The University of Iowa dedicated the State Hygienic Laboratory on May 5, 2010. The $38 million facility is located in the University of Iowa Research Park in Coralville. The building features an open lab plan to maximize researcher collaboration. The LEED-certified facility supports detection and response for environmental contaminants and infectious diseases.
HR 5057, the Weapons of Mass Destruction Prevention and Preparedness Act of 2010, was introduced to the U.S. House of Representatives on April 15, 2010. The legislation promotes the registration of all BSL-3 laboratories, harmonization of oversight, and simultaneous facility inspections. $50 million in grants for strengthening biosecurity infrastructure would also be made available.
The University of Nebraska Medical Center will begin construction in 2011 on a $10.7 million renovation of its cancer research building in Omaha. The facility will house biomedical and biodefense research and is slated for completion in June of 2012. The project is supported by $8 million in federal stimulus funding from the National Institutes of Health.
Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health opened its expanded veterinary vaccine manufacturing plant in April of 2010. Located in the Netherlands at Biosciences Center Boxmeer, the $22 million project increased production space for bacterial vaccines from 1,500 sm to over 5,500 sm. The cGMP facility includes fermentors, cleanrooms, and biocontainment suites. Construction began on the project in December of 2007.
Cobb-Vantress is constructing a $1.8 million laboratory at its headquarters in Siloam Springs. Accommodating disease diagnostics and biotechnology research, the 5,000-sf facility will utilize molecular scanning equipment to analyze samples. Occupancy is expected in early 2011. The sustainably-designed facility will feature advanced HVAC and building insulation systems. Cobb-Vantress is a poultry producer and supplier.
Universiti Malaya opened its Modular Biosafety Level 3 Research Facility in April of 2010 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The RM10 million laboratory houses facilities for the detection and study of infectious tropical diseases like dengue fever. The facility is located at the university’s Tropical Infectious Diseases Research and Education Centre and will support vaccine development and commercialization of biomedical discoveries.
Ohio State University broke ground in April of 2010 on a $22.2 million biocontainment laboratory in Wooster. The 27,000-sf Plant and Animal Agrosecurity Research (PAAR) Facility will house BSL-3 and BSL-3Ag laboratories. The facility will include suites for work on larger animals such as cows and pigs. Completion is expected in summer of 2012.
The University of South Alabama College of Medicine has selected Barganier Davis Sims Architects to design its Laboratory of Infectious Diseases (LID). Supported by $14.5 million in stimulus funding from the National Institutes of Health, 25,800-sf facility will be located in the University of South Alabama Technology and Research Park in Mobile. The BSL-3 facility is slated for completion by March of 2013.
Pennsylvania State University was awarded $14.8 million in stimulus funding in March of 2010 to construct a biocontainment laboratory in University Park. The 20,000-sf laboratory will support research on infectious diseases and pathogens. Construction will begin in early 2011 and reach completion within two years.
The Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory broke ground on a BSL-3 laboratory in Amarillo in March of 2010. The addition and renovation project is slated for completion in early 2011. The facility will support rapid response to agricultural or zoonotic disease threats.
The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center is partnering with Battelle, IBM, Merck, and GE Healthcare to plan the construction of a vaccine factory in the Pittsburgh area. Operated in partnership with the federal government, the facility would support rapid response to bioterrorism and infectious disease threats. The construction cost of the vaccine factory is estimated at $900 million.
India’s National Institute of Virology is building a BSL-4 laboratory in Pune, Maharashtra. The facility is slated for completion in December of 2010. The lab will provide research facilities for the study of infectious diseases and pathogens including H1N1.
Haffkine will open a BSL-3 laboratory for H1N1 testing in August of 2010. The renovated facility is located in Mumbai and represents a government investment of Rs 4.5 crore (Rs 450M or $9.8M).
West Virginia University was awarded $14.5 million in stimulus funding in March of 2010 to build a biomedical research facility in Morgantown. Located adjacent to the existing Health Sciences Center, the 22,000-sf project will include modern animal housing space and biosafety laboratories.
Charles Sturt University opened the $8.2 million Veterinary Diagnostics Laboratory in Wagga Wagga in February of 2010. Providing space for animal disease detection and post-mortem examinations of livestock, the secure facility features a PC3 (physical containment level three) laboratory for infectious disease research on select agents such as anthrax, Q-fever, and psittacosis.
