Research and Development

The U.S. Department of Energy announced on December 4, 2007 that a new Theory and Computing Sciences Building would be constructed at Argonne National Laboratory. The 200,000-sf research and engineering facility will house the extremely fast IBM Blue Gene/P computer and over 600 laboratory employees. Accommodating research in astrophysics, biomedical and pharmaceutical sciences, ecosystem simulation, and nuclear applications, the facility will collaborate with the Computation Institute, a partnership with the University of Chicago.

Harvard University opened the $155 million Laboratory for Integrated Science and Engineering (LISE) in Cambridge in November of 2007. Sited mostly underground, the building includes a 10,000-sf cleanroom with advanced filtration capabilities and vibration-isolated architecture. Designed by Rafael Moneo, LISE features open spaces for spontaneous researcher interaction and collaboration.

The University of Notre Dame broke ground in November of 2007 on the $69.4 million Stinson-Remick Hall of Engineering in Notre Dame, Ind. The 142,000-sf facility will house a nanotechnology research center, an energy center, an 11,800-sf semiconductor processing and device fabrication cleanroom, and an undergraduate learning center. Designed to enhance interdisciplinary research, the project is slated for completion by late 2009.

Purdue University dedicated the $53 million Neil Armstrong Hall of Engineering in October of 2007. The 125,000-sf facility is home to two schools in the College of Engineering, the School of Materials Engineering and the School of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Designed to foster teamwork and interaction, the building contains 20,000 sf of research labs and 60,000 sf of undergraduate teaching facilities, including discipline-specific design labs. The project broke ground in October of 2004.

Wesleyan College completed the 42,000-sf Munroe Science Center in Macon, Ga., in August of 2007. The $12.5 million facility houses classrooms, offices, and laboratories for chemistry, physiology, ecology, behavioral neurosciences, and developmental, reproductive, cell, and molecular biology. Featuring 11 teaching laboratories, a rooftop greenhouse, astronomy platform, animal suite, environmental room, community learning center, and a built-in water purification system, the building was designed by Lord, Aeck & Sargent.

Indiana University Bloomington dedicated Simon Hall, known as Multidisciplinary Science Building I, on October 16, 2007. The $55.7 million, 141,084-gsf project features modular, flexible laboratories for interdisciplinary research. Housing biologists, chemists, physicists, and geneticists engaged in bioscience and genomics research, the facility also houses offices and conference space for the Linda and Jack Gill Center for Biomolecular Science and the Johnson Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation.

Rutgers University broke ground on the $150 million Stem Cell Institute of New Jersey in New Brunswick on October 23, 2007. Slated for completion in 2010, the Institute is a joint venture between the University, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, and the State of New Jersey. Supporting basic and translational research, clinical trials, and outpatient treatment, the 160,000-sf center will be located on five floors in an 18-story tower adjacent to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital and across from the Cancer Institute of New Jersey.

Yale University School of Medicine opened an $88.6 million translational research facility in New Haven, Conn., on Oct. 5, 2007. The 110,000-sf building houses laboratories for three interdisciplinary programs: the Interdepartmental Program in Vascular Biology and Therapeutics; the Human and Translational Immunology Program; and the Yale Stem Cell Center. The sustainably designed facility supports biomedical and clinical research.

The State of New Jersey has selected architectural firm Ballinger of Philadelphia to design the planned $50 million Integrated Biology and Genomic Medicine Institute in Camden. The project construction manager for the stem-cell research center is Skanska of Parsippany. The facility will be owned by Rutgers University-Camden; research partners include the Coriell Institute, Cooper University Hospital; and Robert Wood Johnson Medical School at Camden.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has attained a LEED Gold certification for Building 110 in Atlanta. The first high performance federal government laboratory to attain LEED Gold, the facility shows an upfront cost savings of $847,000 due to flexible lab and office design. Inclusion of interstitial floors eliminated the need to build an entire additional floor. Annual savings generated by the facility include $400,000 from ease of laboratory reconfiguration; $175,000 from energy savings; and $500,000 from productivity gains due to a healthy workplace.

The University of California, Berkeley dedicated the $162.3-million Stanley Hall on Sept. 28, 2007. The 285,000-gsf biophysical research facility houses instructional spaces, 33 wet labs, 8 computational suites, a 900 megahertz NMR, and a mass spectrometry suite.

Monsanto Company completed construction of its $21 million, 40,000-sf data center in Creve Coeur, Mo. in September of 2007. The 40,000-sf facility, supporting the company’s global data and computation needs, began construction in early 2006. It is capable of withstanding up to 200 mile-per-hour winds and earthquakes up to 5.0 on the Richter scale. Monsanto expects to receive LEED certification for the facility, making it the first LEED certified data center in the state.

The University of Virginia is constructing the 85,000-sf Advanced Research and Technology (ART) building in Charlottesville. Sited in the Fontaine Research Park, the four story facility is comprised of three floors above grade and an underground basement. It will contain wet and dry lab space, a vivarium, two MRI rooms and one small animal MRI room, environmental rooms, office space, and conference areas. The 22-month project is slated for completion in March of 2008.

Construction on the David Murdock Core Lab Building at the North Carolina Research Campus (NCRC) in Kannapolis is slated for completion in late 2007. The $200-million, 311,000-sf facility will house approximately $90 million in equipment including a 900 megahertz NMR, an 800 megahertz NMR, and a 700 megahertz NMR. The facility will be managed by Duke University and will include a genomics lab, an imaging facility with electron microscopes, and a GMP manufacturing facility for biologics and small molecules.

Cornell University is constructing the $162 million Weill Hall in Ithaca, N.Y. The 250,000-sf building, also known as the Life Sciences Technology Building, is slated for completion in early 2008. The research facility will be the centerpiece of Cornell's New Life Sciences Initiative (NLSI), an effort to promote the college’s progress in genomic-led research. The facility is expected to attain LEED Gold certification for sustainable design and construction.