University of Washington Nears Completion of Foege Bioengineering Building

The University of Washington is nearing completion on construction of the new William H. Foege Building in Seattle. Providing a central home for the Department of Bioengineering, the 260,000-sf, $150-million facility broke ground in 2001. Designed by CO Architects of Los Angeles, with laboratory design services provided by Research Facilities Design, and built by general contractor Hoffman Construction, the multidisciplinary building is formed by two wings, one for bioengineering and one for genome sciences. Both wings have a similar infrastructure and equipment layout.

The bioengineering wing contains clustered labs dedicated for each investigator surrounded by their support spaces. The lab infrastructure will support features that include microscopy, tissue culture, lasers, cold rooms, and specialized equipment. The genome sciences wing is designed in large, open lofts with modular benches to accommodate multi-disciplinary research groups. Support labs are located on the open walkway for ease of accessibility from the labs or the main corridor, encouraging interaction and reducing mechanical redundancy. The project includes a 200-seat auditorium, a 200-seat cafe, atria, lounges, and conference rooms.