Industry News

California State University, Fresno was awarded a five-year, $45 million grant from the National Institutes of Health’s National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities in early 2008 to construct a new biomedical research facility. CSU Fresno is one of 19 universities in the nation to receive the award. Aiming to integrate teaching and research, the project will support the Research Infrastructure in Minority Institutions (RIMI) program.

Quincy Medical Center completed the renovation and conversion of the Long Term Acute Care Hospital (LTACH) in Quincy, Mass., in January of 2008. The project team for the 20,700-sf, 38-bed private room project was comprised of Needham, Mass.-based Nauset Construction and architectural firm David H. Dunlap Associates of Hanover, Mass. The multi-phased, fast-track project included renovating and converting an entire floor within Quincy Medical Center on an aggressive two month schedule with upgrades to both the electrical and HVAC systems.

The National Hygiene and Epidemiology Institute opened the first Vietnamese BSL-3 laboratory meeting international standards in Hanoi in January of 2008. Construction began on the $8 million project in August of 2006 and reached completion in December of 2007. The facility was funded by the government of Japan and will accommodate research on diseases including avian influenza and SARS. The National Hygiene and Epidemiology Institute will work with the Japanese government to implement a $2 million project to train ten officials in the operation of the laboratory.

The Department of Defense broke ground on the $92 million Joint Center of Excellence for Battlefield Health and Trauma Research at Fort Sam Houston in Texas in January of 2008. Accommodating combat casualty care and trauma research missions, the 150,000-sf project is part of the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) initiative. Slated for completion in September of 2009, the research center will be collocated with the Institute of Surgical Research, which will receive a 5,000-sf renovation.

Pilkington Pyrostop™, a fire-rated, impact safety-rated, transparent glass wall panel that also blocks heat transfer, is now available with integrated Venetian blinds to enhance privacy and reduce glare. Distributed by Technical Glass Products (TGP), Pilkington Pyrostop products block the spread of flames and smoke, as well as reduce the transfer of radiant and conductive heat from a fire. Pilkington Pyrostop also meets impact requirements of CPSC 16CFR1201 Category I and Category II.