Industry News

Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts has selected Charlestown-based Design Partnership of Cambridge as architect for the restoration of Murdock Hall on the university's campus in North Adams. The 1894 building will be restored to serve its original purpose as the campus's main academic centerpiece.

Wills Eye Hospital, the nation's only free-standing eye hospital, opened its new bed-free, 125,000-sf outpatient hospital on July 1. The new $47-million medical center, located on top of the Walnut Towers in Center City, will offer advanced ophthalmology care and ambulatory surgery. The hospital will also house physician offices and research and education programs including a 200-seat auditorium.

Targacept, an R&D product development spin-off from R.J. Reynolds, has moved into its new 44,000-sf headquarters and research facility in Winston-Salem. Located in the Piedmont Triad Research Park, the new building will enable Targacept’s employee base to increase from its current 56 to 78 by year-end.

The Dana-Farber Cancer Institute is developing a $5-million cell-processing lab in the Longwood Medical area of Boston. Funded in part by Bethesda's National Institutes of Health (NIH), the facility will consolidate operations now located in several labs near the hospital. The 6,500-sf lab, located in the Jimmy Fund building, will feature state-of-the-art cell-manufacturing, cleanrooms, and air-purification systems. With separate rooms for different experiments, the facility will allow for expansion and diversification of processing functions.

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill recently worked with Flad & Associates to complete renovation plans for the 60,000-sf Old Dental Building at the School of Dentistry. The 40-year-old facility will house classrooms, research, and new office suites upon completion. Bids are now being solicited for the project.