Research and Development

Novartis is initiating a 550,000-sf expansion of its campus in Cambridge, Mass. The project includes construction of two biomedical laboratory and office buildings. The architectural team for the master plan and for one building is Maya Lin Studio and Bialosky + Partners.  Toshiko Mori Architect is the designer of the second building. Cannon Design is the architect of record. Skanska USA Building will provide preconstruction, construction management, and design-build services.

A $94 million renovation of the U.S. Department of Energy's Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory will begin in early 2012. Located in Princeton, N.J., the project will upgrade the National Spherical Torus Experiment test facility to support the development of nuclear fusion energy technologies. The duration of construction will be 30 months with completion expected in 2014. 

Hamilton Storage Technologies is building a 51,000-sf manufacturing center in Franklin, Mass. The $16 million facility will support production of sample retrieval and handling systems for life science research buildings. Completion is expected in late 2012. 

The Strategy for UK Life Sciences was announced by Prime Minister David Cameron in December of 2012. The measures include $116 million for construction of a planned bioinformatics hub near Cambridge and $77 million for a Cell Therapy Technology and Innovation Centre in London. The initiative also provides $480 million to promote commercialization of biomedical research discoveries through collaboration with the pharmaceutical industry.

The Public Health Agency of Canada is building the J.C. Wilt Infectious Diseases Research Centre in Winnipeg. Designed by Smith Carter Architects and Engineers and built by PCL Constructors Canada, the $42 million project includes renovation of an existing structure to provide BSL-2 research space for the adjacent National Microbiology Laboratory. The construction cost of the facility is $23 million. LEED sustainable design certification will be sought for the project. Occupancy is expected by February of 2013.

Brigham and Women's Hospital opened the 5,700-gsf Advanced Multimodality Image Guided Operating (AMIGO) suite in December of 2011 in Boston. As the world’s first three-bay operating suite to house MRI, PET/CT, Ultrasound, and Angiography in one place, along with surgical navigation tools and image registering and integration software, AMIGO offers significant advancements to developing image-guided surgical treatment procedures. 

Ohio State University Medical Center is building the $1 billion Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute in Columbus. The 17-story, 276-bed tower will provide integrated research and treatment facilities including critical care beds, laboratories, and medical offices. Ground was broken on the project in June of 2010 and completion is expected in 2014.

Fitchburg State University is building a $57 million, 57,000-sf addition to the Condike Science Building in Fitchburg, Mass. The completed complex will provide 100,000 sf of science labs and lecture halls for biology, chemistry, physics, and geophysical sciences. The facility will also include a vivarium, oceanography and hydrology suites, a greenhouse, and a three-story atrium. Occupancy is expected in fall of 2013.

The U.S. Department of Energy broke ground on the Illinois Accelerator Research Center (IARC) in December of 2011. Located at Fermi National Laboratory in Batavia, the 42,000-sf project will provide advanced research, development, and commercialization space for particle accelerator technologies. The facility will be created by renovating and expanding an existing 36,000-sf building to house engineering labs, offices, and educational space for researchers, academia, and industry partners. Completion is expected in 2013.

Cornell University is partnering with Technion-Israel Institute of Technology to build a $2 billion science college in New York City. Designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, the 2.1 million-sf research and innovation campus is to be located on Roosevelt Island and will include classrooms, labs, auditoriums, and housing. Classes will begin in 2012 in leased facilities, with occupancy of the first phase of construction expected in 2017. Complete build-out is expected by 2027. 

Biomeasure, a subsidiary of French pharmaceutical company Ipsen, is initiating a $45 million expansion and renovation of its campus in Milford, Mass. Ground will be broken in mid-2012 on a three-story, 62,000-sf facility housing R&D and process science labs. Two existing buildings at the site, a research facility and a cGMP manufacturing plant totaling 77,000 sf, will be extensively renovated.  Completion is expected in early 2014.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison’s $112 million biochemistry complex was completed in December of 2011. A new six-story research tower was constructed and several existing buildings were extensively renovated. Designed to promote interaction and collaboration, the facility provides 20 biochemistry and biomolecular chemistry research labs, classrooms, lecture halls, and a rodent vivarium. 

Louisiana State University broke ground on the $20 million Animal and Food Sciences Laboratory Building in December of 2011 in Baton Rouge. Designed to promote interaction and interdisciplinary collaboration, the two-story, 48,000-sf building will house laboratories and offices for the departments of Veterinary Science, Food Science, and Animal Sciences. Construction will begin in January of 2012 with completion expected by summer of 2013.

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory is building the $135 million Energy Systems Integration Facility in Golden, Colo. The 182,500-sf project will provide 15 laboratories, four outdoor test sites, a computational data center, and advanced visualization and simulation systems for electrical grid performance research. The project team includes architectural firm SmithGroup and general contractor JE Dunn. LEED Gold sustainable design certification will be sought for the facility. Construction began on the project in spring of 2011.

Novartis dedicated its $1 billion vaccine production facility in December of 2011 in Holly Springs, N.C.  Sited on 167 acres, the 430,000-sf project includes six buildings providing laboratory, manufacturing, and office space. Production of a pre-pandemic H5N1 flu vaccine has already begun. Utilizing cell-based vaccine manufacturing technology, the facility will be able to supply up to 25 percent of the doses needed in the United States in the event of an emergency. The complex will house up to 500 employees when full-scale commercial production begins in early 2013.