Energy

LAVLE USA is partnering with Old Dominion University to create the $12 million Marine Electric Propulsion Simulation (MEPS) Laboratory in Newport News, Va. Supporting both military and commercial applications, the 22,000-sf facility will house sophisticated instrumentation for the development of electric propulsion, advanced energy storage, and autonomous systems technologies. Construction is expected to begin in summer of 2019 with completion in summer of 2020. 

The University of Manchester opened the £60 million Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre in December of 2018 in the United Kingdom. Located in the new 91,000-sf Masdar Building on the North campus, the facility will accommodate collaborative materials science research and development with King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) and Khalifa University of Science and Technology.

Georgia Southern University broke ground in December of 2018 on the $50 million Center for Engineering and Research in Statesboro. Designed by SmithGroup and Stevens & Wilkinson to promote interaction and collaboration, the three-story, 135,000-sf facility will provide a centralized home for the departments and disciplines of the Allen E. Paulson College of Engineering and Computing.

Harvard University opened HouseZero in December of 2018 in Cambridge, Mass. Acting as a living laboratory for sustainable design and construction, the project features a data-driven infrastructure with nearly 300 embedded sensors that produce 17 million data points in real time each day. Software informed by the house's sensors automatically opens and closes windows, circulating air through cross ventilation and convection flows. Algorithms informed by sensors optimize ventilation in relation to the house's mass, reducing the need for building systems almost entirely.

Ramaco Carbon began construction in October of 2018 on the Carbon Advanced Materials (iCAM) facility in Sheridan, Wyo. Providing collaborative research space for academic, government, and industry partners, the 10,000-sf building will include a 3D printing and manufacturing suite, a pilot plant, laboratories, and offices. Designed by Dynia Architects, the facility will support the development of advanced products based on the carbon derived from coal. The engineering consultant for the center is WWC Engineering.

Baker Hughes General Electric, a subsidiary of GE, is planning to build a £31 million Centre of Excellence in Montrose, Scotland. The company's existing facilities will be expanded and renovated to create a leading-edge R&D complex for the manufacture, testing, and assembly of subsea equipment for oil and gas extraction and production. Sited on 35 acres, the 430,000-sf project will offer sophisticated virtual reality tools and 3D printing suites to enable the development of new manufacturing processes and technologies.

Construction will begin in late 2018 on the £20 million Maritime Knowledge Hub in Birkenhead in the United Kingdom. Located in the Wirral Waters redevelopment, the collaborative maritime education and research facility is being created by a partnership of Liverpool John Moores University, Peel Land and Property, Mersey Maritime, and Wirral Council.

King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) inaugurated the 145,300-sf Dow Innovation Center in May of 2018. Created in partnership with The Dow Chemical Company, the facility offers sophisticated research laboratories for creation of advanced technologies for water, oil, and gas processing, and the development of innovative construction materials and coatings. The project was designed by HOK and Kirksey Architects with Vanderweil Engineers as MEP engineer.

The University of Tennessee will break ground in fall of 2018 on a $129 million engineering building in Knoxville. Designed by McCarty Holsaple McCarty with SmithGroupJJR as laboratory planner, the facility will comprise a central structure with two wings of up to five stories. The 228,000-sf project will provide flexible classrooms and research labs, maker spaces, project rooms, informal interaction areas, an atrium, and dedicated space for the department of nuclear engineering.

Canadian Nuclear Laboratories began construction in February of 2018 on three new facilities in Chalk River, Ontario. Representing an investment of over CAD$100 million, the project includes:

At its new West Campus, Yale University is incrementally repurposing and renovating a former corporate pharmaceutical manufacturing facility for new interdisciplinary programs, including the Energy Sciences Institute (ESI) and Yale West Campus Materials Characterization Core (MCC).

The Department of Energy is planning research infrastructure upgrades to multiple user facilities. The U.S. House of Representatives passed three bills in November of 2017 to provide funding for these projects. 

The Research Infrastructure Act directs and authorizes the Secretary of Energy to:

The University of Michigan is planning to begin construction in spring of 2018 on the $90 million Engineering Laboratory Building (ELB) in Dearborn. Designed by SmithGroupJJR, the 120,000-sf project will include 63,000 sf of new construction and 57,000 sf of renovated space. Promoting collaborative learning and innovation, the multidisciplinary facility will offer 28 labs, 23 faculty offices, and five general classrooms.

Vanderbilt University’s new Engineering and Science Building (ESB) brings the physical sciences and engineering together to expand interdisciplinary research in biomedical engineering, energy, and materials; recruit faculty in areas of nanotechnology and environmental engineering; and create a new undergraduate research-focused culture on campus.

Binghamton University opened the $70 million Smart Energy Building in late August of 2017 in Vestal, N.Y. Located in the Innovative Technologies Complex, the two-story, 114,000-sf project accommodates research and development programs for the departments of chemistry and physics. Supporting the creation of advanced clean energy solutions, the collaborative facility provides laboratories, classrooms, 45 faculty offices, and a total of 125 fume hoods.