The Royal Centre for Disease Control was dedicated in November of 2015 in Thimbu, Bhutan. The $4.9 million public health laboratory features a BSL-3 research facility built in accordance with the guidelines of the World Health Organization. The secure three-story building will support the detection, study, and prevention of infectious diseases including tuberculosis, HIV, and water-borne pathogens.
Purdue University broke ground in November of 2015 on two facilities for the Department of Animal Sciences in West Lafayette, Ind. The three-story, 90,000-sf Hobart and Russell Creighton Hall of Animal Sciences will provide research laboratories, classrooms designed for interactive and team-based learning, conference rooms for extension activities, and open spaces to facilitate faculty and student interactions.
An explosion in computation and large data set analyses is challenging the nature and processes of translational research, significantly impacting how such institutions plan for space needs. The link between strategic planning, programming, and design is much more dynamic, and requires faster feedback and the development of new metrics to drive value creation through strategic planning.
"That increase in computation has a significant impact on how we strategically plan for translational research,” says Andy Snyder, AIA, principal/architect at NBBJ.
Construction began in October of 2015 on the $59 million (NZD$87m) National Biocontainment Laboratory in Upper Hutt, New Zealand. Designed by Merrick & Company to meet international biosafety standards, the secure facility will provide advanced labs for infectious disease detection, diagnosis, and response. The completed project will also offer veterinary diagnostics to support international trade assurances of the status of animal diseases. Full operations will commence in 2019.
Adaptimmune is building a 67,000-sf biopharmaceutical R&D center in Abingdon in the United Kingdom. Designed by Nicholas Hare, the facility will provide laboratories, offices, and conference rooms for approximately 200 investigators and staff. Ground was broken on the project in October of 2015 and completion is expected in late 2016. The facility is located on the Milton Park technology campus and is being developed by MEPC.
The University of Glasgow opened the $35 million Sir Michael Stoker Building in October of 2015 on its Garscube campus in Scotland. Housing the Centre for Virus Research (CVR), the facility provides advanced laboratories for the study of human and veterinary virology. The building was created in partnership with the Medical Research Council and includes research offices and interaction areas. The project team included Sheppard Robson Architects, general contractor Laing O’Rourke, and engineering consultant Arup.
Cornell University is engaged in a $90 million expansion of the College of Veterinary Medicine in Ithaca, N.Y. Designed by Weiss/Manfredi, the project includes 65,000 sf of new construction and 33,000 sf of renovated space. The completed facility will provide a public auditorium, a veterinary library, two tiered lecture halls, technology-rich classrooms, an e-learning center, and a dining hall. Existing surgical suites, anatomy labs, and tutorial rooms will be renovated. Ground was broken on the project in September of 2014.
Scripps Research Institute is planning to construct a new 147,000-sf laboratory complex in La Jolla, Calif. Supporting the consolidation of research space to promote interaction and collaboration, the project will provide a 12,000-sf NMR suite and advanced laboratories for the study of immunology, structural biology, neuroscience, and global health. Occupancy is expected in 2019.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has selected Merrick & Company to develop the Program of Requirements (POR) for the renovation of the Southeast Poultry Research Laboratory (SEPRL) in Athens, Ga. The $158 million modernization project includes new construction and renovation of existing facilities on an active, 60-year-old campus that encompasses biosafety laboratories, brooding and breeding facilities, administrative offices, and support space.
In the ever-evolving quest for sustainability, engineers and their clients may find the 2013 updates to ASHRAE 90.1, the energy code that predominantly guides the design of buildings, useful in benchmarking energy efficiency for new or remodeled laboratories and vivaria. Regular review of the code ensures compliance for new projects and offers an opportunity to refine best practices for building envelopes, mechanical systems, lighting, and noise mitigation, say Adam Golubski and Philip Walter of The Clark Enersen Partners.
The Army Institute of Public Health has awarded a $206 million contract to a joint venture of The Walsh Group and Gilbane Building Company for the Public Health Command (PHC) laboratory replacement project. Located on 20 acres at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland, the 275,000-sf biomedical research facility will include wet labs, field labs, offices, anechoic chambers, laser labs, a vivarium, an insectary, and a 43,000-gsf central utility plant.
The Jackson Laboratory (JAX) is partnering with the University of Connecticut to create the $7.7 million Single Cell Genomics Center in Farmington. The facility will be located in JAX’s Genomic Medicine facility on the UConn Health campus. JAX is also planning to develop the Center for Precision Genetics at the site, supported by a $10 million grant from the National Institutes of Health.
Lancer Sales USA introduced a new line of laboratory steam sterilizers in August of 2015. Developed for the high performance sterilization of labware, processed materials, and research byproducts, the sterilizers can be installed in newly constructed laboratories or in existing facilities. The units are available in single and double door pass-through configurations with four cabinet sizes, and all models stand 74” high with vanishing vertical doors that eliminate the need for elevation clearance.
Texas A&M University opened an 11,000-sf avian health complex for the College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences in August of 2015. Located in College Station, the climate-controlled aviary facility provides a BSL-2 biocontainment lab, a bird hospital, quarantine suites, three isolation rooms, classrooms, and offices.
The U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) is constructing a 950,000-sf replacement facility at Fort Detrick, Md. The $800 million project will provide BSL-2, BSL-3, and BSL-4 laboratory space to support advanced biomedical research. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began construction on the project in August of 2009 and completion is expected in 2017.
