The Pirbright Institute broke ground in July of 2014 on the $26 million Avian Diseases Lab in the United Kingdom. The 38,000-sf facility will provide CL-2 biocontainment space for in vitro research on infectious diseases affecting poultry and other livestock. Housing up to 90 scientists, the project will support the relocation of the Avian Viral Diseases program from Compton to Pirbright.
Microelectronics manufacturer Entegris completed construction in July of 2014 on the $30 million i2M Center for Advanced Materials in Bedford, Mass. An existing building was renovated to create an 80,000-sf R&D facility housing cleanrooms, labs, production and assembly space, and offices. BIM (Building Information Modeling) was leveraged in the delivery of the the project, which included installation and coordination of new building systems for HVAC, electrical, fire protection, gas detection, and laboratory utilities.
Murray State University will begin building the $36.6 million Breathitt Veterinary Center in September of 2014 in Hopkinsville, Ky. Designed by Foil Wyatt Architects & Planners, the 61,000-sf facility will open in 2016. Additionally, work will begin in February of 2015 on the $36.8 million Engineering and Physics building; completion is slated for August of 2016.
The Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF) at the Energy Department’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory uses hardware-in-the-loop prototyping at the low- to mega-watt-scale power capability to develop and validate the next generation of energy production and infrastructure, giving NREL and its strategic industry partners the opportunity to evaluate how technologies will work together in a real-world environment. The primary focus of ESIF is micro grid/smart grid research. The building houses 200 scientists and engineers in a private, public-sector, and academic partnership.
St. John Fisher College broke ground on the $14 million Integrated Science and Health Sciences Building in July of 2014 in Rochester, N.Y. The collaborative 31,000-sf facility will provide two multipurpose labs, two 100-seat flexible classrooms, science teaching labs, faculty offices, and interdisciplinary research space. The building will also include core facilities for tissue culture, nanobiology, and aquatic research. LEED sustainable design certification will be sought for the project and occupancy is slated for fall of 2015.
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory celebrated the opening of the Facility for Low-Energy Experiments on Buildings (FLEXLAB) in July of 2014. Designed to be the world’s most advanced building efficiency facility, the lab will support collaborative research with companies and utilities to reduce energy use by testing, evaluating, and deploying energy technologies as integrated systems under real-world conditions.
NorthStar broke ground in July of 2014 on a 50,000-sf radioisotope production facility in Beloit, Wis. The project will accommodate support operations for the company’s facility at the University of Missouri’s Research Reactor and is expected to reach completion by early 2015. A second construction phase will create a 20,000-sf addition and is slated for completion by year-end 2016.
Bayer CropScience will begin construction in late summer of 2014 on a $29.6 million expansion of its seed research headquarters in Research Triangle Park, N.C. The project includes extensive infrastructure development and construction of a 29,500-sf greenhouse to support the study of nematode traits, plant diseases, and insects.
The University of Bristol has completed construction on its $92 million Life Sciences building in the United Kingdom. Designed by Sheppard Robson, the 145,000-sf facility provides the School of Biological Sciences with teaching labs, seminar rooms, and offices arranged around a central atrium. A five-story research wing accommodates cleanrooms, imaging suites, labs, acoustic chambers, and greenhouse space. BREAM Excellent sustainable design certification will be sought for the project, which features a 41-ft tall living wall.
The University of Nevada, Reno opened its expanded Earthquake Engineering Laboratory in June of 2014. Supporting advanced materials science research, the seismic research facility features four shake tables to simulate ground motions, a computer control room, offices, and a technology-rich 140-seat auditorium. Designed by BJG Architecture + Engineering, the $19 million expansion doubles the size of the existing 8,400-sf Large-Scale Structures Lab and features a heavily reinforced foundation and building envelope.
United Therapeutics is planning to build a biomedical R&D facility in Research Triangle Park, N.C. Comprising 250,000 sf of new construction and 150,000 sf of renovated space, the project will provide vivarium space for pigs and xenotransplantation research laboratories. The facility will enable the creation of genetically modified pig embryos which grow to be born with human lungs that can be harvested for transplants and tissue grafts.
The Coordinated Approval Process for Clinical Research (CAPCR) is a web-based application that streamlines the approval process required to conduct research using human subjects. Designed to help researchers and hospital staff navigate the process of coordinating and tracking clinical research within a hospital system, CAPCR gives an institution time to plan for the infrastructure a line of research will necessitate, and to mitigate any associated safety hazards. CAPCR automates the approval process, avoids duplication, and creates an online repository for study-related information, allowing faster approval times and greater access to information. It also eliminates the need for paper application forms, helps researchers ensure they have the necessary approvals for their studies, and provides an efficient way to obtain authorizations from multiple departments and track approvals online. The system is being marketed as a tool for use in other hospitals.
The University of Notre Dame is planning to build the $36 million Turbomachinery Facility in collaboration with General Electric, Indiana Michigan Power, and other industry partners in South Bend, Ind. Supporting the development of advanced gas turbine engine technologies, the 43,000-sf research and testing center will feature full-scale simulated operating environments including a $7.5 million, 10-megawatt jet propulsion engine rig.
NanoViricides has completed its pharmaceutical manufacturing facility in Shelton, Conn. Designed by Id3A, the renovation project created research labs, offices, and cGMP cleanroom suites for the production of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) in an existing 18,000-sf facility. MPH Engineering was the project manager and engineering consultant. Construction began on the facility in August of 2013 and validation commenced in June of 2014.
Louisiana State University is planning a $100 million expansion and renovation of the College of Engineering in Baton Rouge. The renovation of the three-story, 306,000-sf Patrick F. Taylor Hall will begin in November of 2014. In January of 2015, construction will commence on a 126,000-sf expansion providing engineering wet labs, teaching and research labs, faculty offices, classrooms, student support areas, and a 200-seat auditorium. The general contractor is Skanska USA Building in joint venture with MAPP Construction.
