Higher Education

The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center is designing a new biomedical research building that will be sited on its Dallas campus. Slated to begin construction in May 2006, the $20 million facility will be built by St. Louis-based McCarthy. Perkins & Will is designing the four-story, 75,000-sf building which will have dedicated lab space on the first two floors and shell space on the top two floors. Completion is expected in November 2007.

The University of Chicago will begin construction in fall 2005 on the $31-million Howard T. Ricketts Laboratory, a germ research facility to be located at Argonne National Laboratory, which the University manages for the federal government.

Swansea University will complete construction of its Institute of Life Science in South West Wales by year-end 2006. The six-story biology-based research facility will house a business incubator to develop commercial applications of scientific discoveries. The building will also feature a very large research computer, Blue C, in a laboratory with an area called the Virtual Reality Cave.

Mercer University is planning to construct a new $14-million science and engineering building on its Macon campus. Sited next to the Mercer School of Medicine, the two-story, 52,000-sf facility will house a 150-seat auditorium, a materials-testing system, laboratories, specialized classrooms, and small rooms for student design and research projects. The facility will enable Mercer to support the nearby Warner Robins Air Logistics Center with skilled engineers and scientists.

Auburn University will break ground in early fall of 2005 on a research park and incubator in Auburn, Ala. Designed by Sasaki Associates of Boston, the two-building development will provide incubator space for the commercialization of research discoveries in the first phase of construction. The first building is slated for occupancy in late 2006 with the second building reaching completion in early 2007.

Southern Illinois University School of Medicine has broken ground on the 66,000-sf Cancer Institute in Springfield, Ill. Designed by Hanson Professional Services of Springfield with consulting provided by BSA Life Structures of Chicago, the three-story building will consolidate the School's multidisciplinary cancer clinics, research programs, and outreach services.

The University at Albany, the State University of New York, will open the $45 million Gen*NY*Sis Center for Excellence in Cancer Genomics on its East Greenbush, N.Y., campus in September 2005. Construction on the cancer research center began in summer 2003. The facility will house researchers, industry partners, and state institutions studying the genetic aspects of cancer.

Saint Mary's University has awarded the Atlantic Buildings division of Aecon Group the construction management contract for the $25.5 million renovation of its Applied Science Building in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The project includes the refurbishing of an existing 71,500-sf, five-story facility and the construction of a five-story, 22,500-sf teaching and research addition. Construction on the project began in May 2005 and will reach completion in three years.

The University of Florida is developing the 23,500-gsf Center of Excellence for Regenerative Heath Biotechnology in Alachua County, Fla. Sited 13 miles from the University's Gainesville campus in the Sid Martin Biotechnology Development Incubator in the Progress Corporate Park, the facility will house up to 11,080 sf of cleanrooms and support space.

Towson University is engaged in an expansion and renovation of its Center for the Arts in Towson, Md. The $53-million project adds 134,000 sf to the original 166,000-sf structure for a total of 300,000 sf. New facilities in the center include a 140-seat recital hall, a recording studio, a black box theater, a costume design shop, art galleries, and classroom. Accommodating programs for the university's music, theater, art, and dance departments, the expansion was designed by Baltimore-based Design Collective Inc.

The University of Pittsburgh will open the $205-million Biomedical Science Tower 3 in August 2005. Construction of the 330,000-sf facility was overseen by Mascaro Construction Co. The ten-story tower plus basement will house programs in structural biology; genomics; proteomics; computational biology and informatics; drug discovery; neurodegenerative disease research; and counter-bioterrorism vaccine research. The facility was designed with each half of a floor as a large lab with 28 movable, modular benches.

Northwest Missouri State University (NMSU) is developing the 140,000-sf Missouri Center of Excellence for Plant Biologics in Maryville, Mo. The $30-million on-campus facility will house industry tenants as well as academic researchers. The facility is comprised of two major centers, the Graduate Applied Research Center and the Plant Biologics Incubator.

The University of Alabama at Birmingham is engaged in the fit-out of 22,631 sf of chemistry space. Housing two organic chemistry labs, two general chemistry labs, one physical chemistry lab, and one biological chemistry lab, the facility will also include a classroom and an NMR room. The architect for the $3.6-million project is DesignForm with Brasfield & Gorrie as general contractor. The electrical engineer is Hyde Engineering with Davis Dumas & Associates as mechanical engineer.

The University of Arizona in Tucson is engaged in a $46.1-million expansion of its Chemistry building. Housing additional research labs and office space for the Department of Chemistry, the facility is slated for occupancy in May 2006. The project was designed by Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Partnership and is being built by Hensel Phelps Construction .

The University of Cambridge is constructing the Centre for Advanced Photonics and Electronics (CAPE) in Cambridge, UK. Designed by TP Bennett of London, the new facility will provide over 4,800 square-meters of research and laboratory space for the University's Department of Engineering's Electrical Division. Housing a 760-square-meter cleanroom and a central atrium, the center will be built by Marriott Construction.