Industry News

Cambridge-based Biogen is investing $45-million in a second purification suite at its Research Triangle Park campus. The suite is slated for completion in mid-2003. The biotech firm is also planning to complete an 800-car parking deck, with a construction cost of $8- to $9-million, by year-end.

Drexel University's LeBow School of Business has completed the 40,000-sf Pearlstein Business Learning Center. The facility includes centers for e-commerce management and executive education, as well as simulated boardrooms with videoconferencing capabilities. The addition was designed by Philip Johnson in conjunction with New York-based Alan Ritchie Architects and Philadelphia's Burt Hill Kosar Rittelmann Associates.

International Truck & Engine Corp. (ITE), an Illinois-based manufacturer of diesel engines, trucks, and automotive components, will occupy the 352,170-sf SouthCreek Distribution Center in South Fulton County in March 2003. The building includes cross-dock loading, 30-foot-clear ceilings, an ESFR (early suppression, fast response) sprinkler system, and security features such as extra-thick walls and super-durable doors. ITE is the operating company of Navistar International Corp.   

The University of Michigan in Ann Arbor began renovating the 178,930-sf West Hall in summer of 2002. The $15-million project will involve complete demolition and renovation of parts of the first, second and fourth floors and infrastructure upgrades to the remainder of the building. Improvements will be made to the fire protection, HVAC, plumbing, and electrical systems, with some exterior renovations.

Northwestern   University is adding a new four-story office building to Mary Jane McMillen Crowe Hall.