Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory

Building Design and Organization

EMSL is a 204,665-gsf, state-of-the-art laboratory divided into five functional sections: a laboratory area with experimental clusters and laboratory support, a high-performance computing facility, office modules, a seminar/administration area with shared facilities (a conference room, a training room, a 100-seat auditorium, a kitchen and dining facility, a library, and an administrative office), and a maintenance area with mechanical and electrical support. The laboratories, office modules, and seminar/administration area are connected horizontally by a circulation system of two primary corridors?a primary spine for the movement of people between offices and laboratories, and a secondary spine for the transport of equipment between the laboratories and the maintenance areas (the loading dock, service yards, machine shop, etc.).

The laboratories, computing facility, and support areas are housed in a one-story, grade-level structure that provides flexibility for expansion. To accommodate vibration-sensitive equipment, the floor slab for each laboratory module is isolated from the laboratory service area and the corridor as well as from the building structure.

Laboratories have a HEPA-filtered, laminar air distribution system to enhance laser performance and protect optics. They are also equipped with a helium recovery system to recover used helium from superconducting magnets and other experimental equipment. Laboratories with nuclear magnetic resonance equipment are located away from instruments sensitive to magnetic fields, and the Ultra-High-Field Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectrometer is protected by a 2-inch-thick steel magnetic shield. The High-Field Fourier Transform Ion Cyclotron Resonance Mass Spectrometer has RF shielding to provide the required 100-db attenuation, and the accelerator laboratory has conventional shielding. To create a high level of adaptability within the laboratory spaces, laboratory modules include a highly accessible, easily extended set of laboratory services; a unistrut frame and a 1-foot dedicated zone for reconfiguring interconnections between instrumentation components; a cable-tray power, pipe-racking distribution system for reconfiguring instrumentation; and a programmable laser-interlock system for the safe operation of lasers.

The office modules, which are housed in three two-story structures along the east side of the laboratory clusters, are arranged around a two-story atrium that serves as a lounge for informal discussion and gatherings. The abundance of natural light from this open area offers a welcome reprieve from the windowless laboratories. Exterior porches and balconies between the three structures humanize the complex and provide further opportunities for scientists to interact.

The seminar/administration area, situated at the far end of the primary spine, is the main entrance to the facility as well as the security checkpoint for all public access. The lobby, which serves as a public gallery and a prefunction space for symposiums and other events, provides access to the building's shared facilities.

Services, Mechanical Equipment Building services are delivered to each laboratory module by means of a two-level interstitial service zone?an on-grade level service corridor that adjoins the laboratories on either side and an upper level walkway directly above that runs the full length of the laboratories. The on-grade level includes vacuum pumps, equipment set up, gas bottles, and heat, noise, and vibration-producing equipment that must be separated from sensitive lab equipment. The upper level contains mechanical, electrical, and plumbing services that run along a catwalk. Valves, panelboards, and ductwork for each laboratory module are accessible from the catwalk.

Major mechanical equipment is located at either end of the laboratory module. To ensure separation of intake and exhaust air, air-handling units are located at one end of the laboratory module, and exhaust fans are located at the other.

Exterior Materials and Massing

The building's exterior design and massing breaks down the large scale of the building. The articulation of the office modules, combined with porches and landscaped areas, creates a village-like primary façade that brings the "outdoors in," both visually and physically, for all non-laboratory spaces. The building's deep red brick exterior accented by white steel columns helps create a collegiate campus identity for the new complex.

Project Information

Building Owner:

U.S. Department of Energy

Owner Contact:

Dale Flowers, Task Manager, EMSL

Building Location:

Richland, WA UNITED STATES

Project Type:

New Construction

Principal Building Function:

Research in environmental and molecular sciences

Project Delivery Method:

Design/Bid/Build

Project Timeline

Mar 1994	Construction Start
Dec 1996	Target Completion

Project Cost:

$230,000,000

Construction Cost:

$51,000,000

Cost Per Sq. Ft:

$249

About These Cost Figures

Building Information

Project Includes:

Auditorium
Computers
Conference Room
Education: Administration
Laboratory: Research
Office
R&D

Total GSF:

204,665

Total NSF:

120

Efficiency:

59%

Building Population:

270

People Density:

740 gsf/person

Building Services:

Sanitary and process hot and cold water, CAP Type 2 deionized pure water, steam and process cooling, sanitary and chemical waste, natural gas, nitrogen, compressed air, vacuum-pump exhaust system, specialty gases, helium recovery system, closed-loop chilled water system, emergency power

Special Equip:

Vibration slab for electromagnetic resonator (EMR) room and laboratories, noise-attenuating duct silencers for laboratories, optical fiber network supporting ATM switches, 700 multi- and single-mode data outlets, massively parallel super computer, ISDN telephone system, centralized network patching and management system, standard chemical and radioisotope fume hoods, walk-in fume hoods for advanced processing applications, environmental rooms, clean room

Office Size:

120?150/75-300 NSF

Power Req:

Lighting: 1.25 W/sf Lab equipment: 4,505 A Mechanical power: 2,623 A Chiller capacity: 1,200 tons Steam boilers: 238 hp Hot water boilers: 15,000 mbh

HVAC Req:

3.47 cfm/nsf (294,200 cfm)

Structure/Foundation:

Structural steel frame with brick veneer exterior

Laboratory Parameters

Lab Module:

20' x 30'

Casework Mat'l:

Floor-mounted metal casework

Project Team

Architect

Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Architects LLP

Builder

Grant/Apollo

Construction Management

ICF Kaiser Hanford Co.

Consultant

Halliday Associates

Consultant - Accoustical/AV

Ove Arup and Partners

Consultant - Civil Engineering

SCM Consultants, Inc.

Consultant - Code

Rolf Jensen & Associates

Consultant - Communications

Ove Arup and Partners

Consultant - Elevator

Elevator Consulting Services, Inc.

Consultant - Engineer

Ove Arup and Partners

Consultant - Graphic Design

Mayer-Reed

Consultant - Laboratory Design

Earl Walls Associates

Consultant - Landscape Architect

Jones and Jones

Supplier - Casework

Fisher Hamilton

Supplier - Communications

All Star Telecom

Supplier - Fume Hood Controls

Phoenix Controls Corporation

Supplier - Fume Hoods

Fisher Hamilton

Profile Created 03/01/1997

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.

Fig. 1

Exterior

The Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory, a multidisciplinary research facility for the development and application of environmental remediation technologies, will provide resources and expertise to help reduce the cost of environmental cleanup efforts at former nuclear production sites.

Fig. 2

Interior

Oversized windows in the primary spine of the EMSL corridor system offer a view to the outside and to the courtyard between office blocks. Built-in seating at nodes along the windows promotes chance meetings and opportunities for informal interaction.

Fig. 3

Laboratory

EMSL laboratories are designed to accommodate changing research programs and to optimize the performance of current as well as future equipment.

Fig. 4

Computing Facility

EMSL?s 4,360-sf computing facility supports large-scale computer modeling and centralized data storage. An advanced networking system fully integrated into the design of the building links research equipment with the computer modeling capability.