Industry News

Colorado State University's Research Innovation Center was awarded LEED Gold sustainable design certification in August of 2011. Located on the Foothills Campus in Fort Collins, the 60,000-sf RIC facility houses a 7,700-sf animal research vivarium and several BSL-2 labs. The project architect was The FWA Group. The project includes a 54 kilowatt solar array, low-flow toilets, and low-VOC interior finishes. The operating cost of the building is expected to be 42 percent less than a comparable conventional facility.

The University of Texas Medical Branch is planning to build the $438 million Jennie Sealy Hospital in Galveston. The facility will provide a 50-bed ICU, 250 patient rooms, and advanced surgical suites. Occupancy is expected in early 2016.

Sault College will open a 75,000-sf academic facility in September of 2011 in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. The three-story complex provides 19 flexible classrooms, three learning commons, a 120-seat lecture hall, a justice studies suite with a forensic science lab and a combat training center, and space for the College's aviation program. The facility features sustainable design elements and was completed on-time and on-budget. 

The American Society for Healthcare Engineering (ASHE) of the American Hospital Association has published a monograph titled Operating Room HVAC Setback Strategies. The monograph, which is part of a series of publications that cover single topics in clinical/biomedical engineering, facility engineering, design and construction, and safety and security management, details how operating room HVAC setback strategies can save energy. An operating room (OR) setback strategy reduces energy use by curtailing the amount of air supplied to an OR when the room is not in use.

The $109 million Banner MD Anderson Cancer Center will open in September of 2011 in Gilbert, Ariz. The 133,000-sf outpatient facility will offer collaborative, integrated treatment for all types of cancers. The center will support 75 physicians.