Biocontainment

Murray State University opened the new Breathitt Veterinary Center in May of 2017 in Hopkinsville, Ky. Replacing the state’s existing animal health lab, the $33 million facility features a BSL-3 suite, an expanded necropsy area, technology-rich classrooms, and collaborative research space. The 77,000-sf center provides 53,000 sf of dedicated diagnostic facilities and features an advanced HVAC system to enhance biosecurity throughout the building. Ground was broken in September of 2014 on the sustainably designed project, which is expected to attain LEED Silver.

The Pirbright Institute is planning to build the £48 million High Containment Large Animal Facility in Pirbright in the United Kingdom. Designed by NBBJ, the project will provide advanced biocontainment labs and vivarium space to support collaborative research on infectious diseases including foot-and-mouth disease, avian influenza, and African swine fever. 

Auburn University will begin construction in summer of 2017 on the Poultry Infectious Disease Biocontainment Research Facility in Auburn, Ala. Designed to exceed state and federal compliance standards, the 5,000-sf facility will enable investigators from the College of Agriculture to perform research on live birds as well as infectious disease agents. Occupancy is expected in summer of 2018. Additionally, a $3 million administration building will be constructed at the Charles C. Miller Jr. Poultry Research and Education Center.

The Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory opened its new $53 million headquarters in College Station in April of 2017. Designed by Perkins+Will, the 93,000-sf facility features open-plan research areas, BSL-3 labs for the detection and study of infectious diseases, BSL-2 labs, a full-service necropsy suite, a conference room, and a secure sample drop-off area. Vaughn Construction broke ground on the project in late 2014.

The University of Nebraska Medical Center officially broke ground in April of 2017 on the $119 million Balbach Global Center for Advanced Interprofessional Learning in Omaha. Serving as the headquarters for the Interprofessional Experiential Center for Enduring Learning (iEXCEL), the four-story, 191,884-sf facility will feature simulation suites and virtual immersive reality environments for medical training. The ground floor of the building will be occupied by the National Center for Health Security and Biopreparedness.

Texas Tech University broke ground on the $77 million Experimental Sciences Building II in February of 2017 in Lubbock, Texas. Designed by TreanorHL to support interdisciplinary research, the collaborative 117,000-gsf facility will provide four general wet labs, three core instrumentation suites, two synthetic labs, a vivarium, a BSL-2 lab, conference rooms, and offices for researchers and principal investigators. The construction manager for the LEED-certified facility, which comprises four stories and a basement, is Project Control.

Value engineering (VE) can save money on a BSL-3 project without compromising facility operations, lifecycle costs, regulatory compliance, or biocontainment requirements; if managed correctly, VE is an opportunity to improve a project, not just a cost-cutting tactic.

Central Michigan University opened the $95 million Biosciences Building in January of 2017 in Mount Pleasant. Designed by Stantec to promote interaction and collaboration, the four-story, 169,000-sf facility provides teaching labs, research labs, lecture halls, an active learning classroom, an auditorium, and faculty offices. The building also includes a BSL-3 suite, an herbarium, an imaging center, and an aquatic research vivarium. Clark Construction began work on the project in September of 2014.

With many aging animal and biocontainment facilities coming to the end of their useful life, renovations, modernizations, and upgrades are by far the top priorities among facility owners and operators, and greater flexibility and adaptability are the hottest issues in project and program planning. Rodents are still overwhelmingly the primary species in animal research, according to industry leaders, and most containment facilities maintain a combination of containment levels; of facilities housing a single containment level, BSL-2 is by far the most prevalent.

The Jackson Laboratory is building the $21 million Center for Biometric Analysis in Bar Harbor, Maine. Designed by Harriman Associates, the 21,000-sf facility will support the precision analysis of disease markers in research mice through advanced imaging and analytical technologies. PC Construction broke ground on the project in June of 2016 and completion is expected by January of 2018. The construction cost of the facility is $14 million. 

Hamad Medical Corporation opened the 97,000-sf Communicable Disease Center (CDC) in Doha in November of 2016. Located at Hamad bin Khalifa Medical City, the facility will support the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of diseases including tuberculosis, HIV, influenza, hepatitis, measles, and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome. The CDC features 65 private inpatient rooms with sustainable negative pressure and one hundred percent fresh air exchange, as well as a BSL-3 lab, an automated pharmacy, an outpatient center, and a travel clinic.

Texas A&M University is planning to begin construction in January of 2017 on the $86 million Global Health Research Complex in College Station. The 102,000-sf biocontainment facility will provide advanced laboratories for the study of infectious agents and diseases in plants, animals, and humans. Supporting collaboration within the A&M System, the project will collocate biomedical, veterinary, engineering, and environmental science research in a single complex to create innovative strategies for diagnosis, treatment, and prevention.

The University of Nebraska Medical Center will construct the National Center for Health Security and Biopreparedness on its Omaha healthcare campus. Occupying the entire ground floor of the planned Global Center for Advanced Interprofessional Learning, the 30,000-sf facility will provide advanced simulation suites and inpatient quarantine areas for the management of infectious diseases such as Ebola. The biocontainment training center is supported by $19.8 million in funding from the U.S.

Research has begun at the £650 million Francis Crick Institute in London. Designed by HOK in partnership with PLP Architecture, the 10-story, 980,000-sf facility can accommodate 1,250 scientists and 250 support staff engaged in interdisciplinary biomedical research. The Crick Institute represents a partnership between University College London, Imperial College London, and King’s College London, working in collaboration with the UK Medical Research Council, the Wellcome Trust, and Cancer Research UK.

University of Chicago Medicine broke ground in September of 2016 on a $43 million emergency department and trauma center. Located in Hyde Park adjacent to the Center for Care and Discovery, the 29,017-gsf facility will feature four trauma resuscitation bays, private patient rooms, a bariatric room with ceiling lifts, and a medical biocontainment unit. Completion is expected in early 2018.