Plan A has completed the design for the Plaksha University master plan, a new engineering and technology university in Mohali, India, a part of the Chandigarh Tricity. The master plan was focused on designing a campus that serves the university's goal of creating forward-thinking engineering education in India. To do so, we focused on non-siloed academic space, locally-conscious design, and designing from the beginning for net zero standards. When complete, the campus will serve 8,000 students, 6,000 of whom will live on campus, as well as several hundred faculty.

Plan A's design both embraces and subtly restructures the city's Corbusian grid, aligning the campus internally with a self-defined central axis. This approach both creates a sense of community within the campus and optimizes buildings for passive cooling. To achieve net zero standards, the campus was designed in conjunction with India-based architects and engineers who provided valuable insights into traditional methods of natural ventilation and shading. This resulted in the inclusion of large atria in student housing that increase air flow and strategically placed bioswales that cool air as it passes through the campus.

Plan A’s ground-up design for the university envisions a campus where cutting-edge educational practices combine with a healthy social environment. At the heart of the campus is the dual-level Forum, the academic and social heart of the campus. Envisioning a year-round campus, the bottom level is designed to provide shade in the warmer months and social spaces for students and faculty to interact. On the top level, a series of bridges and crossings intersect each other, connecting Plaksha’s academic buildings. The academic buildings are non-siloed, combining multiple disciplines within the same spaces and encouraging students to broaden their interests. Our design breaks down traditional hierarchies that define interactions between faculty and students by combining classroom, office, and lab spaces within the same buildings, which encourages mentorship.