Arizona State University completed construction in early 2022 on the $192 million Rob and Melani Walton Center for Planetary Health in Tempe. Designed by Architekton and Grimshaw, the 281,000-gsf facility provides leading-edge research labs for biological and life sciences, engineering, and sustainability, as well as offering dry labs for programs in computing, cybersecurity, and robotics.
North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University opened the $90 million Harold L. Martin Sr. Engineering Research & Innovation Complex in Greensboro in February of 2022. Designed by EYP Architecture & Engineering, the four-story, 130,000-gsf building accommodates programs in cybersecurity and network systems, energy and sustainability, and health applications.
The U.S. Air Force will begin construction in spring of 2022 on the $279 million Compound Semiconductor Laboratory – Microsystem Integration Facility (CSL-MIF) in Lexington, Mass. Supporting the growth, fabrication, and characterization of semiconductors made of two or more different elements, the 160,000-sf structure will enable scientists and engineers to package heterogeneously integrated electronic prototypes for specialized applications.
The University of Michigan is planning to build the $145 million Leinweber Computer Science and Information Building on the North Campus in Ann Arbor. Fostering interdisciplinary collaboration and convergence, the 163,000-gsf facility will house both the School of Information and the College of Engineering’s Computer Science and Engineering Division. The technology-rich structure will feature innovative learning environments and research labs for programs in artificial intelligence, human-computer interaction, and information privacy and security.
The University of Arizona began construction in October of 2021 on a $42 million renovation and expansion of the historic Old Chemistry Building in Tucson. Designed by Shepley Bulfinch and Poster Mirto McDonald, the project will provide the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry with 55,000 sf of renovated space featuring four new collaborative classrooms, three teaching studios for online instruction, a visualization cave for immersive virtual learning, and technology-rich research labs.
The University of Arizona broke ground in September of 2021 on the $99 million Grand Challenges Research Building in Tucson. Designed by ZGF Architects and BWS Architects, the 115,000-sf interdisciplinary facility will provide flexible labs for programs in optics, quantum computing, advanced communications, and biomedicine.
The University of Wisconsin-Madison is planning to begin construction in 2023 on a $225 million facility for the School of Computer, Data & Information Sciences. Catalyzing synergies between academic researchers and industry partners, the seven-story, 300,000-sf building will provide a dynamic nexus for Wisconsin’s growing tech ecosystem while meeting increased demand for programs in robotics, cybersecurity, software design, and machine learning.
Virginia Tech broke ground in fall of 2021 on the first academic building on its Innovation Campus in Alexandria. Designed by SmithGroup, the 300,000-gsf facility will offer experiential learning environments, maker spaces, flexible multipurpose areas, faculty offices, and research and testing labs for the school's graduate programs in computer science and engineering.
Trinity College Dublin began construction in September of 2021 on the Martin Naughton E3 Learning Foundry in Ireland. Designed by Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios to promote collaboration and innovation, the six-story, 78,577-sf building will be shared by the schools of engineering, natural sciences, and computer science and statistics. Enabling a dynamic pedagogy of project-based learning, the $71 million interdisciplinary facility will offer maker spaces, studios, and interactive classrooms to support Trinity's Engineering, Environment and Emerging Technologies initiative.
Rice University began site work in summer of 2021 for the $152 million Engineering and Science Building in Houston. Designed by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill with Scientia Architects as laboratory design consultant, the 266,000-sf structure will provide state-of-the-art labs, maker spaces, seminar rooms, interactive gathering areas, classrooms, and a dedicated prototyping facility. Flexible office areas will include touchdown spaces for faculty, graduate students, and staff.
The University of Victoria will break ground in early 2022 on a CAD$89.6 million project to provide new facilities for the Department of Engineering and Computer Science (ECS). A six-story addition to the existing ECS building will feature new laboratories and instructional venues for the university's growing programs in biomedical, civil, computer, electrical, mechanical, and software engineering. The adjacent High Bay Research and Structures Lab will enable large-scale experiments and the testing of new construction methods and materials.
The University of Illinois at Chicago broke ground in July of 2021 on the $118 million Computer Design Research and Learning Center. Designed by LMN Architects and Booth Hansen to enhance interaction and intellectual exchange, the 135,000-sf facility will provide 35 research labs, 15 classrooms, faculty and administrative offices, an auditorium, and a flexible event venue. The inviting structure will act as a new hub of campus activity with a five-story daylit atrium and an undergraduate learning and community center.
Northeastern University is constructing the 350,000-sf EXP building in Boston. Complementing the adjacent Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Complex, the highly collaborative facility will provide active learning environments, teaching and research labs, a maker space, undergraduate chemistry labs, executive offices, a café, and a faculty club. Housing the Institute for Experiential Robotics and the Institute for the Wireless Internet of Things, the eight-story structure will accelerate the development of advanced humanoid robots, drones, and autonomous vehicles.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation broke ground in June of 2021 on the 250,000-sf Innovation Center in Huntsville, Ala. Located on the 243-acre Redstone Arsenal campus, the three-story facility will provide secure, sophisticated environments for data analytics, agent training, and the detection and mitigation of cyber threats. The technology-rich structure will offer collaborative workspaces, formal and informal auditoria, huddle spaces, a virtual reality classroom, and a kinetic cyber range.
MiraCosta Community College is planning to construct a 23,000-sf chemistry and biotechnology building in Oceanside, Calif. The $46.9 million project, crafted through a design-build partnership between HED and C.W. Driver, will provide leading-edge environments for the school's growing biotechnology program and other STEM courses in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Featuring flexible, 40-person classrooms, the facility will offer a vibrant mix of instructional, work, social, and laboratory spaces.
