Sustainability

Bulfinch began construction in January of 2019 on a 270,000-sf lab and office facility in Cambridge, Mass. Located at 400-500 Cambridge Discovery Park, the six-story building comprises two separate base structures that are physically connected on floors three through six. Offering 42,000-sf floorplates of open and efficient Class A facilities, the complex will include a fitness center, a café, and an adjacent 383-car parking garage. Floor-to-ceiling windows will provide abundant natural light with sophisticated building systems ensuring optimal energy efficiency.

EMD Serono is planning to construct a $70 million R&D facility on its existing campus in Billerica, Mass. Supporting research programs in oncology, immuno-oncology, and immunology, the 145,000-sf building will accommodate wet labs, offices, collaboration spaces, and a cafeteria. Designed to attain LEED and WELL certification, the project will provide a healthy and sustainable environment for approximately 400 employees. Completion is expected in 2021. EMD Serono is the biopharmaceutical business of Merck KGaA, based in Darmstadt, Germany.

York University opened the $50 million Rob and Cheryl McEwen Graduate Study & Research Building in Toronto in January of 2019. Designed by Baird Sampson Neuert Architects to accommodate programs for the Schulich School of Business, the 67,000-sf facility features one 90-seat and two 60-seat flat floor classrooms, 10 breakout rooms, four seminar rooms, and a three-story atrium with open seating, collaboration areas, and a café.

Mitsubishi Electric Corporation is planning to build a $33 million R&D facility for the creation of technologies for Zero Energy Buildings (ZEB) in Kamakura, Japan. The project will accelerate the company’s development, evaluation, and demonstration of ZEB technologies to meet the growing demand for buildings that combine comfort and superior energy savings. Mitsubishi Electric’s ZEB technologies are part of the company’s wide-ranging effort to help achieve the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals.

The University of Colorado broke ground in late January of 2019 on the $176 million Anschutz Health Sciences Building in Aurora. Designed by ZGF Architects and Anderson Mason Dale Architects, the seven-story, 390,00-sf facility will provide computational laboratories, classrooms, mental and behavioral health research clinics, a medical simulation training hub, faculty offices, and space for clinical trials.

The National University of Singapore opened the six-story, 92,000-sf Net-Zero Energy Building in January of 2019. Providing design studios, teaching and research space, and common areas for the School of Design and Environment, SDE4 is the first new-build, net-zero facility in Singapore. WELL certification will be sought for the project, which features a rooftop solar farm with 1225 panels, a hybrid cooling system, and a narrow floorplate to optimize passive ventilation and natural lighting.

Stellenbosch University began construction in January of 2019 on the $75 million Biomedical Research Institute in Cape Town, South Africa. Providing leading-edge research facilities for the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, the integrated complex will include a bioinformatics hub, a clinical research unit, a biorepository, conference rooms, and labs for proteomics, electron microscopy, and flow cytometry.

Colorado State University opened the $19.5 million Nancy Richardson Design Center in January of 2019 in Fort Collins. Designed by OZ Architecture and Salt Design, the collaborative 45,000-sf facility provides a two-story atrium, design studios, technology-rich fabrication and prototyping labs, presentation spaces, classrooms, computer labs, a café, and several outdoor venues.

The Integrated Research and Innovation Center (IRIC) at the University of Idaho houses more than 20 grant-funded teams of faculty and graduate and undergraduate researchers, representing every college at the university, who collaborate on cross-department research in the hard sciences, social sciences, and humanities. No one “owns” any space in the building; instead, teams rotate in and out of the facility based on project lifespan, from a few months to several years, requiring a flexible and adaptable design.

College of the Atlantic will begin construction in spring of 2019 on the $13 million Center for Human Ecology in Bar Harbor, Maine. Designed by GO Logic and Susan T. Rodriguez to accommodate the school's unique interdisciplinary curriculum, the two-story, 29,000-sf building will provide science labs, flexible lecture halls, faculty offices, art and design studios, and a teaching greenhouse.

Iowa State University is building the $84 million Student Innovation Center in Ames. Comprising one basement level and four stories above grade, the 140,000-sf facility will provide an inclusive environment for multidisciplinary collaboration across the university. Designed by KieranTimberlake and Substance Architecture to promote interactive learning and experimentation, the center will offer an auditorium, classrooms, meeting rooms, fabrication areas, staff offices, and a café.

Clemson University is building the $90 million College of Business in North Charleston, S.C. Comprising two towers connected on the ground and first floors by an expansive outdoor stairway and plaza, the collaborative 176,000-sf facility will provide classrooms, labs, an atrium, a board room, a business center, incubator space, a café, a flat-floor auditorium with 220 seats, and faculty and administrative offices.

Ryerson University opened the Centre for Urban Innovation in January of 2018 in Toronto. Designed by Moriyama & Teshima and ERA Architects, the CAD$46 million project included the renovation and expansion of an existing structure to create a 40,000-sf facility providing wet and dry research labs, fabrication suites, a maker space, and offices for business incubation and commercialization.

East Carolina University opened the $122 million Main Campus Student Center in January of 2019 in Greenville, N.C. Designed by Perkins+Will, the 220,000-sf facility features a 10,000-sf commons, a 250-seat black box theater, a divisible 14,000-sf ballroom, and multiple dining options. The center also offers a game room, student lounges, meeting spaces, study areas, retail amenities, a 724-space parking garage, and a massive outdoor digital display for communal viewing of sporting and media events.

Eastern Michigan University opened the renovated and expanded Strong Hall in Ypsilanti in January of 2019. Designed by Stantec, the $40 million project creates flexible teaching and research labs, classrooms, and lecture halls for STEM education including programs in geology, geography, physics, and astronomy. Featuring internal glass walls to put science on display, the 80,700-sf facility provides an atrium, a 200-seat auditorium, a maker space, a machine shop, a laser lab, faculty offices, conference rooms, and huddle spaces.