Animal Research

The Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research opened the Advanced Research Centre for Infectious Diseases in May of 2017 at the University of Ghana in Accra. Supporting the detection, testing, and study of infectious diseases and pathogenic agents, the facility features animal research labs, a BSL-3 (P3) biocontainment lab, and vivarium space. Construction of the project, which includes a solar energy plant, was made possible by a $21 million grant from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

Memorial Sloan Kettering (MSK) and the City University of New York (CUNY) are developing a joint facility in New York City. MSK’s 23-story outpatient tower, the 750,000-gsf David H. Koch Center for Cancer Care, will feature advanced surgical suites, radiation therapy rooms, and dedicated space for clinical trials. CUNY’s six-story, 400,000-gsf (336,000-asf) Hunter College Science and Health Professions Building will provide sophisticated simulation training suites, teaching and research labs, a technology-rich library, faculty offices, and a vivarium.

Murray State University opened the new Breathitt Veterinary Center in May of 2017 in Hopkinsville, Ky. Replacing the state’s existing animal health lab, the $33 million facility features a BSL-3 suite, an expanded necropsy area, technology-rich classrooms, and collaborative research space. The 77,000-sf center provides 53,000 sf of dedicated diagnostic facilities and features an advanced HVAC system to enhance biosecurity throughout the building. Ground was broken in September of 2014 on the sustainably designed project, which is expected to attain LEED Silver.

The Pirbright Institute is planning to build the £48 million High Containment Large Animal Facility in Pirbright in the United Kingdom. Designed by NBBJ, the project will provide advanced biocontainment labs and vivarium space to support collaborative research on infectious diseases including foot-and-mouth disease, avian influenza, and African swine fever. 

Auburn University will begin construction in summer of 2017 on the Poultry Infectious Disease Biocontainment Research Facility in Auburn, Ala. Designed to exceed state and federal compliance standards, the 5,000-sf facility will enable investigators from the College of Agriculture to perform research on live birds as well as infectious disease agents. Occupancy is expected in summer of 2018. Additionally, a $3 million administration building will be constructed at the Charles C. Miller Jr. Poultry Research and Education Center.

The Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory opened its new $53 million headquarters in College Station in April of 2017. Designed by Perkins+Will, the 93,000-sf facility features open-plan research areas, BSL-3 labs for the detection and study of infectious diseases, BSL-2 labs, a full-service necropsy suite, a conference room, and a secure sample drop-off area. Vaughn Construction broke ground on the project in late 2014.

Veterinary pharmaceutical firm HIPRA is planning to begin construction in mid-2017 on its North American headquarters in Mantua Township, N.J. Located on 25 acres in the South Jersey Technology Park at Rowan University, the 375,000-sf facility will house research and development labs for the creation of animal health vaccines. The $100 million project will be developed in several phases and will include manufacturing, distribution, and warehouse space. HIPRA is based in Girona, Spain. 

Canadian pharmaceutical company Apotex began construction in spring of 2017 on a $184 million research and advanced manufacturing center in Miramar, Fla. The facility will house the firm’s U.S. headquarters as well as accommodating R&D, production, and packaging operations. Completion is expected in early 2019.

The Research Institute of Molecular Pathology opened its new facility in the Vienna Biocenter in March of 2017. Designed by ATP Architects and Engineers, the highly flexible building will accommodate 200 investigators engaged in biomedical research and development. Founded in 1985, the Research Institute of Molecular Pathology is funded by research grants and the sponsorship of founding company Boehringer Ingelheim, who invested $57 million in the project. The duration of construction was two and a half years.

Adaptimmune opened its new headquarters in the Philadelphia Navy Yard in March of 2017 in Philadelphia. The 47,400-sf project will include an advanced cGMP manufacturing facility to support the development and commercialization of novel engineered immunotherapies for cancer. The facility was designed by DIGSAU and is expected to attain LEED Gold in the Core & Shell rating system. CBRE’s Life Science Advisory and Project Management Group assisted Adaptimmune during the construction phase of the project.

Texas Tech University broke ground on the $77 million Experimental Sciences Building II in February of 2017 in Lubbock, Texas. Designed by TreanorHL to support interdisciplinary research, the collaborative 117,000-gsf facility will provide four general wet labs, three core instrumentation suites, two synthetic labs, a vivarium, a BSL-2 lab, conference rooms, and offices for researchers and principal investigators. The construction manager for the LEED-certified facility, which comprises four stories and a basement, is Project Control.

A new Centralized Research Support Facility (CRSF) at the University of California San Diego (UCSD) has created a host of benefits for the university and its Animal Care Program, including almost $13 million in savings to date, with more savings expected when existing space is reassigned. The project could signal a paradigm shift as available research space shrinks, but consolidation/centralization requires significant operational and cultural shifts.

Central Michigan University opened the $95 million Biosciences Building in January of 2017 in Mount Pleasant. Designed by Stantec to promote interaction and collaboration, the four-story, 169,000-sf facility provides teaching labs, research labs, lecture halls, an active learning classroom, an auditorium, and faculty offices. The building also includes a BSL-3 suite, an herbarium, an imaging center, and an aquatic research vivarium. Clark Construction began work on the project in September of 2014.

Zymeworks opened a 10,000-sf biopharmaceutical laboratory in January of 2017 in Vancouver, British Columbia. The facility will provide a centralized location for the company’s discovery research operations, including antibody generation, medicinal chemistry, bioconjugation, and the development of multifunctional proteins. Zymeworks is a producer of therapeutic agents for clinical-stage research on the treatment of cancer.

With many aging animal and biocontainment facilities coming to the end of their useful life, renovations, modernizations, and upgrades are by far the top priorities among facility owners and operators, and greater flexibility and adaptability are the hottest issues in project and program planning. Rodents are still overwhelmingly the primary species in animal research, according to industry leaders, and most containment facilities maintain a combination of containment levels; of facilities housing a single containment level, BSL-2 is by far the most prevalent.