Lubrication Engineers, Inc. is a Wichita based petroleum research and development corporation. For more than 30 years they have been operating their laboratory and production facilities from a single large building. In 1989, they decided a new building would be required to accommodate their expanding business.

The 2-story, 37,000-square foot Engineering Research Laboratory and Office Addition is the result of that need. The new facility has complex pure gas and water systems to meet the demands of a modern petroleum lab. In reality, there are three laboratories which form the heart of the complex: a Research and Development lab, a Used Oil lab and a Quality Control lab. Supporting the labs is a photography studio, a computer room, two technical libraries, a workroom, shower and locker facilities, and additional office space.

In building the laboratory systems, PEC engineers had to coordinate the requests of the laboratory workers, the guidelines set down by the system suppliers and their own design specifications. The pure gas systems include outlets for Oxygen, Acetylene, Hydrogen, Helium, Nitrous Oxide, Nitrogen and compressed air. D-Ionized water and reverse osmosis filtered water are also available to the laboratory workers.

One of the most important facets of laboratory design is safety. The Lubrication Engineers labs are designed with the strictest attention to safety, being equipped with an acid waste disposal system, exhaust systems, fume hoods and mist collection systems. All three lab complexes are built with halon fire protection systems.

The building is served by two roof top HVAC units and a hot water boiler heating system. The building is also protected by a sprinkled fire protection system for the office areas.

The former Lubrication Engineers building is now used fully for manufacturing,
while all research and development has been moved to the adjoining new building. Total cost of the new complex was $2,700,000.

PDF FILE OF PROJECT PAGE