Dubai Electricity and Water Authority is planning to construct the $136 million Research & Development Center at the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park in Dubai. The four-building facility will be constructed using 3D printing and will support the creation of drones and 3D printing technologies for applications including solar power, energy efficiency, smart grids, and photovoltaic desalination.
Brigham Young University began construction in May of 2016 on a new home for the Ira A. Fulton College of Engineering and Technology in Provo, Utah. Funded entirely by donors, the $80 million facility will feature a dedicated laboratory annex, a student innovation floor, and a prototyping shop.
Cal Poly is planning to build the $57 million Science & Agriculture Teaching and Research Complex in San Luis Obispo. The 64,000-sf facility will provide undergraduate laboratories, technology suites, and instructional space for the colleges of Liberal Arts, Science and Mathematics, and Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences. The project was designed by ZGF Architects with Research Facilities Design (RFD) as laboratory programming and design consultant.
Pennsylvania State University will break ground in summer of 2017 on a $144 million chemical and biomedical engineering building in University Park. Designed by HOK to promote interaction and collaboration, the 193,000-sf facility will replace the existing Fenske and Hallowell buildings where the departments of chemical engineering and biomedical engineering are currently located. The LEED-certified project will provide open research labs, a large lecture hall, classrooms, and administrative offices. Occupancy is expected in early 2019.
The National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics has released a report showing that federal agencies obligated $30.8 billion to 996 academic institutions for science and engineering activities in Fiscal Year 2014, the most recent year for which such information is available. This represents a six percent increase over the previous year and the first increase in such funding since FY2009.
Valent BioSciences is planning to construct the Biorational Research Center at Innovation Park in Libertyville, Ill. Enabling the consolidation of the company's chemistry, biology, microbiology, fermentation, and formulations labs in a single location, the $22 million project includes the buildout of 65,000 sf to create labs and offices as well as the construction of a 10,000-sf research greenhouse. Completion is expected in mid-2017. Valent BioSciences is a subsidiary of Sumitomo Chemical Company.
The U.S. Department of Energy dedicated the $9.9 million Sensitive Instrument Facility at Ames Laboratory in Iowa in May of 2016. Accommodating microscopes used in materials science and clean energy research, the building features two-foot concrete floors with vibration-dampening layers, and the six instrument bays are lined with aluminum shielding a quarter of an inch thick to create an electromagnetic barrier.
The University of Texas at Arlington will begin construction in fall of 2016 on the $125 million Science and Engineering Innovation and Research Building. Designed by Page and ZGF Architects to support collaborative, team-based learning and discovery, the six-story, 220,000-sf facility will provide two floors of instructional space, with research activities occupying four floors and a basement level.
The University of California, Irvine celebrated the official opening of its biosafety training lab in May of 2016. The BSL-3 facility has been designated as an approved instructional center by the National Institutes of Health’s National Biosafety & Biocontainment Training Program. The 1,600-sf lab was constructed in 2015 solely for the purpose of biosafety training and is the first of its kind in the United States.
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University has awarded Sundt Construction the design-bid-build contract for a new teaching and research facility in Prescott, Ariz. The 52,570-sf addition will provide classrooms, an auditorium, and labs for robotics testing, optics research, and high-speed computation and simulation. Featuring advanced building systems and exterior finishes, the project will support programs in applied science, aviation, business, engineering, space, computing, cybersecurity, and defense. Completion is expected in just 13 months.
Mercer University School of Medicine dedicated an $18 million expansion of its Savannah campus in April of 2016. Located adjacent to Memorial University Medical Center, the project included renovation of 26,500 sf in the Hoskins Center for Biomedical Research and construction of a 30,000-sf addition. The completed facility provides research labs, classrooms, offices, exam rooms for clinical training, simulation suites, tutorial rooms, and study spaces.
Vassar College completed construction in spring of 2016 on the $125 million Integrated Science Commons in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. Designed by Ennead Architects, the project features the 82,000-sf Bridge for Laboratory Sciences, a teaching and research building that spans a ravine.
Yale University is planning to replace the J.W. Gibbs Laboratory on its New Haven campus with the 280,300-sf Yale Science Building. Located on Science Hill, the six-story facility will feature specialized research laboratories, underground core labs, a 500-seat lecture hall, and a shared commons area. A small greenhouse and a mechanical penthouse will be located on the roof. The Yale Science Building is being designed by Cesar Pelli of Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects to attain LEED Gold sustainable design certification.
The University of California, San Francisco is planning to build the Weill Institute for Neurosciences on its Mission Bay campus. The facility will provide both research laboratories and clinical space, and is supported by a donation of $185 million by Sanford and Joan Weill. Accommodating 45 principal investigators, the collaborative project will integrate the disciplines of neurology, neuroscience, genomics, chemistry, computer science, psychiatry, and engineering.
Fraunhofer ISE is expanding the Photovoltaic Technology Evaluation Center (PV-TEC) with the construction of an 8,600-sf cleanroom in Freiburg, Germany. The PV-TEC Select laboratory will act as a pilot plant for new front-end processing technologies, which relate to the phase of solar cell production before metallization. Accommodating research, development, and testing operations, the project aims to increase the efficiency of solar cells by up to 25 percent.
