Clayton State University opened its $18 million Science Building in August of 2015 in Morrow, Ga. Designed by The S/L/A/M Collaborative, the 58,610-sf facility provides eight research labs, eight teaching labs, two 64-seat classrooms, two 36-seat classrooms, and two seminar rooms. The three-story building houses stacked biology and chemistry suites, each integrating research, prep, and teaching space.
Stephen F. Austin State University has selected Kirksey Architecture of Houston to design a $46.4 million STEM building in Nacogdoches, Texas. The collaborative learning facility will accommodate programs in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. The construction manager for the project is J.E. Kingham Construction Company.
The University of Sheffield is planning to build the $25 million Structural Dynamics Laboratory for Verification and Validation in the United Kingdom. Located in the Advanced Manufacturing Park, the facility will enable industry and academia to engage in collaborative research and development in the field of structural dynamics. Enabling full-scale testing of engineering structures, systems, and components, the project will feature a modular environmental chamber with sophisticated controls for humidity, temperature, wind speed, and weather conditions.
The University of Missouri opened the MU Metagenomics Center in August of 2015 in Columbia. The laboratory is located in a shared 60,000-sf facility at the Discovery Ridge Research Park and will serve as a comprehensive resource for microbiological research. Featuring advanced technologies for DNA extraction, RNA sequencing, and informatics analysis, the center will process samples of microbiota obtained from humans, animals, plants, and soil.
SUNY Upstate Medical Center began construction in June of 2015 on the second phase of the Central New York Biotech Accelerator (CNYBAC) in Syracuse, N.Y. Designed by The S/L/A/M Collaborative, the project includes the build out of the second and third floors of the facility to house the Upstate Medical Innovation and Novel Discovery Center (MIND) and the Molecular Pathology Next Generation Sequencing Lab.
The University of Florida opened the $46 million Harrell Medical Education Building in late July of 2015. Located on the Health Science Center campus in Gainesville, the four-story, 95,000-sf facility will support the College of Medicine’s interactive, team-based curriculum. The project features two 4,600-sf academic spaces designed to accommodate group learning at circular tables and a medical training center with 18 standardized patient exam rooms.
Stanford University began site work in July of 2015 for the $107 million Anne T. and Robert M. Bass Biology Research Building in Palo Alto, Calif. The 123,450-gsf facility will provide laboratory space for biochemistry and computational research as well as including classrooms and offices for the Department of Biology. The building will have four stories above ground with a core lab for mass spectroscopy located below grade.
Michigan State University broke ground in June of 2015 on an $88.1 million biomedical research facility in the Grand Rapids Innovation Park. The six-story, 162,800-sf project will provide the College of Human Medicine with open labs to support up to 44 research teams. Designed by SmithGroupJJR with Ellenzweig as laboratory design consultant, the facility will feature core labs for flow cytometry, bioinformatics, microscopy, and long-term storage.
Cincinnati Children's Hospital opened the $205 million Clinical Sciences Pavilion in June of 2015. The 15-story, 445,000-sf translational research tower will house over 1,500 scientists, clinicians, and staff engaged in the application of medical discoveries to patient care. The facility features a three-story atrium, a clinical trials center, advanced imaging suites, and laboratories and offices arranged in research neighborhoods to foster interaction and collaboration. Construction began on the pavilion in 2012.
Purdue University will begin construction in July of 2015 on the $79 million Thomas S. and Harvey D. Wilmeth Active Learning Center in West Lafayette, Ind. The 164,000-gsf facility will provide 27 classrooms as well as housing six engineering and science libraries. Designed by BSA LifeStructures to promote interdisciplinary collaboration, the center will feature flexible classrooms that can act as group study spaces in the evenings. Completion is expected in August of 2017.
Ferris State University will open the Shimadzu Core Laboratory for Academic and Research Excellence in fall of 2015. Located in the Arts and Sciences Complex in Big Rapids, Mich., the facility will include seven new instruments supplied by the Shimadzu Corporation with a total value of $500,000. The core lab will feature advanced spectrophotometry equipment to support student research in chemistry, physics, molecular biology, biochemistry, and forensic science.
Northwestern University broke ground on the Louis A. Simpson and Kimberly K. Querrey Biomedical Research Center in Chicago in May of 2015. Designed by Perkins+Will, the 14-story, 600,000-sf facility will support collaborative research on cancer, heart disease, neurodegenerative disorders, and genetics for the Feinberg School of Medicine. The Biomedical Research Center will house nine laboratory floors of approximately 45,000 sf each with integrated offices for principal investigators.
Responding to the call to reinvent university science instruction, Virginia Tech’s new classroom building is poised to create “a bona fide learning revolution.” Slated for completion in 2016, the 73,400-sf facility will offer flexible, innovative teaching spaces that are “radically different” from anything previously seen on the Blacksburg campus, according to Jill Sible, assistant provost for undergraduate education at the largest producer of STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) degrees in the state.
Purdue University is initiating three construction projects for the College of Engineering in West Lafayette, Ind. Work will begin in 2016 on an $8.2 million expansion of the Maurice J. Zucrow Laboratories to create a 9,600-sf research suite featuring five new test cells supporting laser-based measurement. Other projects include the $54 million, 75,000-sf Flex Lab, a multidisciplinary, team-based research facility, and the Innovation Design Center, a 24-hour student project building featuring CAD labs and collaboration areas.
IU Health, Indiana University, and IU Bloomington Hospital are partnering to create a new regional academic health center. Located adjacent to the IU Technology Park, the project includes construction of a replacement facility for IU Health Bloomington Hospital and an instructional building for the Indiana University School of Medicine. The regional academic health complex will promote collaboration between faculty, researchers, clinicians, medical staff, and students. Design work will begin in late spring of 2015.
