Biocontainment

The U.S. Department of Agriculture dedicated its high containment large animal facility in Ames, Iowa in July of 2007. As the second component of a multi-phase, $460 million project, the state-of-the-art animal health center will accommodate research on a variety of endemic, zoonotic and foreign animal diseases. Housing BSL-3 laboratories, the facility was constructed in three and a half years and cost approximately $85 million. The new building contains more than 155,000 sf and will house cattle, bison, elk, deer, reindeer, sheep and hogs.

At a Congressional hearing in late July of 2007, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security established a research committee to explore ways of adapting the regulations for the storage of chemicals and hazardous materials for college campuses. As the cost and effort of complying with federal regulations for chemical storage can be extensive, the working group will review and revise the regulations in order to create a standard appropriate for university laboratories and facilities.

UC Davis completed construction of the 125,000-sf Veterinary Medicine III A building in summer of 2007. The $77 million facility houses classrooms and research space to enable consolidation of the School of Veterinary Medicine in a single location. The project began construction in March of 2002 and was publicly funded.

Cornell University celebrated the opening of the 79,000-square-foot East Campus Research Facility (ECRF) on June 26, 2007. Housing approximately 45,000 mice, including transgenic strains, the $55-million building will also accommodate rats, woodchucks, guinea pigs, hamsters, and chickens. Part of Cornell's $600-million New Life Sciences Initiative, the consolidated animal research facility was five years in the making and is expected to be fully operational in fall of 2007. The project was designed by Philadelphia-based Ballinger.

The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth opened its new bioengineering, molecular biology, and cell biology research facility in April of 2007. Home of the National Botulism Research Center, the $14.4 million high-security building will accommodate biotechnology and biochemistry research. The 22,081-sf project was designed by Architectural Resources Cambridge with modular, flexible laboratories and extensive safety measures including the use of exterior concrete barriers.

The long-awatited 5th edition of the Biosafety in Microbiological and Biomedical Laboratories (BMBL) guide is now online on the website of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention at www.cdc.gov/od/ohs/biosfty/bmbl5/bmbl5toc.htm .

UC Davis is proposing to construct five new buildings at the California National Primate Research Center in Davis, Calif. A $5.3-million, 10,000-sf building would accommodate virology and immunology research and would include a 1,100-sf BSL-3 laboratory. Four additional modular buildings would have a footprint of approximately 1,500 sf each, two comprised of laboratory space and two housing office space. Each of the modular buildings would cost approximately $800,000.

Iowa State University (ISU) began construction in late 2006 on the first phase of a $51-million renovation of its Veterinary Diagnostics Laboratory and Veterinary Teaching Hospital. The project includes renovations to the existing 100,000-sf facility and a 55,000-sf addition housing an advanced imaging facility with improved biocontainment capabilities. The second project phase entails renovations of a vacant small animal facility to enable future expansion. Both phases are expected to reach completion in late 2009.

George Mason University (GMU) has opened the 98,974-sf Research I facility in Fairfax, Va. The $21.7-million facility features an astronomical observatory tower and telescope dome, faculty offices, laboratories, and research facilities for the College of Science, including the Center for Earth Observing and Space Research, the Center for Quantum Studies, and the Center for History and New Media. The project began construction in 2003 and opened for classes in fall of 2006. 

The University of Saskatchewan has begun construction on the $110 million International Vaccine Center (InterVac) in Saskatoon. Designed by Smith Carter of Winnipeg, the 165,000-sf facility will include large animal testing facilities and BSL-3 containment laboratories for infectious disease and vaccine research.

The University of Missouri-Columbia and the National Institutes of Health have awarded K&S Associates of St. Louis the $12.6 million contract to construct the new Regional Biocontainment Laboratory (RBL). Located on the east campus with the Veterinary Medicine Complex, the 23,000-gsf BSL-3 facility will contain 9,768 sf of research and support space. The facility will feature a penthouse and full basement for HVAC, mechanical, and electrical systems and equipment.

The Animal Health Centre in Abbotsford, British Columbia, will initiate construction on its Containment Level 3 laboratory in December of 2006. Enabling the Canadian province to respond more effectively to animal disease incidents, the facility will accommodate bacterial and viral testing. The $41.5-million facility will be built by Vanbots Construction and is expected to be operational by late 2007. Prior to occupancy the facility will be commissioned and tested by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

Defense R&D Canada (DRDC) officially opened the Counter Terrorism Technology Centre (CTTC) at DRDC Suffield in Alberta on October 18, 2006.

AMDeC Co., a consortium representing 35 medical institutions in the New York area, is creating a multi-institutional rodent housing facility in Yonkers, New York. Holding up to 80,000 cages and 40,000 mice, the facility will enable institutions such as Columbia University, Rockefeller University, the New York University School of Medicine, and the North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System to share space and equipment for research.

The University of Chicago initiated site work in fall of 2006 on the Howard T. Ricketts Regional Biocontainment Laboratory in Argonne, Ill. The facility will be located on four acres within Argonne National Laboratory. The project team for the $45-million facility includes construction manager Turner Construction of Chicago and designer Flad of Madison, Wisc. Completion is expected in February of 2008.