Biomedical

Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center in Amarillo is initiating three major construction projects totaling $33 million. Ground was broken in late summer of 2007 on the 48,000-sf, $18 million Coulter Research Building for biomedical and translational research. The School of Pharmacy will undergo an $8 million, 23,000-sf expansion to house administration, academic space, two 120-seat instructional classrooms, a 26-station instructional laboratory, and a patient simulation center for teaching and assessment. Construction will begin in early 2008.

The World Health Organization's 2007 report states that infectious diseases are emerging more rapidly and spreading more quickly due to increased human mobility and travel. As the increasing risk of disease outbreaks and epidemics escalates, these health emergencies can become threats to global public health security. The World Health Report 2007 examines contemporary infectious disease trends and examines the revised International Health Regulations (2005), which came into force in 2007, as a tool for health risk identification and management.

The University of Rochester is constructing a $42.5 million facility for the James P. Wilmot Cancer Center at the University of Rochester Medical Center. The 163,000-sf, four-story building doubles existing space for clinical and translational research and includes a three-story glass atrium. Ground was broken on the project in May of 2006 and completion is slated for spring of 2008.

The Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre (TBRHSC) was awarded $14.7 million from the Canadian federal government in summer of 2007 to fund creation of the Molecular Medicine Research Centre. Supporting cancer, cardiac, and neurology research programs, the $44.1 million center will be created in partnership with Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and private partners including Philips Medical Systems.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has published “Advancing the Nation’s Health: A Guide for Public Health Research Needs, 2006-2015.” Identifying research needs that need to be addressed during the next ten years, the guide is available at http://www.cdc.gov/OD/science/PHResearch/cdcra/.

The Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University has achieved a LEED Platinum rating from the U.S. Green Building Council for the Biodesign Institute Building B, which opened in 2006. Building A, which opened in 2004, received Gold level certification. The two buildings were constructed separately, but are connected on all levels by glass walkways. The Biodesign Institute facilities were designed by the architectural team of Gould Evans and Lord, Aeck & Sargent.

Boston University’s School of Dental Medicine will open a dental training institute at Dubai Healthcare City in the United Arab Emirates. Focusing on research, education, and treatment, the institute will provide specialty training in areas such as oral and maxillofacial surgery, orthodontics, and periodontics. Boston University’s center will open to its first students in summer of 2008. Dubai Healthcare City is also partnering with institutions such as the Mayo Clinic and pharmaceutical maker AstraZeneca.

Emory University has selected Dr. Fred Sanfilippo as executive vice president for health affairs at Emory, chief executive of the Robert W. Woodruff Health Sciences Center, and chairman of the board for Emory Healthcare. He will assume his new post on Oct. 1, 2007. Dr. Sanfilippo previously served as senior vice president and executive dean for health sciences at Ohio State University and the CEO of OSU Medical Center since 2000.

Siemens Institute for Advanced Medicine is constructing a $150 million facility at the Health Sciences Centre in Winnipeg. The project received $13.5 million in funding from the Canadian federal government in summer of 2007, for a total federal investment to date of $26.5 million. The 100,000-sf facility will house a neuroscience research department, surgery facilities, and R&D space for testing for advanced operating tools and technologies.

NCRR, the National Center for Research Resources, is seeking input to  develop a new Strategic Plan covering 2009 – 2013. NCRR is a $1 billion-a-year research center that enables NIH-funded researchers across the country to translate basic discoveries into improved patient care. To ensure that NCRR continues to meet the needs of biomedical investigators, input on six questions which were published in the Federal Register on July 6, 2007, is requested.

The University of Pennsylvania is working with Rafael Viñoly of Rafael Viñoly Architects PC to design a $370 million biomedical research facility in Philadelphia. The project will be collocated with two buildings currently under construction, the Perelman Center for Advanced Medicine, slated to open in 2008, and the Roberts Proton Therapy Center, slated to open in 2009. The ten-story facility will feature translational and interdisciplinary research and will open in the summer of 2010.

University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center (UTSWMC) has selected Omniplan to provide architectural and engineering services for the fifth phase of its research Campus in Dallas. The North Campus, part of UTSWMC's 60-acre school, is divided in half by a landscaped channel that runs from east to west through the site. Phases 1-4, including two designed by Omniplan, are situated on the south side of the canal.

The University of Leeds opened the Wellcome Trust Brenner Building of the Leeds Institute of Molecular Medicine (LIMM) on May 14, 2007. The £20 million multidisciplinary facility will house biomedical research for identifying the molecules involved in human diseases with a focus on therapy discovery. The Wellcome Trust Brenner Building is sited at St. James’ University Hospital and houses six floors of state-of-the-art laboratories.

Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) began construction on its Onna-Son campus in late 2006. The interdisciplinary research institute will accommodate approximately 300 faculty and 3,000 researchers in the areas of life science, neuroscience, biology, chemistry, nanotechnology, engineering, computer science, mathematics, and physics. Housing research facilities, laboratories, seminar rooms, a library, auditorium, housing, and dining, the two-site campus will feature a three-wing laboratory zone designed to maximize interaction and collaboration.

Louisiana Tech University celebrated the opening of its $12 million biomedical engineering building in Ruston, La., in early May of 2007. The facility is connected to the Institute for Micromanufacturing and features technologically rich laboratories, classrooms, collaboration spaces, and faculty offices as well as an economic development incubator called the Humana Enterprise Center. Construction was completed in two years. Future plans for the university include a $25 million research park in Ruston.