Medical Devices

Facility Logix, EwingCole, and Biggins Lacy Shapiro have launched Rapid Reshore & Development (RR&D) to provide turnkey professional services to the life sciences and biopharmaceutical industries. Addressing many of the logistical challenges faced by companies developing drugs, vaccines, and medical devices, the alliance represents an evolution from transaction-driven service models to a holistic focus on client needs.

SiO2 Materials Science is investing $163 million to expand its production capacity for vaccine vials and syringes in Auburn, Ala. The company will increase the footprint of its existing facility in the Auburn Technology Park West to create a 70,000-sf manufacturing center with additional space for precision injection molding operations. A second molding plant will also be constructed nearby. 

Trammell Crow Company will break ground in July of 2020 on Fulton Labs in Chicago. Providing wet and dry research environments, the 16-story, 423,454-sf life science facility will offer column-free and long-span layouts as well as a dedicated innovation floor for early-stage companies. Designed for maximum flexibility and scalability, the 16-story structure will integrate advanced mechanical infrastructure to support advanced R&D enterprises, with all labs meeting VC-A vibration criteria to ensure reproducible research results.

Amid sobering reports of job losses in commercial real estate, coupled with months-long construction shutdowns in major markets like Boston and New York, the life sciences sector is poised to experience a less dramatic disruption, and possibly emerge from the pandemic even stronger than it was before. “COVID is a healthcare crisis, so it needs a healthcare solution, and that life sciences and biophparma solution has to be constructed,” says Kevin Chronley, vice president of A/Z Corp. and immediate past president of the Boston Area Chapter of International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering (ISPE). Chronley predicts that construction will run the gamut from medical device manufacturing and biopharma laboratories to education and training facilities.

Federal financial measures have been approved in the past few weeks to shore up the economy during the COVID-19 pandemic, with direct monetary assistance and business loans totaling $5.5 trillion, and more support and flexibility for research universities and government contractors. The federal stimulus package—the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act—is intended to pump $2.2 trillion dollars into the economy, primarily in the healthcare and research sectors, and to provide emergency relief to institutions, businesses, and workers whose livelihoods have been impacted by the pandemic. The specifics of how it will be implemented are still evolving, and it is likely that additional stimulus bills will be considered in the coming months, including investments in infrastructure for the nation’s research enterprise.

Michigan State University broke ground on the $85 million Doug Meijer Innovation Building in Grand Rapids in November of 2019. Designed by SmithGroup, the 205,000-sf facility will house multiple tenants including Spectrum Health, BAMF Health, and MSU's College of Human Medicine. The collaborative six-story building will enable the discovery and commercialization of new medical devices, artificial intelligence technologies, and treatments for cancer and dementia.

Mayo Clinic is planning to build a $233 million integrated oncology facility in Jacksonville, Fla. Supporting the company's Proton Beam Therapy Program, the 140,000-sf building will feature a two-gantry proton radiotherapy system which can provide precision dosing with minimal toxicity to healthy tissue. The center will offer a full spectrum of cancer treatment options, including chemotherapy, immunotherapy, CAR-T cell therapy, gamma knife radiosurgery, and traditional radiotherapy. Completion is expected in late 2023.

The University of Oklahoma opened the 75,500-sf Gallogly Hall in late September of 2019 in Norman. Designed by Page Southerland Page to house the Stephenson School of Biomedical Engineering, the facility provides technology-rich classrooms and teaching labs, a large lecture hall, a maker space, faculty and graduate student offices, interactive learning venues, and a rooftop terrace.

A two-year, $55 million renovation at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign’s Everitt Laboratory has transformed the four-story, 136,763-sf building into the first engineering-based medical school in the country, with a focus on medical simulation, research, and instruction. With final completion in June 2018 and the first medical classes starting in July, the Carle Illinois Medical School’s state-of-the-art features enable bioengineering students and future medical professionals to engage in project/problem-based learning and maximize their medical training by using the latest simulation and virtual reality technology.

Mercedes Scientific, a national distributor of laboratory products, opened its new $10 million headquarters in March of 2019 in Bradenton, Fla. Located in the 305-acre Collaboration Opportunities for Research and Exploration (CORE) development, the two-story, 55,000-sf building provides executive offices, a distribution center, a 5,000-sf machine shop, and air-conditioned warehouse space. Designed by Flad Architects and Stantec, the structure features exposed mechanical systems, steel framing, and concrete walls.

Quest Diagnostics broke ground in March of 2019 on a 250,000-sf laboratory in Clifton, N.J. The medical testing facility will be Quest's largest development and will accommodate over 1,100 employees. Supporting increased capacity, the center will provide comprehensive diagnostic services with reduced processing times. Occupancy is expected in 2021. The lab is located on 12 acres in the ON3 campus which offers integrated research, office, and residential facilities in a vibrant environment offering myriad lifestyle amenities.

An emerging new model for hybrid translational healthcare facilities combines scientific research with university and professional athletic programs to increase community engagement and student wellbeing. From integrating sports training facilities with medical clinics and applied research, to incorporating fitness gyms, running tracks, and rock-climbing walls into student lounges and public spaces, the combination of athletics and recreation with other programs offers an innovative vision for academic facility design.

In December 2016, Stony Brook Medical launched a plan to build housing for a pair of high-power MRIs, an older model 9.4-Tesla and a newer 7-Tesla. The original plan was to build a brick-and-mortar facility into their existing vivarium, but that was deemed too expensive, forcing them to consider other options. Glen Itzkowitz, dean of facilities and operations, and his team decided to pursue an option that had never been considered at Stony Brook—using pre-fabricated containers to house the MRIs, which they could just barely squeeze into a loading dock underneath a high-traffic footpath, space that was largely being wasted.

Elekta opened its 150,695-sf Global Radiotherapy Innovation Center in September of 2018 in Crawley in the United Kingdom. Located on the company's five-acre Cornerstone campus, the facility will support the design and manufacture of precision radiation therapy technologies. Construction began in 2015 on the project, which will accommodate up to 750 employees including engineers, scientists, clinicians, and customer-facing professionals.

Innovation hubs and incubators are emerging as the best solution to help universities, entrepreneurs, researchers, and students transform their creative ideas into viable commercial ventures. Users want facilities that focus on entrepreneurship, creativity, and innovation; foster interdisciplinary collaboration and partnerships; offer responsive and flexible spaces; create a spirit of ground-up innovation; support commercialization of ideas/products; and connect to nearby universities, companies, and amenities.