the Oakland neighborhood.

A primary goal of the project is to design and construct a building that would achieve a Silver LEED TM rating. The need to control excessive glare from the low western sun in the afternoon poses a significant challenge, especially with tenants who may have as many as six computers at a single workstation. A key strategy to combat this problem uses glare-reducing glass in combination with an indentation of the western perimeter wall, so that the concrete columns and floor construction provide shading while also contributing to the dynamic appearance of the façade. Utilizing the building structure to perform beyond the purpose of support obtains multiple benefits from a single decision. Another resource-efficient design feature is the use of a raised floor system to allow for the easy, economical relocation of HVAC diffusers and teledata outlet boxes. These systems make it simple to respond to the typical changes in tenant spaces as they reconfigure and rearrange work areas to accommodate changing needs.