Biocontainment

Tradeline asked 120 individuals representing 98 research organizations to prioritize their areas of focus for 2013 and to make open-ended comments regarding those priorities. The priorities identified in this survey will be the focus of Tradeline's upcoming conference: The 2013 International Conference on Biocontainment Facilities on March 18-19, 2013, in San Diego.

The respondents’ overall priorities are:

1. Pressure and airflow control

2. Maintenance/operations requirements and processes

3. People, teams, and competency

Despite years of planning, in-depth professional experience, and multiple layers of oversight, things often do not work as planned at biocontainment laboratories. Even when they meet all safety and security requirements, facilities may run into unexpected life cycle costs which only become evident after a year or two of occupancy and operation, says Tim Mandrell, DVM, director of lab animal care for the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHTC) Regional Biocontainment Laboratory. Knowing what problems to look and prepare for can help minimize costly facility downtime.

The University of Hawaii is planning to build the $47.5 Pacific Health Research Lab in Kalaeloa in West Oahu. The 31,000-sf facility will provide biocontainment laboratories for the study of emerging infectious diseases. The project will be a Regional Biosafety Laboratory and is supported by funding from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

When the Institute for Animal Health in Pirbright, U.K., launched a significant upgrade of aging infrastructure to improve health- and safety-related systems at its high-level containment facilities, project leaders undertook a benchmarking process to determine how much the upgrades would cost to operate and how Pirbright's organizational structure compared with similar facilities in preparing to meet long-range goals.

Researchers at the Health Protection Agency (HPA) in the United Kingdom have developed a way to safely anesthetize and transfer animals from BSL-3 and BSL-4 containment to a mobile imaging facility for CT and MRI scans without breaking the containment barrier. The process allows them to obtain the high-resolution, three-dimensional images necessary for their research without building a costly suite onsite.

The District of Columbia opened the $210 million Consolidated Forensic Laboratory in October of 2012 in Washington. The 351,000-sf (287,000-nsf) facility provides diagnostic labs for public health, autopsies, DNA testing, and the investigation of bioterrorism threats. The eight-story building includes two floors below grade and includes a BSL-3 suite.

The need to minimize risk governs almost every aspect of building operation at biocontainment facilities, presenting special management and operational challenges. With safety and security such paramount priorities, the rigorous environment is further complicated by sophisticated infrastructure, multiple user groups, and a mix of personnel with varied competencies and skill levels.

The Saskatchewan Disease Control Laboratory opened a CL3 biocontainment facility in September of 2012. The lab is sited on the campus of the University of Regina and will provide rapid specimen testing for infectious disease identification and response. The facility is located in a three-story, 107,639-sf building that was completed in May of 2010. 

Washington State University dedicated the Paul G. Allen Center for Global Animal Health in September of 2012 in Pullman, Wash. The three-story, 62,000-sf facility features a 5,000-sf BSL-3 laboratory for infectious disease research as well as two floors of BSL-2 research space and an administrative wing housing offices and conference rooms. The facility was designed by Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Architects and built by Bouten Construction.

Tufts University School of Medicine will begin construction in fall of 2012 on the 1,700-sf Arnold 8 Biosafety Laboratory. The BSL-3 facility will be located in the Biomedical Research and Public Health Building in Boston and will support interdisciplinary research on tuberculosis. The estimated cost of construction is $3.5 million. Completion is expected in 2013. 

The Department of Defense is expanding its biocontainment laboratory at Dugway Proving Ground in Utah. A 41,000-sf addition to the 33,150-sf Lothar Salomon Life Sciences Test Facility will provide BSL-3 lab space for the development of threat mitigation technologies for biological weapons and infectious disease agents. The expansion will also provide administrative space and a conference room. The general contractor for the $22.6 million project is Big-D Construction of Salt Lake City. 

The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) has awarded three contracts for the creation of pandemic influenza vaccines and chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) medical countermeasures for national emergency preparedness.

The Department of Health is building the $218 million Consolidated Forensic Laboratory in Washington, D.C. The eight-story building includes two floors below grade and features a BSL-3 laboratory and a forensic biology research suite. The project team includes general contractor Whiting Turner, construction manager Jacobs Engineering, design architect HOK, and Vanderweil Engineers.

Southern Research Institute announced in May of 2012 that it will collaborate with the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston to develop and validate a high-volume, high-throughput screening platform within BSL-4 containment space at Galveston National Lab. High-throughput screening (HTS) involves the process of rapidly screening and testing large numbers of different chemical compounds against select disease targets.

The Public Health Agency of Canada is building the J.C. Wilt Infectious Diseases Research Centre in Winnipeg. Designed by Smith Carter Architects and Engineers and built by PCL Constructors Canada, the $42 million project includes renovation of an existing structure to provide BSL-2 research space for the adjacent National Microbiology Laboratory. The construction cost of the facility is $23 million. LEED sustainable design certification will be sought for the project. Occupancy is expected by February of 2013.