School of Construction

The Trades and Technology Complex is the largest campus expansion in the nearly-100-year history of SAIT. It allows more students every year to further their passions for skill-based training, primarily in the areas of energy, construction, and manufacturing.

• Size: 740,000 square feet. To put that into perspective, Market Mall is a bit bigger at just over 900,000 square feet, Chinook Centre is double the size of the complex, and the new Telus Spark building could fit into the Trades and Technology Complex five times.
• The project was on time and within budget — with a price tag of $400 million.
• Donors have helped make the complex a reality. 
• More than two million labour hours went into the construction of the Complex. Of all that work undertaken, 60-70% has been thanks to SAIT alumni working on the complex.

The School of Construction primarily resides in the Aldred Centre, the largest of the three buildings that make up the complex. The building is named for John and Cheryl Aldred, donors of $15 million toward the complex. It is more than 440,000 square feet and also houses students in the School of Manufacturing and Automation as well as SAIT's Applied Research and Innovation Services. 

The building features soaring ceilings, multi-purpose rooms that can expand and contract as needed, and workspace supported by a crane, all elements that tell the story of a hard-working building designed for action.

Reinvigorated by a $60-million renovation, the Thomas Riley Building is home to six of the School of Construction's building trades and the Founding Builders Home Lab. 

New training facilities for the Bricklayer, Cabinetmaker, Carpenter, Concrete Finisher, Painter and Decorator, and Tilesetter programs were created as part of the year-long construction effort, completed in August 2013, which also added a new student atrium and infrastructure upgrades. Developed in consultation with instructors, the new shops and labs are purpose-built and include robust health and safety systems.

 The Founding Builders Home Lab, located at the west end of the U wing, provides students in Civil Engineering Technology and Architectural Technologies the opportunity to put theory into practice through the construction of a residential home. Double the capacity of the previous lab, the facility has room for the simultaneous construction of two homes.