Industry News

Gallaudet University celebrated the opening of the Molecular Genetics Laboratory in Washington, D.C., in February of 2009. The building will provide research space for the departments of biology and chemistry and is specifically designed for deaf researchers. The open-plan lab houses environmental chambers, ultralow freezers, fume and sterile hoods, DNA gel equipment, and PCR thermocyclers for research in genetics, environmental science, and cancer. Construction began on the project in January of 2008 and reached completion in August of 2008.

Swansea University is planning to construct the £21.6 million Centre for NanoHealth on its Singleton campus in Swansea in the United Kingdom. Supported by £10 million in funding from the Convergence European Regional Development Fund, the integrated facility will enable researchers, clinicians, engineers, and industry partners to develop nanoscale technologies for the creation of advanced biomedical therapies. The Centre for NanoHealth will house interdisciplinary research on regenerative medicine such as tissue engineering utilizing adult stem cells.

Union College is planning to construct the $18 million Peter Irving Wold Science and Engineering Center in Schenectady, N.Y. The three-story, 35,000-sf facility will house labs and classrooms for biochemistry, environmental science, engineering, and energy research. The building will also house incubator research programs in acoustics and aerogel, a rooftop energy research laboratory, and a high performance computing laboratory. Construction is expected to begin in summer of 2009 and reach completion in fall of 2011.

Johannes Gutenberg University is planning to construct the €30 million Excellence Center for Life Sciences in Mainz, Germany. The 6,000-sm project will receive €100 million for operational support over ten years from Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation. The biomedical research facility will be constructed in two phases, with the first phase opening in January of 2011.

The University of Nevada, Las Vegas initiated the interior build-out of the Shadow Lane Biomedical Facility in January of 2009. Designed by SmithGroup of Phoenix with McCarthy as general contractor, the build-out includes modifying 31,200-sf of existing shell space into medical classrooms, laboratories, hospital simulation spaces, offices, and study rooms. McCarthy is also installing new mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems as well as relocating an existing chiller and other mechanical equipment.