Higher Education

The University of British Columbia has completed the $75 million Earth Sciences Building in Vancouver. Designed by Perkins + Will, the 157,000-sf facility comprises two five-story wings connected by a spacious atrium and provides teaching and research labs, classrooms, lecture halls, seminar rooms, and a museum. The 35,000-sf laboratory wing includes labs for biology, chemistry, geochemistry, and ocean sciences. Construction began on the facility in mid-2010.

Connecticut College opened its updated science center on August 31, 2012. A $25.3 million renovation and expansion of New London Hall created a 21,100-sf facility for the departments of biology, botany, and computer science. The center provides interdisciplinary teaching and research space including classrooms, labs, a greenhouse, and collaboration areas. The project team included architectural firm Payette and KBE Building Corporation.

Kent State University is planning a $186 million campus redevelopment project. A $40 million, 120,000-sf facility will be built to house the College of Architecture and Environmental Design, as well as a $15 million facility for the College of Applied Engineering, Sustainability, and Technology. The building housing the School of Art will undergo a $25 million renovation. Multidisciplinary lab space will be created in several existing facilities with an investment of $80 million.

Indiana University Health opened a 270,000-sf clinical neuroscience building in August of 2012 in Indianapolis. The facility is named Goodman Hall and will provide collaborative research and treatment including outpatient care, clinical and research imaging, and multiple neuroscience specialties. An adjacent $52 million, 138,000-sf neuroscience research facility is slated for completion in 2014. 

The $354 million Translational Research Institute (TRI) Queensland will be completed in late 2012 in Brisbane. The project is a joint venture of the University of Queensland, Mater Medical Research Institute, Queensland University of Technology, and Princess Alexandra Hospital, where the facility is located. The 345,000-sf center will support integrated research, production, testing, and manufacturing of biopharmaceutical therapies.

Georgetown University will dedicate the $100 million Regents Hall in Washington in October of 2012. Designed by Payette of Boston to maximize collaboration and interdisciplinary research, the five-story, 105,000-sf science center houses the departments of biology, chemistry, and physics. Ground was broken on the facility in May of 2010. LEED Silver sustainable design certification will be sought for the project, which includes laboratories for teaching and research as well as the NIST-funded Institute for Soft Matter Synthesis and Metrology. 

Montana State University will open the 31,000-sf Cooley Laboratory in Bozeman in fall of 2012. A $17 million renovation has created an advanced research facility for the study of infectious diseases, neurology, biomedical laser applications, and select agents. Designed by Architects Design Group of Kalispell, Mont., the project was supported by $14.9 million in federal stimulus funding.

Cheyney University of Pennsylvania began building the Center of Excellence for Research and Applied Sciences in August of 2012. Located in West Chester, Pa., the 43,148-sf research and teaching facility will provide chemistry and biology labs, classrooms, seminar rooms, faculty offices, a planetarium, a darkroom, cold storage, and a conference room. The $21.5 million project was designed by RMJM Hillier to support research in biology, biotechnology, medicine, mathematics, and computer science.

The University of Kansas completed construction of the $23.6 million Measurement, Materials and Sustainable Environment Center (M2SEC) in Lawrence in August of 2012. Designed by Treanor Architects, the 36,690-sf facility houses the Fracture & Fatigue Laboratory for construction materials testing; an anechoic chamber with wireless shielding for communications research; a biofuels lab; and  the Transportation Research Institute.

The University of Kentucky opened a $20.8 million energy research facility in Lexington in August of 2012. Representing a partnership with Argonne National Lab, the 43,000-sf building houses the Kentucky-Argonne Battery Manufacturing Research & Development Center as well as lab space for industry partners. The project is part of the UK Center for Applied Energy Research (CAER) and was awarded $11.8 million in federal stimulus funding and $3.8 million in state stimulus funding.

The Commonwealth Center for Advanced Manufacturing will open in March of 2013 in Disputanta, Va. The 60,000-sf collaborative research facility represents a partnership of the University of Virginia, Virginia Tech, and Virginia State University, with founding industry partners including Rolls-Royce, Canon Virginia, and Siemens. The center provides computational labs, large-scale production labs, heavy equipment manufacturing space, and surface coating process suites.

Husson University will open the $11.5 million Living and Learning Center in September of 2012 in Bangor, Maine. The five-story, 66,000-sf facility will provide classrooms, faculty offices, an audio engineering studio, experiential learning suites, and dormitory space. LEED Gold sustainable design certification will be sought for the building, which features abundant natural light, photovoltaic panels, and wastewater heat recovery units. The project was designed by Winton Scott Architects and built by Allied Cook Construction. 

The University of Bath is initiating four campus construction projects for a total investment of $160 million. A $67 million, 708-bed dormitory is slated for completion in summer of 2014. A $41 million teaching facility, featuring a 350-seat lecture hall, will open in October of 2013. The $17 million Centre for the Arts will be completed in fall of 2014. Lastly, the existing 1 West complex will undergo a $35 million renovation. 

The University of Massachusetts will begin construction in early 2013 on a $113 million academic building in Boston. The 181,000-sf facility will provide 25 classrooms, chemistry teaching labs, art and performance studios, a 150-seat recital hall, and a 200-seat theater. Occupancy is expected in 2014.

Charles Darwin University broke ground on an expansion of the Menzies School of Health Research in August of 2012 in Darwin, Australia. The $45.7 million project includes a new building and an upgrade to Menzies’ existing facility at Royal Darwin Hospital, and construction of a new building on the University’s Casuarina campus. Designed by Hames Sharley, the project will provide a total of 57,000 sf across both locations to support expanded clinical research operations. The general contractor is Lahey Constructions.