The University of California, Irvine broke ground in September of 2018 on the Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building. Designed by LMN Architects to promote cross-disciplinary collaboration, the six-story, 204,750-sf facility will house the Samueli School of Engineering, the Donald Bren School of Information & Computer Science, and the School of Physical Sciences.
Pennsylvania State University is planning a $17.3 million renovation and expansion of Pattee Library in University Park. The project includes the infill of an existing courtyard to provide a two-story enclosed atrium with a connecting stair, with administrative offices for the Library Learning Services and three Digital Scholarship and Data Services units located on upper floors.
Oregon Health & Science University opened the $190 Knight Cancer Institute in September of 2018 on the South Waterfront Campus in Portland. Designed by SRG Partnership to foster multidisciplinary collaboration, the seven-story, 320,000-sf facility provides biomedical laboratories, administrative offices, interaction hubs, core labs, a 200-seat auditorium, and space for clinical trials. Featuring an integrated balance of wet and dry research spaces, the building accommodates programs in computational biology, early cancer detection, and immuno-oncology.
Chapman University opened the $130 million Keck Center for Science and Engineering in late August of 2018 in Orange, Calif. Housing the Schmid College of Science and Technology, the three-story, 140,000-sf facility accommodates programs in biology, chemistry, biochemistry, physics, math, computational science, food science, psychology, and health science. Spacious teaching and research spaces are grouped strategically by discipline, with students and faculty moving seamlessly between classroom and lab. Designed by AC Martin and built by C.W.
Ohio University broke ground in late August of 2018 on a $42.6 million chemistry building in Athens. Designed by BHDP Architecture and Flad Architects to put science on display, the 69,000-sf facility will provide labs for teaching and research, collaboration spaces, conference rooms, a shared instrumentation suite, and offices for faculty and graduate students. Gilbane Building Company is the construction manager for the project, which is slated for completion in summer of 2020.
WABCO opened the $30 million Global Technology and Innovation Center in August of 2018 in Hanover, Germany. Accommodating over 420 employees, the 124,000-sf R&D hub will provide engineering and product development labs for the creation of automotive technologies. Designed to promote collaboration and interaction, the center will support the development of advanced safety and efficiency systems for autonomous, connected, and electric commercial vehicles. Additionally, WABCO opened a customer care center in July of 2018 in Rochester Hills, Mich.
The University of Alabama at Birmingham opened the School of Nursing in September of 2018. Designed by Payette in collaboration with Williams Blackstock Architects, the $32 million project included renovation of an existing structure and construction of a 72,000-sf addition to provide leading-edge classrooms, research labs, offices, and collaboration spaces. The Nursing Competency Suite accommodates simulation training and testing activities, and the Innovation Collaboratory offers interactive workstations for group learning and discovery.
The University of Tennessee opened the $118 million Ken and Blaire Mossman Building in September of 2018 in Knoxville. Designed by McCarty Holsaple McCarty and Lord Aeck Sargent to promote interdepartmental collaboration, the six-story, 222,000-sf facility accommodates programs in microbiology, biochemistry, psychology, nutrition, and cellular and molecular biology.
The University of Washington opened the Life Sciences Building in Seattle in September of 2018. Designed by Perkins+Will, the collaborative facility provides five floors above grade and two subterranean levels for the Department of Biology. The 207,000-sf project comprises a 187,000-sf teaching and research building and a 20,000-sf greenhouse. Providing a gateway between the main and south campus, the facility features a five-story glass atrium with a communicating stair to promote interaction among students and faculty.
Bradley University is constructing the $100 million Business and Engineering Complex in Peoria, Ill. Featuring flexible learning spaces to promote interaction, the 270,000-sf facility will house the Foster College of Business, the Caterpillar College of Engineering and Technology, and the Institute for Innovation through Collaboration.
The University of Louisville opened the $80 million Belknap Academic Building in August of 2018 in Louisville, Ky. The four-story, 169,420-gsf facility provides 50 classrooms, including 20 state-of-the-art active learning classrooms. The building also houses a student success center, a multipurpose teacher space, 11 group study rooms, seven seminar rooms, six chemistry labs, four biology labs, three physics labs, an anthropology/physics lab, and several interaction lounges. Site work began on the project in September of 2016.
Indiana University School of Medicine dedicated the $70 million Stone Family Center for Health Sciences in August of 2018. Located in downtown Evansville, the four-story, 141,000-sf building was created in partnership with the University of Southern Indiana and the University of Evansville. The facility features a 150-seat auditorium, a spacious atrium, advanced simulation training suites, a dental clinic, classrooms, offices, and laboratories for teaching and research. Ground was broken on the project in October of 2015.
Universities and businesses have worked together for decades. Today, changes in funding and in STEM career paths have made those partnerships more attractive than ever—so attractive, in fact, that many institutions are planning new spaces specifically for them. With limits on government funding in recent years, and state and local funding stagnant, many institutions are seeing 25 to 30 percent of their research funding coming from outside sources, primarily private industry. That has led to more elaborate and specific consideration of industry partnerships as a part of strategic planning.
NASA Glenn Research Center will begin construction in fall of 2018 on the Research Support Building in Cleveland. Walsh Construction Company has been awarded a $32.7 million contract to build the two-story, 64,000-sf facility, which will provide collaborative engineering suites, open and private offices, conference rooms, training areas, and dining amenities for approximately 164 employees.
Mercyhurst University opened the MCPc Cyber Education Center in August of 2018 in Erie, Pa. Accommodating programs for the Ridge College of Intelligence Studies and Applied Sciences, the $2 million facility houses MCPc's Security Operations Center as well as providing two computer mathematics labs, a cybersecurity lab, and several collaboration areas. Designed by Keyman Asefi, a faculty member in the department of Interior Architecture and Design, the 8,000-sf center is located on the ground floor of Hammermill Library.
