The U.S. Food and Drug Administration will begin construction in mid-2023 on a high-performance laboratory building to replace its current aging facility in Lakewood, Colo. The three-story, 70,000-sf structure located at the Denver Federal Center will provide sophisticated testing suites, analytical labs, and collaborative research spaces. Featuring photovoltaic arrays, heat recovery systems, ground-source heat pumps, and runaround loops, the all-electric facility will consume approximately half of the energy that a comparable conventional structure would use.
Supported by $79 million in funding from the Inflation Reduction Act, the net-zero carbon project will accelerate the U.S. General Services Administration's efforts to drive innovation in clean energy technologies and building materials. Integrating concrete, steel, and glass with low embodied carbon, the development will demonstrate that sustainable facilities can accommodate intensive research programs while delivering significant operational savings. Occupancy is expected in 2026.
