The Marine Sciences Research Building contains research and teaching labs, support facilities offices, conference and seminar spaces, saltwater fluid dynamics labs, computer labs and classrooms. Carefully integrated into a diverse campus, the five-story, 140,000-gsf facility responds not only to the needs of undergraduates and graduate students but also visiting corporate researchers, necessitating a zoned building with a variety of security levels. An important addition to the campus, the building creates new circulation patterns and blends with those already established.

The research laboratory wing of the building is designed using an 11?? module. Laboratories can be readily reconfigured from a single small instrument lab to a large multi-module open laboratory. Modular labs are fully equipped with fume hoods; lab work units; handwash sinks; mechanical, electrical, plumbing; gas cylinders; seawater storage; and eyewash stations. Principal investigator offices are located outside the lab modules, which can be customized to specific needs and changing technology.

Other building highlights include environmental chambers that control temperature and light to mimic specific water conditions; teaching labs designed for chemistry, biology, and hydrodynamics instruction; and four ?gclean?h chemistry labs for precise measurement of heavy metals, organic pollutants, and other compounds.

Fourteen-foot, floor-to-floor heights provide adequate horizontal chase space for the specialized mechanical systems needed in a laboratory building. Noise and vibrations that can be generated by the building mechanical systems have been carefully controlled to avoid impacting sensitive research.

The building design creates an atmosphere conducive to interdisciplinary approaches to problem solving as well as opportunities for synergistic interaction; ease of accessibility; and flexibility to accommodate current and future needs. Collaboration among disciplines is encouraged through shared support spaces, conference rooms, teleconferencing/distance learning rooms, display/announcement boards, and lounges.

Support and preparation for offshore research activities are provided at the ground floor level. Machine and electric shops, remote operated vehicle (ROV) laboratory, and extensive storage augment state-of-the-art activities. Also at the ground floor level, provisions for research ?gvan?h construction are located directly adjacent to the pier, enabling simple transfer to seagoing research vessels.

The campus infrastructure was replaced as a component of the overall campus revitalization and a new central utilities plant provides hi-temp and chilled water for the campus. Because of its location near the water?fs edge and estuarine soil conditions, site preload was required to control settlement from damaging the new piped utilities.

Related to the facility is the new, two-story Project Oceanology, an innovative marine science and environmental education center for middle and high school students. Operated by a non-profit association of schools, colleges, and educational institutions in the tri-state area, the facility is open to the public for a sampling of true marine research life.

The Marine Sciences Research Building has become the centerpiece of the 72-acre University of Connecticut Avery Point campus, a tangible symbol of the ongoing commitment of the University and the State of Connecticut to develop this emerging specialty field at the mouth of the Thames River.

Project Information
Building Owner:		University of Connecticut
Owner Contact:		Dr. Robert Whitlach, Director of Marine Sciences
Building Location:		Groton, CT UNITED STATES
Project Type:		New Construction
Principal Building Function:		Marine science research lab and collaborative research education
Project Delivery Method:		General Contractor
Project Timeline		May 1994 Planning Start Dec 1994 Design Start Mar 1997 Construction Start Dec 2001 Completion Last known status: Completed
Project Cost:		$25,000,000
Construction Cost:		$20,000,000
Cost Per Sq. Ft:		$143
		About These Cost Figures
Building Information
Project Includes:		Aquarium Computers Conference Room Education Education: Administration Education: Classroom Education: Lecture Or Seminar Hall Laboratory: Research Laboratory: Teaching Laboratory: Wet Library Life Sciences Observatory Office: Researcher Research Vivarium
Total GSF:		140,000
Total NSF:		91,000
Efficiency:		65%
People Density:		92 gsf/person
Building Services:		DI, compressed air, vacuum, gas, sea water
Office Size:		120 NSF
Power Req:		2 watts/nsf
HVAC Req:		10 cfm/nsf
Structure/Foundation:		Braced-frame steel with concrete spread footings
Laboratory Parameters
Lab Module:		11' x 11'
Casework Mat'l:		Maple, metal, polypropylene, epoxy, and stainless steel
Fume Hoods:		30 @ 5'; 30 @ 6'
Biosafety Cabinets:		Class C, 20 each
Project Team
Architect		The S/L/A/M Collaborative
Consultant - Laboratory Design		Research Facilities Design (RFD)
Consultant - MEP Engineer		BVH Engineers, Inc.
Supplier - Biosafety Cabinets		Fisher Hamilton
Supplier - Carpet		Bentley Carpets
Supplier - Fume Hoods		Fisher Hamilton
Profile Created 02/13/2002
Last Updated 04/04/2006
About the Reported Cost Figures The cost figures reported are supplied by the firms that submitted these projects for publication, which in most cases are the designers or builders. Whereas these sources are intimately familiar with their projects, they may not be fully aware of the owners' finally-realized and recorded costs. In some cases, costs are truly and completely accounted for, and in others they represent a near approximation of the final costs. Costs have not been adjusted for year of construction, nor has any attempt been made to make regional cost adjustments. Further, costs are not comparable on any kind of detailed standard costing model. Hence, it is possible for the cost of one building to include a steam boiler, while the cost of a comparable building might not include the boiler, if steam is being supplied from an already existing campus grid. Or, in another case, a building might include excess boiler capacity to supply steam to another building. Some submittals include fees or unusual site improvements as part of the construction costs, which others do not.