Chemistry Research Tower | Tradeline, Inc.

WISTAR is a state-sponsored program designed to help the University of Wisconsin System respond to the challenge of numerous aging and deteriorating research buildings. In the past decade, with a public-private fundraising partnership, the program has helped to raise more than $200 million. This funding enables the state to use its bonding authority, coupled with private gift and non-state funds, to pay for badly needed repairs, renovations, and construction projects of research facilities.

The Mathews Chemistry Laboratories and the Daniels Chemistry Building, built for the Department of Chemistry in 1963 and 1967 respectively, originally provided the required research space for the Department. However, the aging buildings fell behind current standards for safe and productive laboratories. The large, adjoining buildings were originally designed with 12' floor-to-floor heights. This prevented the addition of new technology in MEP systems because of inadequate ceiling space to house them. Painted masonry walls offered limited flexibility in changing the lab configurations over time to reflect new science. The buildings offered little to inspire prospective chemistry students.

Renovations to the Mathews and Daniels buildings are currently under way. The work will be done in phases to minimize research disruption with the final areas planned for completion in November of 2002. Improving safety in the research laboratories is a top priority, which includes increased fume hood access for researchers as well as installation of localized benchtop exhaust systems. Other safety concerns addressed by the renovation include improving exit pathways and providing eyewash stations within the lab proper.

A new 91,000-gsf expansion provides laboratories for the synthetic chemistry program that allow for more hazardous research activities while enhancing health and safety. The new labs benefit from a modern ventilation strategy, whereby each student has his or her own chemical fume hood, which ensures that the air is well ventilated and safe. The 16' floor-to-floor height easily accommodates the mechanical systems.

Separate student offices are not only incorporated into the new Research Tower, but are also being added to the existing buildings during the renovation. Although separate, the offices provide good visibility into the laboratories by using doors with half-height glass and borrowed lights. In the existing laboratories, student desks were located directly inside the laboratory environment, which is no longer an acceptable standard for the study of chemistry.

A separate expansion, completed in August 2001, provides a 127-seat seminar hall. Located at the knuckle between the Mathews and Daniels buildings, the Seminar Hall creates a unified Chemistry complex. Each seat in the Hall is equipped with a data jack, power outlet, and task light facilitating the use of laptop computers. The Seminar Hall has been outfitted with the latest audio/visual equipment.

Even before the new Chemistry Tower opened, it had already fulfilled one of its goals: to recruit and retain top faculty. The promise of new facilities help to retain top faculty members, who otherwise might have gone to other universities, and helped to recruit new faculty members.

Occupying most of a city block, the three Chemistry buildings house undergraduate and graduate organic and inorganic synthetic, analytical, basic research, and physical chemistry labs. The new tower provides graduate research labs and support space, an instrument center, and imaging facilities. Flexibility is established via the buildings clear circulation pattern and modular utility distribution system.

The expansion and renovation also benefits the city of Madison. A process cooling water loop for cooling major equipment cuts the Chemistry Department's consumption of city water by two-thirds. The local urban environment benefits with a completely new presence for the Chemistry Department facing a major thoroughfare and surrounding sidewalks now comply with the Americans Disabilities Act.

The Chemistry Research Tower is the recipient of a 2001 AIA Wisconsin Honor Award for its design.

Project Information

Building Owner:

University of Wisconsin-Madison

Owner Contact:

Fleming Crim, Chair-Department of Chemistry

Building Location:

Madison, WI UNITED STATES

Project Type:

New Construction,Expansion,Renovation

Principal Building Function:

Chemistry Research Laboratory and Instructional Facility

Project Delivery Method:

Design/Build

Project Timeline

May 1992	Planning Start
Feb 1994	Design Start
Aug 1998	Construction Start
Oct 2000	Completion
Last known status: Completed

Project Cost:

$38,900,000

Construction Cost:

$30,786,000

Cost Per Sq. Ft:

$222

About These Cost Figures

Building Information

Project Includes:

Auditorium
Chemistry
Computers
Education
Education: Classroom
Laboratory: Teaching
Laboratory: Wet
Office: Researcher
Research

Total GSF:

97,065

Total NSF:

58,565

Efficiency:

59%

Building Population:

130

People Density:

700 gsf/person

Building Services:

Hot & Cold Water, RO water, Nitrogen, Natural Gas, Compressed Air, Chilled Process Water

Office Size:

225 NSF

Power Req:

Lighting/Receptacles and Small Power (208Y/120v): 3.11 w/nsf Mechanical and Plumbing Motors (480v): 6.35 w/nsf

HVAC Req:

2.52 cfm/nsf (Research Tower)

Structure/Foundation:

Research Tower: Cast in place concrete frame with spread footings Seminar Hall: Braced steel frame with concrete spread footings

Laboratory Parameters

Lab Module:

10'8

Casework Mat'l:

Maple laboratory casework with epoxy resin tops

Fume Hoods:

One 8' combination sash fume hood per researcher and one 8' combination sash distillation hood per research group

Project Team

Architect

Flad Architects

Consultant - Electrical Engineer

Affiliated Engineers Inc. (AEI)

Consultant - Fire Protection

Downey

Contractor - Electrical

Forward Electric

Contractor - Mechanical

NorthAmerican Mechanical Inc.

Contractor - Plumbing

H.J. Pertzborn Plumbing

Contractor - Telecommunications

Magaw Electric

Cost Estimator

Hanscomb Associates, Inc.

Engineer - Civil

Barrientos & Associates Inc.

Engineer - Structural

Flad Architects

General Contractor

JP Cullen Inc

Laboratory Planning

Flad Architects

Mechanical Engineer

Affiliated Engineers Inc. (AEI)

NMR Consultant

Piene Design

Piping Engineer

Kapur & Associates

Piping Engineer

Affiliated Engineers Inc. (AEI)

Programming

Earl Walls Associates

Soils Engineer

Soils & Engineering Services

Supplier - Building Automation Controls

Johnson Controls Inc.

Supplier - Casework

Fisher Hamilton

Supplier - Curtainwall

Kawneer Company Inc.

Supplier - Elevators

KONE Inc.

Supplier - Fume Hoods

Fisher Hamilton

Supplier - Laboratory Fixtures

WaterSaver Faucet Co.

System Entry Doors

Kawneer Company Inc.

Telecommunications Engineer

Affiliated Engineers Inc. (AEI)

Vibration Consultant

Yerges Acoustics Consulting

Profile Created 11/15/2001

Last Updated 10/12/2007

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.

Fig. 1

Laboratory Environment

Fig. 2

Floorplan