Biocontainment

Vibalogics is creating a 110,000-sf facility for the production of oncolytic viruses, viral vector vaccines, and viral vector gene therapy products in Boxborough, Mass. Supporting late-phase clinical and commercial manufacturing operations, the highly flexible structure will include 2,000-liter bioreactors, multiple cGMP production suites, offices, warehouse space, and labs for research, development, and quality control. The $150 million project involves the renovation of an existing R&D building previously occupied by Cisco Systems.

Texas Biomedical Research Institute is planning to construct the $10 million Nonhuman Primate Animal Facility in San Antonio. The 45,000-sf building will provide the Southwest National Primate Research Center with additional laboratories and animal housing environments, enabling TBRI to double its population of rhesus macaques. The United States currently faces a shortage of nonhuman primates for biomedical research, with the COVID-19 pandemic highlighting the need for animal models to test the safety and efficacy of new therapies, vaccines, and diagnostics.

Caltech dedicated the $210 million Tianqiao and Chrissy Chen Neuroscience Research Building in January of 2021 in Pasadena. Designed by SmithGroup to promote interdisciplinary collaboration, the 150,000-sf facility provides wet, dry, and computational research labs for the Division of Biology and Biological Engineering. Standing three stories above grade with two basement levels, the structure includes teaching labs, a neurotechnology lab, a 150-seat lecture hall, conference rooms, and offices for investigators and staff.

The needs and architectural considerations for a veterinary diagnostic laboratory (VDL) have evolved toward a greater focus on the value of human-centered design. At its core, the VDL’s purpose to provide diagnostic testing for infectious animal diseases remains the same: Biosafety and biosecurity are a top priority, while designs have evolved to meet today’s demands and anticipated future technological advancements. However, the visionary and technological advancements of recent decades have also resulted in an increased focus on designing with efficiency and quality of workplace in mind.

Thermo Fisher Scientific is expanding its global production capacity for vaccines, medicines, and biologic therapies. Construction will begin in mid-2021 on a 130,000-sf facility in Greenville, N.C. Slated for completion in 2022, the standalone structure will accommodate two live-virus filling lines. The project is part of a $500 million investment in the site that will add six new lines in existing buildings to support commercial-scale liquid vial filling and the creation of lyophilized materials. 

Nationwide Children's Hospital is constructing a $100 million gene therapy manufacturing center in Columbus, Ohio. The 185,000-sf facility will enable Andelyn Biosciences, a for-profit subsidiary of Nationwide Children's, to supply pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies with genetic material for use in research and clinical trials. Located in The Ohio State University's Innovation District, the leased structure will feature advanced cGMP environments for commercial-scale manufacturing.

The life sciences industry has become the great hope in real estate, as we face the most significant public health crisis in a century. While other industries have slowed and suffered as a result of sheltering in place and working from home, science facilities have remained operational and even have thrived in prime markets, as the industry continues to search for medical breakthroughs. The downturn in other industries has left buildings vacant. The life science market, on the other hand, continues to experience some of the lowest vacancy and highest employment rates. For life science organizations in the prime U.S. markets, there simply remains a shortage of available research-capable space. Enter the big pivot to science.

ApiJect will break ground in December of 2020 on the Gigafactory campus in Durham, N.C. Strategically sited in Research Triangle Park, the complex will be the world’s largest pharmaceutical fill-finish facility, offering an annual production capacity of three billion single-dose prefilled injectors. Funded by a federal loan of $590 million, the one million-sf project will provide BSL-2 manufacturing areas, cold and ultra-cold storage infrastructure, and an onsite needle and cannula factory.

Iowa State University broke ground in October of 2020 on the $75 million Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory (VDL) in Ames. Located on the campus of the College of Veterinary Medicine, the 72,540-sf structure will provide leading-edge labs and testing suites to enable the prevention, detection, and mitigation of animal diseases including avian influenza, African Swine Fever, and porcine epidemic diarrhea virus.

The unprecedented health and economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is driving many institutions to increase investment in new biocontainment facilities or rapidly pivot to upgrade and repurpose existing containment spaces in an urgent attempt to respond to the crisis. Hundreds of organizations nationwide began applying for grants after the National Institutes for Health (NIH) received $3.6 billion in funding dedicated to COVID-19 research as part of an emergency stimulus bill passed earlier this year. The NIH now has until 2024 to release the funds. Additionally, private donors, non-governmental organizations, and other entities worldwide are providing billions in funding for development of testing and vaccine programs. This surge of financing is expected to fuel a growth in the creation of new biocontainment spaces in the near future and long term. Since designing, building, and commissioning new biocontainment labs is an expensive and time-consuming process, some institutions are electing to upgrade existing BSL-2 facilities to make them BSL-3, while others are choosing to move existing research programs to make room for new pandemic-related initiatives.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison opened the $57.1 million Meat Science and Animal Biologics Discovery Building in November of 2020. Designed by Potter Lawson, the 67,540-gsf facility provides the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences with leading-edge environments for research, teaching, and outreach. The two-story structure houses two technology-rich lecture halls, a shared research lab, an expansive atrium, demonstration areas, conference rooms, faculty offices, and a retail meat store.

The University of Nebraska Medical Center dedicated the Dr. Edwin G. & Dorothy Balbach Davis Global Center in October of 2020 in Omaha. Serving as the headquarters for the Interprofessional Experiential Center for Enduring Learning (iEXCEL), the $122 million facility provides advanced simulation environments where students can master clinical skills in real-world settings.

SSM Health opened the $550 million Saint Louis University Hospital in September of 2020. Designed to elevate the patient experience, the 802,000-sf academic medical center offers 316 private patient rooms, a spacious intensive care unit, and an expanded Level I trauma center and emergency department. Leveraging advanced technologies to mitigate the spread of infectious diseases, the nine-story facility features a sophisticated building automation system that can provide negative air pressure in many areas.

The Bolivian National Service of Agricultural Health and Food Safety is planning to build a 201,076-sf research campus in Santa Cruz. Strengthening the country’s research and diagnosis capacity for veterinary, phytosanitary, and food safety challenges, the state-of-the-art complex will provide four laboratory buildings for animal health, plant health, food safety, and fruit fly research, as well as an administrative center.

JAC Construction and its sister company Level 3 Design Group are partnering with Industrial Commercial Systems and Ultraviolet Devices (UVDI) to bring an advanced UV-C air disinfection solution to commercial and hospitality markets. The program, StayProtected, is a comprehensive approach that combines leading technology with holistic methods to help prevent the airborne transmission of viruses, including SARS-CoV-2.