The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston opened a $15 million facility for the School of Biomedical Informatics in December of 2018. Located in the Texas Medical Center, the two-story, 44,709-sf project is the first freestanding school of biomedical informatics in the United States and was constructed on top of an existing parking garage.
Merck will break ground in January of 2019 on a $28 million pharmaceutical research and distribution center in Visalia, Calif. The 123,332-sf facility will be located in the Visalia Industrial Park and can be expanded by 160,000 sf to accommodate future growth. The developer for the project is Scannell and completion is expected in late 2019. Merck is based in Darmstadt, Germany.
Heriot Watt University is planning to construct the National Robotarium in Edinburgh in the United Kingdom. Created in partnership with the University of Edinburgh, the £100 million innovation hub will support research and development on robotics and autonomous systems as well as providing instruction and training facilities for computational science programs. The project is an integral part of the region’s Data Driven Innovation (DDI) initiative that aims to establish the area as the data capital of Europe. Occupancy is expected in 2021.
Sanofi announced the lease of 900,000 sf in two buildings in the Cambridge Crossing development in December of 2018. The French pharmaceutical manufacturer will occupy approximately a fifth of the 45-acre campus spanning Cambridge, Boston, and Somerville. The project will provide collaborative laboratory and office space for 2,700 Sanofi employees.
The University of Manchester opened the £60 million Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre in December of 2018 in the United Kingdom. Located in the new 91,000-sf Masdar Building on the North campus, the facility will accommodate collaborative materials science research and development with King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) and Khalifa University of Science and Technology.
16 Tech Community Corporation broke ground in December of 2018 on the $30 million Advanced Research and Innovation Facility in Indianapolis. The Indiana Biosciences Research Institute will lease over 67,000 sf on the first three floors of the building to accommodate researchers engaged in the study of diabetes, nutrition, and metabolics. Indiana University School of Medicine will locate the Center for Regenerative Medicine's molecular therapeutics program in 12,000 sf of the facility, which will also house the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership.
The Pirbright Institute will begin construction in early 2019 on the £50 million Brooksby Building in the United Kingdom. Designed to promote interaction and collaboration between investigators, the 51,000-sf facility will feature sophisticated biocontainment laboratories for the detection, diagnosis, and study of zoonotic diseases and livestock pathogens, as well as providing small animal vivarium space for in vivo research programs. The general contractor for the project is Kier and occupancy is expected by 2021.
Georgia Southern University broke ground in December of 2018 on the $50 million Center for Engineering and Research in Statesboro. Designed by SmithGroup and Stevens & Wilkinson to promote interaction and collaboration, the three-story, 135,000-sf facility will provide a centralized home for the departments and disciplines of the Allen E. Paulson College of Engineering and Computing.
National Research Council Canada opened the Manufacturing and Automotive Innovation Hub in December of 2018 in London, Ontario. Designed by Diamond Schmitt Architects to promote collaboration and interaction, the flexible facility provides four laboratories, a high crane bay, and two vehicle bays to support the optimization of manufacturing supply chain operations and the development of innovative products and technologies. A 9,200-sf open office environment with abundant natural light is located on the second floor of the 16,740-sf facility.
The University of Michigan is planning to create the Central Campus Classroom Building in Ann Arbor. Designed by The S/L/A/M Collaborative and Harley Ellis Devereaux, the project includes the renovation and repurposing of the historic Alexander G. Ruthven Museums Building to provide 135,000 gsf of computational research space, a 200-person multipurpose room, and administrative offices.
The University of New Haven is building the Bergami Center for Science, Technology, and Innovation in West Haven, Conn. Designed by Svigals+Partners, the three-story, 44,000-sf facility will provide sophisticated science and engineering labs, collaborative classrooms, a maker space, an atrium, and video production studios. The interdisciplinary building will also include a co-working space for faculty and administrative staff instead of individual offices. Ground was broken on the project in October of 2018 and completion is expected in early 2020.
The Vaccines Manufacturing Innovation Centre is planning to create a £66 million research and production facility in the United Kingdom. Located in the Oxford Science Park, the project will support the development and manufacturing of vaccines for clinical trials and epidemic threat mitigation, as well as the creation of gene therapy technologies and personalized medicine solutions.
Michigan State’s GRRC provides research space for 33 principal investigators (PIs), in the domains of obstetrics gynecology and reproductive biology, translational science and molecular medicine, and pediatrics and human development. The program for the new building includes:
Harvard University opened HouseZero in December of 2018 in Cambridge, Mass. Acting as a living laboratory for sustainable design and construction, the project features a data-driven infrastructure with nearly 300 embedded sensors that produce 17 million data points in real time each day. Software informed by the house's sensors automatically opens and closes windows, circulating air through cross ventilation and convection flows. Algorithms informed by sensors optimize ventilation in relation to the house's mass, reducing the need for building systems almost entirely.
Mississippi State University broke ground in December of 2018 on the $34 million Richard A. Rula Engineering & Science Complex in Starkville. Designed by Eley Guild Hardy Architects, the 70,000-sf facility will provide teaching and research labs, high bay areas, classrooms, and offices. Featuring exposed building systems to enable the structure to act as a teaching tool, the building will house the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering as well as accommodating programs in chemistry.
