CRST International recently announced that it is building a $2.5 million training and lodging center on its corporate complex. The three-level facility will encompass 36,000 square feet, large enough to accommodate more than 110 people. Construction is scheduled to begin in June and last five to six months.
CRST, based in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, hosts up to 75 potential drivers every week for orientation and driver training. The majority of drivers who will utilize the facility are participants in a training program through Kirkwood Community College that enables new drivers to earn their commercial driver’s license. The program lasts two to three weeks, and students are lodged at the CRST facility during this period. Lodging and training space also will be used by drivers from other parts of the country who visit Cedar Rapids to attend safety and other company seminars.
The center will feature state-of-the-art video and electronic equipment, as well as a driver simulator, which will enable new drivers to experience over-the-road, behind-the-wheel driving conditions, the company says. The facility also will offer a recreation room, including pool tables, a theater room and an outdoor patio.
The new facility will replace a company-owned motel and a set of buildings that have been used for lodging and training purposes for the past 45 years. Once construction on the new facility is complete, the older buildings will be razed and developed into a greens area that potentially can be used for future corporate expansion, according to CRST.
