University of Pennsylvania Builds Vagelos Laboratory for Energy Science & Technology

The University of Pennsylvania is building the $173.5 million Vagelos Laboratory for Energy Science & Technology in Philadelphia. Designed by Behnisch Architekten, the seven-story, 113,764-sf facility will enable investigators from the School of Arts and Sciences and the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences to discover new solutions for energy generation, storage, and management. Leveraging sophisticated strategies for the mitigation of vibration and electromagnetic interference, the highly flexible structure will provide research labs for optics and wet chemistry, an NMR spectrometry suite with helium recovery, collaboration spaces, write-up areas, and faculty and administrative offices. A new outdoor courtyard will foster interaction across disciplinary boundaries.

LF Driscoll is acting as construction manager with STO Building Group as general contractor and Acentech as acoustic and vibration consultant. Transsolar is providing climate engineering services for the all-electric development, which is on track for LEED Silver certification. Radiant heating and cooling systems will enhance the building’s energy performance, with sophisticated mechanical infrastructure supplying safe and appropriate airflows. An exterior façade with integrated shading devices will cut off solar angles to maximize natural lighting while minimizing glare. Ground was broken on the project in March of 2022 and occupancy is expected in early 2025.