Lineage of the Site

The land predating Newlab has a rich historical cultural lineage and narrative of experimental and innovative breakthroughs. That past was a major factor in the decision to develop New Lab in the Navy Yard. Before colonial settlement, the area that would become the Navy Yard served as a clamming site for the Lenape Native Americans. It was then settled by the Dutch and sold to a developer, thus beginning its employment as a center for manufacturing.^[12] Among the technological advancements that took place at the Navy Yard are: the first use of the steam-powered pile driver; construction of the first undersea telegraph cable; development of a commercialized form of anesthetic ether by E.R. Squibb;^[13] and a broadcast of the first person to sing over the radio, Eugenia Farrar performing "I Love You Truly",^[14] was heard at the Yard in 1907.^[15]

Construction of navy ships like the Fulton II, a first-of-its-kind steam-powered warship, and fabrication of the USS Arizona, state-of-the-art among its peers, induced many influential manufacturing process refinements and advancements.

In interviews, Belt and Cohen both cite this maritime and technological history as inspiration for Newlab, both in guiding the renovation of the facility and in shaping its mission.^[16]

Building 128

According to a Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corporation document, 128 was raised in 1899 as a "steel structure... used to assemble large boiler engines and fabricated sections of naval vessels." It served as the primary machine shop for every major ship launched during World Wars One and Two. Designed to accommodate the significant height of a warship, the sequence of its hulking steel girders resembles an airport hangar. 128 has been slated for, but avoided, plans for non-naval readaptation. The City of New York sought to adapt it for reuse as a "food complex at one point," but the effort was not sustained.^[17]

Renovation and Architecture

August 31, 2015 photo of Brooklyn Navy Yard Building 128 in the later stages of renovation for Newlab

Marvel Architects, Newlab's architect of record, along with DBI Projects,^[18] Belt's project management firm, worked together to craft and execute the renovation.^[19] Press regarding Newlab often states that the company occupies Building 128 of the Navy Yard, but this is slightly misleading in that 128 is a complex of warehouses and Newlab occupies the southernmost portion.

Recladding the building's armature and repurposing of the 51,000 ft² machine shop into an 84,000 ft² multidisciplinary design, prototyping, and advanced manufacturing space took approximately 5 years and continued until the company's full opening in September 2016.^[20] The undertaking utilized approximately 9,000 lbs of steel in total according to the developer.^[21]

A guiding principle of the redesign was to harmonize of the needs of the forthcoming lab environment with the original structural features. Modern workplace design elements were fused with the 19th century industrial characteristics of the building's centerline.^[22]

Floor Plan

Newlab's open floor design was intended, spatially, to reinforce its mission, the layout meant to encourage member companies to collaborate and cross-pollinate ideas. Communal meeting rooms, office pods, and interior plazas on both floors emphasize the developer's intention to create a collaborative design and fabrication center.^[22]

Upon completion, the rebuild subdivided Building 128's usable space into: Private studios = 31,664 ft²; Open private studios = 6,226 ft²; Fabrication lab = 6,834 ft²; Cafe kitchen = 600 ft²; Conference rooms = 2,014 ft²; Coworking desks = 144; Flex space = 66 desks.^[21]

There is an additional 6,174 ft² of event space which hosts talks, hackathons, and new manufacturing events such as the recent Urban Tech Hub launch.^[23]