Bates College broke ground on the 65,000-sf Bonney Science Center in March of 2019 in Lewiston, Maine. Designed by Payette to foster collaboration, the three-story facility will provide flexible teaching and research labs, classrooms, and study areas to support programs in chemistry, biology, and neuroscience. The interdisciplinary project will include shared instrumentation rooms, a two-story interaction lounge, and a vivarium.
Universities have always been magnets for scholarship, but they increasingly act as magnets for economic development and community-building, as well. This trend has enormous implications for the future of learning, work, and real estate, as academic anchors look to leverage their ideas and the neighborhoods around them to generate entirely new industries and communities. The resulting developments, anchored by deep and diverse talent pools, in turn attract employers who are eager to collocate with universities to tap their resident brainpower.
Augustana College is planning to build the $16 million Austin E. Knowlton Center for Innovation in Health, Wellness and Human Performance in Rock Island, Ill. Accommodating a new program in kinesiology, the hybrid academic and fitness center will offer classrooms, team spaces, faculty offices, a joint resource area, exercise labs, and an aquatic center with a 25-yard pool and a therapeutic pool. Completion is expected in 2020.
The University of Hawaii at Manoa is building a $50 million life sciences facility in Honolulu. Designed to promote interdisciplinary collaboration, the three-story, 45,000-sf project will provide the College of Natural Sciences with classrooms, teaching and research laboratories, lab support spaces, and offices. Accommodating the departments of biology, microbiology, and botany, the building will also house the Pacific Biosciences Research Center and the Biological Electron Microscope Facility.
The University of Chicago opened the Media Arts, Data and Design (MADD) Center in February of 2019. Designed by Payette, the 20,000-sf facility provides students, faculty, staff, and community partners with a collaborative space for exploration and innovation in virtual and augmented reality, data visualization, digital fabrication, and video gaming. Located in the John Crerar Library, the MADD Center houses five resource labs:
Lehigh University is planning to build a $100 million facility for the College of Health in Bethlehem, Pa. Designed by Wilson HGA, the five-story, 190,000-gsf facility will promote interdisciplinary education and research by collocating programs in health, science, and technology. Featuring a transparent design with minimal hard walls, the project will offer open labs and learning studios to enhance collaboration and interaction.
Virginia Tech is planning to begin construction in mid-2020 on the $250 million Global Business and Analytics Complex in Blacksburg. Accommodating programs for the Pamplin College of Business, the four-building complex will include two 100,000-sf academic buildings providing collaborative research spaces, interactive classrooms, offices, labs, and high-performance computational suites for data analysis and interpretation. The transdisciplinary project will also include two residential buildings that will act as living-learning communities for approximately 700 students.
Too many expensive new science buildings are failing to meet their critical operational requirements. The number one cause of this costly and damaging outcome is a common yet preventable gap between 'build' and 'operate' that results in post-construction O&M staffing being too little, too late, and unprepared. But wait, there’s an algorithm for that!
When Texas A&M created a new set of buildings for its veterinary school, it sought to provide spaces that would work for current methods of teaching sciences, but also flexibility to accommodate future change. Change, as we all know, can be difficult, so the process included not just demountable walls and flexible furnishings, but also a focus on change management among the faculty.
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center opened the $22.3 million Academic Classroom Building in Odessa in February of 2019. Designed to promote active learning, the two-story, 51,000-sf facility provides studio classrooms, lecture halls, physical and occupational therapy training labs, research labs, and departmental offices for the schools of medicine, nursing, and health professions.
The University of Washington opened the $110 million Bill & Melinda Gates Center for Computer Science & Engineering in February of 2019 in Seattle. Designed by LMN Architects to foster interaction and collaboration, the 135,000-sf facility features a 3,000-sf robotics lab, a 240-seat auditorium, a maker space, a virtual and augmented reality lab, a wet lab, and two 100-seat classrooms. The building also houses a flexible event hall, a café, a student services hub, faculty offices, and an undergraduate commons.
Leeds Beckett University is building the Carnegie Teaching and Research Building in the United Kingdom. The £45 million project was designed by Sheppard Robson to provide an iconic home for the Carnegie School of Sport. The center will offer sophisticated teaching and research facilities including a hypoxic lab, a health and wellbeing studio, enhanced strength and conditioning spaces, changing rooms, and recovery areas. The roof of the building will accommodate a walking track and a covered 60-meter sprinting track for performance training and analysis.
The University of Toronto is designing a nine-story academic hub to support urban research, education, and engagement. Designed by architectsAlliance, Diller Scofidio + Renfro, and ERA Architects, the 170,000-gsf multidisciplinary building will provide a permanent home for the School of Cities as well as accommodating programs in history, music, and cultural studies.
Texas Woman's University broke ground in February of 2019 on the $54 million Science and Technology Learning Center in Denton. The 80,000-sf facility will provide graduate and undergraduate research labs for programs in biology, chemistry, biochemistry, psychology, and nutrition and food science. The four-story building will include a microscopy suite, collaboration spaces, conference rooms, faculty offices, and graduate student workspaces. Completion is expected in June of 2020.
An emerging new model for hybrid translational healthcare facilities combines scientific research with university and professional athletic programs to increase community engagement and student wellbeing. From integrating sports training facilities with medical clinics and applied research, to incorporating fitness gyms, running tracks, and rock-climbing walls into student lounges and public spaces, the combination of athletics and recreation with other programs offers an innovative vision for academic facility design.
