Higher Education

The University of Glasgow is building the $14 million Beatson Translational Research Centre in Glasgow, Scotland. The four-story facility will provide laboratories for cancer research. Balfour Beatty Engineering Services is the mechanical and electrical services contractor. The building will feature a high efficiency chiller and air handling units with Econet heat recovery packages. The plant skids and modular risers will be manufactured offsite to support lean construction methodology. Completion is expected in summer of 2012.

The University of Newcastle opened two buildings on its Central Coast campus in Ourimbah, New South Wales, in November of 2011. The $4.8 million Education and Nursing building houses classrooms, a nursing simulation lab, information technology teaching spaces, and model education classrooms. The $7.7 Exercise and Sport Science building will house sports psychology research and teaching space, laboratories, three classrooms, and a gym. 

Auburn University broke ground on the $28.8 million Center for Advanced Science, Innovation and Commerce in November of 2011. The 84,000-sf collaborative facility will provide 20 labs for the study of bioenergy, genomics, information science, food safety, water quality, and environmental health. The project is supported by $14.4 million in funding from the National Institute of Standards and Technology with matching funds from the state of Alabama. Completion is expected in summer of 2013.

Binghamton University opened the $66 million Engineering and Science Building in November of 2011. Located in Vestal, N.Y., the two-story, 125,000-sf building houses the Thomas J. Watson School of Engineering and Applied Science, the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and the Department of Mechanical Engineering. The facility provides flexible teaching and research labs and business incubator space for the development of industry partnerships.

Aston University began construction in fall of 2011 on the £16.5 million European Bioenergy Research Institute in Birmingham in the United Kingdom. The facility will house research laboratories for the development of advanced energy technologies. The building will be powered by renewable energy from pilot scale photo bioreactors and a small scale industrial power plant which will generate heat and power from biomass. 

The Wayne State University School of Medicine is planning to build a 62,840-sf facility in Detroit for its Department of Psychiatry. Consolidating three existing facilities, the five-story building will provide clinical, academic, and research space. Completion is expected in late 2012. The project developer is Queen Lillian LLC.

The University of Wales, Newport has attained BREAAM Excellent for the first phase of redevelopment of its city center campus. Designed by BDP Architects and built by Willmott Dixon, the £35 million building houses the University's Faculty of Arts and Business and includes a contemporary arts center, extensive exhibition space, and a national photographic archive.

The University of Massachusetts will build the $186.5 million Commonwealth Honors College campus in Amherst. Slated for completion in 2013, the complex will include classrooms, administrative offices, a conference center, student housing, and apartments for faculty and staff. Site preparation began in June of 2011. 

Ohio State University will begin building the $126 million Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and Chemistry Building in Columbus in summer of 2012. The 225,000-gsf facility will house research laboratories. 

The University of British Columbia opened the Centre for Interactive Research on Sustainability (CIRS) in Vancouver in November of 2011. The $37 million facility is heralded as the most sustainable building in North America and will act as a living laboratory for research and innovation on global sustainability challenges. CIRS is one of only a handful of buildings worldwide that provide “net positive” benefits to the environment.

The University of Manchester completed the £20 million Dalton Cumbrian Facility in November of 2011. The laboratory is located in Moor Row, Cumbria, in the Westlakes Science and Technology Park. Housing the Dalton Nuclear Institute, the facility will support research on radiochemistry, radiation science, nuclear engineering, decommissioning, and radioactive waste management. The project team includes Wilson Mason Architects, project manager Drivers Jonas Deloitte, and contractor Morgan Sindall.

Michigan State University is building the $45 million Eli and Edith Broad Art Museum in East Lansing. The three-story, 46,000-sf facility will include exhibition space, an education wing, retail, and dining. LEED sustainable design certification will be sought for the project, which will feature daylighting, occupancy sensors, and advanced HVAC systems. Occupancy is expected in April of 2012. The project team includes:

The University of California, Davis broke ground in November of 2011 on the 8,000-sf Jess S. Jackson Sustainable Winery Building. The $4 million facility will provide energy for UC Davis' winery with photovoltaic arrays and fuel cells, as well as supplying captured rainwater for cleaning and landscaping. The project will enable the adjacent teaching winery, brewery, and food-processing complex to be entirely self sustainable and carbon neutral. Completion is expected in late 2012.

The University of Western Ontario completed the first 150,000-sf phase of construction for the Richard Ivey School of Business in November of 2011. The completed 270,000-sf facility will provide world-class teaching and research space and is expected to attain LEED Gold sustainable design certification. The construction cost is estimated at $110 million. 

Paradise Valley Community College opened its newly renovated Building Q in November of 2011 in Phoenix. Designed by SmithGroup, the $10.6 million, 69,600-sf project converted an existing county library building into an academic facility for mathematics with 23 classrooms, faculty offices, and support space. The building houses the college's Center for Teaching and Learning and Continuing Education and the 10,700-sf Arizona Agribusiness and Equine Center Charter School. The construction manager for the project was Jokake Construction.