The University of Arizona is planning to build the $136 million Biosciences Partnership Building in Phoenix. Supporting collaborative research, the 10-story, 245,000-sf facility will be located adjacent to the university’s new cancer center currently under construction on the Phoenix Biomedical Campus. Construction will begin by year-end 2014 with completion expected in early 2017.
The Karolinska Institute is planning the second phase of construction at the Medical Research Laboratory in Solna, Sweden. Project developer Akademiska Hus AB has awarded Skanska a $61 million contract to construct a nine-story, 183,000-sf interdisciplinary research building. The first phase of construction at the Biomedicum campus is a $190 million, 678,000-sf facility, which is also being built by Skanska with completion slated for 2018.
Cubresa introduced a compact, affordable SPECT scanner for preclinical research in early 2014. The scanner attaches to existing small animal CT systems, transforming them into multi-modality molecular imaging systems for disease study, translational research, and drug discovery applications. The product features a slim bore which positions the imaging detectors close to the animal subject, optimizing spatial resolution. Advanced detector technology improves sensitivity to balance radiation dose with accelerated study throughput.
Rochester Institute of Technology broke ground on the Clinical Health Sciences Center in April of 2014 in Henrietta, N.Y. Accommodating programs for the College of Health Sciences and Technology, the 45,000-sf facility will include dedicated space for the new Wegmans School of Health and Nutrition as well as housing a primary care clinic operated by Rochester General Health System. Constructed as an addition to the existing Louise M.
Grifols’ North Fractionation Facility in Clayton, N.C., has been named the International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering (ISPE) 2014 Facility of the Year for Project Execution. Fluor provided integrated engineering, procurement, construction management, and front-end qualification for this 150,000-sf blood plasma fractionation facility, which was built using modular construction techniques to meet an aggressive construction schedule, incorporate new centrifuge technology, and expand existing plant utilities.
The National Institutes of Health dedicated the John Edward Porter Neuroscience Research Center in late March of 2014 in Bethesda, Md. Comprised of two buildings connected by a glass atrium, the collaborative 500,000-sf facility provides open laboratories, offices, and an advanced MRI suite for researchers from 10 NIH neuroscience institutes and centers. Construction on the first building began in 2001 and was completed in 2004.
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill dedicated the $245 million Marsico Hall in March of 2014. The nine-story, 340,000-sf biomedical imaging facility will support basic and translational research in oncology, nanomedicine, microbiology, immunology, and pharmaceutical engineering. Marisco Hall houses a hybrid MRI/PET whole body scanner, a 7 Tesla MRI whole body scanner, and a cyclotron.
The University of California, San Diego dedicated the $113 million Health Sciences Biomedical Research Facility in March of 2014 in La Jolla, Calif. Designed by ZGF Architects, the 196,000-sf building provides wet bench laboratories, open lab space, lab support, offices, conference rooms, and an interaction atrium. A basement level accommodates core labs and mechanical systems.
Hamad Medical Corporation opened the Interim Translational Research Institute (iTRI) in March of 2014 in Doha, Qatar. Located in Hamad Bin Khalifa Medical City, the facility will support advanced biomedical research in genomics, cancer, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, respiratory medicine, and neurosciences. The iTRI includes wet laboratories, a clinical studies unit, a conference center, and core labs for sample analysis and other services.
The Public Health Agency of Canada opened the 60,000-sf JC Wilt Infectious Diseases Centre in February of 2014 in Winnipeg. Designed by Smith Carter, the facility provides advanced laboratories for infectious diseases research, diagnostic testing, and early stage vaccine development. Housing up to 200 employees, the Centre includes a training area for biocontainment laboratory operations. The facility will also support research on HIV/AIDS and antimicrobial resistant organisms.
The 183,500-sf Jackson Laboratory (JAX) for Genomic Medicine aims to advance genomic research not only by way of its location—on the campus of a university health center near major research institutions, hospitals, and urban research corridors—but also by utilizing an interior design that comingles the computational and wet lab aspects of research and encourages collaboration. The ultimate goal is to enable quicker development of disease-fighting therapies targeted at individual patients.
The J. Craig Venter Institute completed construction in February of 2014 on its new $35 million genomic research facility in La Jolla, Calif. Designed by ZGF Architects to accommodate 125 scientists and staff, the 45,000-sf building includes a single-story, 12,605-sf lab wing and a three-story, 28,600-sf office wing.
The University of Michigan is planning to build the $261 million Biological Science Building in Ann Arbor. Designed by SmithGroup JJR, the 300,000-sf facility will provide research labs, classrooms, offices, and a vivarium for the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and the Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology. Providing open, flexible laboratories for collaborative research, the building will be constructed adjacent to the existing Life Sciences Institute to which it will physically connect.
Nova Southeastern University broke ground in February of 2014 on the 215,000-sf Center for Collaborative Research (CCR) in Davie, Fla. The $80 million multidisciplinary facility will house wet labs, an IBM supercomputer research suite, the Institute for Neuro-Immune Medicine, the Rumbaugh-Goodwin Institute for Cancer Research, and the Emil Buehler Research Center for Engineering, Science, and Mathematics. The building will also accommodate the General Clinical Research Center, the NSU Technology Incubator, and space for the United States Geological Survey.
The Peter Gilgan Centre for Research and Learning at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) in Toronto is the largest high-rise pediatric health research facility in Canada, challenging designers to create a collaborative research environment in a 21-story tower. Completed in September 2013, the $400 million CDN ($376 million USD) research tower brings together in one central location about 240 principal investigators and 2,000 trainees and staff, formerly spread out in six Toronto locations.
