Biocontainment

Indiana University Bloomington opened a new laboratory for the study of select agents and pathogens at the College of Arts and Sciences in August of 2009. The project team included BSA LifeStructures of Indianapolis as architect/engineer of record with CDI of Bloomington as general contractor. Laboratory control systems were provided by Siemens of Indianapolis with commissioning services provided by George Butler Associates of Lenexa, Kan., and VicoCon of Kansas City, Mo.

The University of Tennessee Health Science Center opened its $25 million Regional Biocontainment Laboratory in Memphis in August of 2009. Designed by The Horrell Group and built by Inman Construction, the 31,000-sf BSL-3 facility is located in the UT-Baptist Research Park. Construction will begin on a 30,000-sf vivarium laboratory at the site in 2010.

The State of New York is planning to construct a $40 million laboratory at the Harriman Research and Technology Campus in Albany. As the home of the State Food Laboratory and the State Metrology Laboratory, the 70,000-sf building will house advanced instrumentation and BSL-3 biocontainment laboratories. The three-story facility will be designed and built by the State Office of General Services. LEED Silver certification will be sought for the project, which will feature energy recovery systems and a reflective roof.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded a $35 million contract in June of 2009 to Protein Sciences Corporation of Meriden, Conn., to pursue advanced development of recombinant influenza vaccine. The technology involves injecting flu virus genes into an insect virus (baculovirus) where it multiplies quickly in the insect cells, which are purified to become a part of a human vaccine.

President Barack Obama allocated $1.825 billion for H1N1 preparedness in July of 2009. Supporting vaccine development, testing, and planning, the funding comes from $7.65 in funding previously awarded to the Department of Health and Human Services by Congress for H1N1 pandemic response. H1N1 vaccine manufacturers for the United States include Novartis, Sanofi Aventis, GlaxoSmithKline, Baxter, and AstraZeneca.

The University of Wyoming broke ground in June of 2009 on a $24.9 million BSL-3 laboratory in Laramie. Located at the Wyoming State Veterinary Laboratory, the facility will support infectious disease research and testing. The laboratory will enable rapid diagnosis of disease agents affecting wildlife, herd animals, and humans. Completion is expected in 2011.

Building Protection Systems, Inc., (BPSI) of San Francisco has unveiled Building Sentry One, a real-time toxin-detection identification system designed to protect buildings and people inside of them from accidental or deliberate airborne chemical or radiological releases. Upon detection of a biohazard, the system automatically shuts down a building's air and ventilation system. The SAFETY ACT designation is one of less than forty given to new technologies in 2008. Former Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Head Tom Ridge is acting as a senior advisor to the firm.

Construction of the 41,000-square-foot New England Regional Biosafety Laboratory at Tufts University is now complete.

Ethiopia's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development opened a $90,000 biosafety laboratory in Sebeta in May of 2009. The BSL-3 facility will be operated by the National Animal Health Diagnostic and Investigation Centre. Enabling the diagnosis of zoonotic and infectious diseases, the facility includes biosafety cabinets, a refrigerated micro-centrifuge, incubators, a thermo-mixer, and a PCR work station.

Indonesia’s Ministry of Health announced plans in May of 2009 to build a flu vaccine research and production facility. The laboratory will eventually manufacture a single human vaccine for swine and avian flu viruses. A flu vaccine laboratory is currently under construction at Airlangga University in Surabaya, East Java. Construction began on a flu vaccine facility at the PT Biofarma campus in Bandung in May of 2009.

The Aeras Global TB Vaccine Foundation opened its 9,000-sf vaccine manufacturing facility in Rockville, Md., in April of 2009. The project will support tuberculosis vaccine development and production, as well as research into aerosol vaccine formulations. The BSL-2 facility was built by general contractor Whiting-Turner of Baltimore.

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases is building the $105 million Integrated Research Facility (IRF) in Fort Detrick, Md. Housing BSL-2, BSL-3, and BSL-4 laboratories for select agent and infectious disease research, the IRF will provide 11,125-sf of secure research space for 30 investigators. The building will feature PET, CT, MRI, and X-ray scanners to study the effects of infectious diseases on primates. The construction manager for the project is Gilbane Building Company.

NanoLogix began construction on a manufacturing facility for bacteria and pathogen test kits in April of 2009. Located at NanoLogix’s headquarters in Hubbard, Ohio, the 2,800-sf project will include a production cleanroom and a cold storage vault. The BNP™ Ultra-Fast test kits will be used to detect agents such as anthrax, bubonic plague, e-coli, salmonella, listeria, and enterobacter.

Idaho Technology celebrated the opening of its new $8.5 million R&D facility in Salt Lake City in April of 2009. Located in the University of Utah Research Park, the 41,000-sf project houses laboratories for the development of infectious disease and biological warfare testing solutions. Clinical trials will begin in mid-2009 on the technology, which will be released as kits for the detection of viruses, bacteria, and select agents in 2010.

Tufts University dedicated the $33.7 million New England Regional Biosafety Laboratory on March 30, 2009. Sited on 5.4 acres in North Grafton, Mass., the 41,000-sf project provides 649-sf of BSL-2 space and 8,480-sf of BSL-3 space for zoonotic disease research. The secure facility was designed by Flad Architects and includes laboratories, a vivarium, an insectary, and support space. Construction began on the laboratory in September of 2007.