BluVue announced the release of BluVue Plans 2.0 for iOS and Android in February of 2015. The app allows project teams to have mobile access to current construction plan documents, eliminating the risk of building off of outdated drawings. BluVue Plans also helps construction teams collaborate efficiently on project drawings, giving them the power to view, mark up, and share plans.
The University of Pennsylvania opened the $38 million Jordan Medical Education Center in Philadelphia in January of 2015. Designed to accommodate a multidisciplinary, team-based pedagogy, the three-story, 55,000-sf project will provide the Perelman School of Medicine with two flexible 3,000-sf learning studios, eight technology-rich classrooms, a learning commons, a law auditorium and pavilion, and a variety of small group spaces.
Volunteer State Community College began constructing the $30.5 million Humanities Building in January of 2015. The 88,345-sf facility is located in Gallatin, Tenn., and will provide 23 classrooms, 18 laboratories, and 11 collaborative study spaces. Designed by Moody Nolan of Nashville, the building will also house a recording studio, an art gallery, art studios, computer labs, 56 offices, and 20 adjunct faculty rooms. Completion is expected in summer of 2016.
Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies broke ground in January of 2015 on a 62,000-sf biopharmaceutical manufacturing facility in Research Triangle Park, N.C. Designed to support collaborative research and development, the three-story BioProcess Innovation Center will accommodate the creation and production of advanced proteins, vaccines, and monoclonal antibodies. The project team includes Alexandria Real Estate Equities and KBR Building Group. Completion is expected in late 2015.
Procore Technologies launched a new file storage and synchronization application for construction management in January of 2015. Procore Drive allows teams to share and collaborate on large files without the impediments of FTP clients or other cumbersome file sharing solutions. Designed to increase project efficiency by streamlining communication, the application delivers the speed, security, and scale required by enterprises to collaborate between mobile devices, laptops, and desktop computers.
A unique public-private partnership is fast-tracking advanced manufacturing research and spurring development of the industry’s next-generation workforce, according to Barry Johnson, senior associate dean at the University of Virginia (UVA). The Commonwealth Center for Advanced Manufacturing (CCAM) is an industry-driven collective with an applied research facility near Richmond that connects schools where research originates with companies who will apply it to commercialization.
The American Lightweight Materials Manufacturing Innovation Institute opened in Detroit in January of 2015. The $148 million facility was created by a public-private partnership that includes the University of Michigan, Ohio State University, Alcoa, Boeing, Johnson Controls, and the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory. The 100,000-sf center provides research, development, and production space to support the creation of advanced manufacturing technologies using lightweight metals and alloys.
The University of California, Los Angeles is constructing the $130 million Engineering VI building for the Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science. The six-story, 150,000-sf project was designed by BNIM and Moore Ruble Yudell with Research Facilities Design (RFD) as laboratory design consultant. The multidisciplinary facility will provide temperature-stabilized, low-vibration, and low-electromagnetic environments for the development of advanced energy technologies.
The University of Strathclyde will open the $138 million Technology and Innovation Centre (TIC) in Glasgow in March of 2015. The nine-story, 269,000-sf building will provide 100 laboratories, two auditoriums, offices, and a central atrium. The facility will house the Fraunhofer Centre for Applied Photonics as well as five test cells on the basement level for the study of high-intensity radiation.
Oklahoma State University is expanding the College of Human Sciences in Stillwater, Okla. Ground was broken in October of 2014 on a 76,706-sf wing that will provide research, teaching, and administrative space. The expansion was designed by LWPB Architecture in association with DLR Group to support experiential learning and collaboration. The building will provide 27,000 sf of lab space, virtual and augmented reality suites, and a central atrium with abundant natural light. Completion is expected in fall of 2016.
The University of Houston is constructing the $51 million Multidisciplinary Research and Engineering Building. Housing shared core facilities for multiple departments, the four-story, 120,000-gsf project will provide the Cullen College of Engineering with wet research labs, a visualization suite, a high performance computational center, and an NMR spectrometer lab. Ground was broken in October of 2014 and occupancy is slated for fall of 2016.
The College of William & Mary is building the third phase of the Integrated Science Center (ISC) in Williamsburg, Va. Supporting programs in applied science, biology, chemistry, psychology, and computer modeling, the $78 million ISC 3 will feature core labs with advanced instrumentation and a 300-seat lecture hall. Designed by EYP Architecture & Engineering, the four-story, 113,000-sf project will include construction of a rooftop greenhouse on the adjacent ISC 2. The general contractor is Whiting-Turner.
The University of Maryland is building a new facility for the Clark School of Engineering in College Park. Ground was broken in November of 2014 on the 184,000-sf A. James Clark Hall, a collaborative, multidisciplinary facility created to support the development of advanced biomedical technologies. Designed by Ballinger, the building will provide a new home for the Fischell Department of Bioengineering and the Robert E. Fischell Institute for Biomedical Devices.
The University of Aberystwyth is planning to build the $62.5 million Innovation and Enterprise Campus in Wales in the United Kingdom.
Carthage College is engaged in a $43 million expansion and renovation of the David A. Straz, Jr. Center for the Natural and Social Sciences in Kenosha, Wis. A 35,000-sf wing will be constructed and the existing 70,000-sf facility will undergo major renovations. The completed center will feature multidisciplinary teaching labs, TEAL (Technology Enhanced Active Learning) classrooms, a two-story glass atrium, a 28-seat planetarium, and 12 interdisciplinary labs for the study of materials science, nanotechnology, engineering design, molecular biology, and atomic microscopy.
