The State University of New York at Buffalo hired a group of architects, including Marcel Breuer and Associates, to develop a master plan for the campus. Breuer’s firm designed a group of buildings for the Departments of Chemical, Civil, Electrical, Industrial, and Mechanical Engineering. Another building was to house the School of Library Science. Work began before Breuer retired in 1976. His partner, Robert Gatje, oversaw the completion of construction. Low rise buildings connected to a ten-storey tower by means of a second-storey bridge, allowing students to move between the buildings without having to venture outside during the harsh Buffalo winters. The buildings were characterized by a unified aesthetic; darker brick framed the pale color of the modular precast concrete window panels above gridded, glazed precast concrete screens.