Industry News

The Institute for Business & Home Safety celebrated the opening of the $27 million Insurance Center for Building Safety Research in October of 2010. Located in Chester, S.C., the multi-hazard research complex enables model structures to be tested in conditions resembling natural catastrophes to identify effective methods of minimizing risk and loss to homes and businesses. Designed by Odell Associates of Charlotte, N.C., the facility includes a 21,000-sf test chamber, a secondary research building, and a conference center.

FM:Systems, a leading provider of integrated workplace management systems (IWMS) and facility management software, announced in October of 2010 the availability of FM:Interact’s direct integration with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s ENERGY STAR® energy performance rating system. The direct integration allows FM:Interact to seamlessly deliver ENERGY STAR performance ratings, the most widely used benchmark for energy use in commercial buildings.

The University of California, Los Angles will begin construction in fall of 2011 on the $30 million Western Institute of Nanotechnology on Green Engineering and Metrology. Providing 35,000 sf of laboratory space on four floors, the facility will support research and instruction for the Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science. The building will also house the Center on Functional Engineered Nano Architectonics and the Energy Frontier Research Center on Molecularly Engineered Energy Materials.

Colorado State University will break ground on a $69 million facility for the School of Biomedical Engineering in April of 2011. Located in Fort Collins, the 122,000-sf Engineering II facility will house multidisciplinary research laboratories and instructional space. LEED Gold sustainable design certification will be sought for the project. Completion is expected in fall of 2012.

Becton, Dickinson and Company opened the $59 million BD Biosciences - Advanced Bioprocessing AF2™ Production Facility in October of 2010 in Miami. The facility is the industry’s first fully dedicated, stand-alone “antibiotic-free” and “animal-free” facility for producing high-quality cell culture media and supplements that are used in the production of vaccines and biopharmaceuticals. BD invested more than $20 million in renovating 90,000 sf at the former IVAX Pharmaceuticals building in North Miami.