A new nine-story, 350,000 sf biomedical research and education facility under construction at the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School in Worcester, Mass., will accommodate larger class sizes and extensive lab space. The facility will support more than 70 principal investigators studying treatments for Alzheimer’s disease, other dementias, and neurodegenerative diseases.
The additional space also permits campus expansion of facilities to help meet the needs for more physicians, graduate nurses, life sciences researchers, and other health sciences professionals. The project is in line with the recommendation from the Association of American Medical Colleges that medical schools identify ways of helping meet the growing physician shortage.
The $325 million building will host co-location of the Horae Gene Therapy Center, the Departments of Neurology and Neurobiology, the Program in Molecular Medicine, and the new Program in Human Genetics & Evolutionary Biology. The new structure will complete the west face of the Campus Green and require the removal of a portion of a parking garage. The new building will connect with two other structures through a new system of sky bridges on the second level and below grade.
The sustainability target is LEED Gold with aspirations to net-zero energy usage. The architecture integrates high performance systems with a double-skin façade and geothermal heat pumps. The geothermal heating and cooling system will reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the building by 55% compared to serving HVAC needs exclusively with the campus power plant.
Moving certain departments and programs to the new building will open up space for more than 30 laboratories in existing spaces. The relocation of the molecular medicine department will allow space to be leased to companies in the UMass Medicine Science Park.
“Some may be surprised to learn that UMass Chan Medical School actually increased its funded research during the pandemic,” said Terence R. Flotte, MD, the Celia and Isaac Haidak Professor, executive deputy chancellor, provost, and dean of the School of Medicine. “But we were not surprised at all. The gifted research community here is deeply committed to advancing our efforts to cure disease and alleviate suffering.”
On the Building Team:
Owner: UMass Chan Medical School & UMass Building Authority
Design architect: ZGF Architects
Architect of record: Architectural Resources Cambridge (ARC)
MEP Engineers: BR+A Consulting Engineers & Architectural Engineers, Inc.
Structural engineer: RSE Associates
Construction Manager: Shawmut Design and Construction
Related Stories
| Aug 11, 2010
Community college’s hillside learning center
The Earl E. and Dorothy J. Dellinger Learning Resource Center at Southwest Virginia Community College in Richlands, Va., is the centerpiece of this mountainside school. Designed by Arlington, Va.-based The Lukmire Partnership, the 50,000-sf, two-story building connects the upper and lower campuses, which are separated by a 70-foot vertical grade change.
| Aug 11, 2010
Broadway-style theater headed to Kentucky
One of Kentucky's largest performing arts venues should open in 2011—that's when construction is expected to wrap up on Eastern Kentucky University's Business & Technology Center for Performing Arts. The 93,000-sf Broadway-caliber theater will seat 2,000 audience members and have a 60×24-foot stage proscenium and a fly loft.
| Aug 11, 2010
Polshek unveils design for University of North Texas business building
New York City-based architect Polshek Partnership unveiled its design scheme for the $70 million Business Leadership Building at the University of North Texas in Denton. Designed to provide UNT’s 5,600-plus business majors with a state-of-the-art learning environment, the 180,000-sf facility will include an open atrium, an internet café, and numerous study and tutoring rooms—al...
| Aug 11, 2010
Cooper Union academic building designed to reach LEED Platinum
Morphosis Architects and Gruzen Samton are collaborating on an ultra-green academic building for New York’s Cooper Union that is designed to achieve LEED Platinum certification. The program for the nine-story facility mixes state-of-the-art laboratories, classrooms, a multipurpose auditorium, and a range of public and social spaces.
| Aug 11, 2010
Utah research facility reflects Native American architecture
A $130 million research facility is being built at University of Utah's Salt Lake City campus. The James L. Sorenson Molecular Biotechnology Building—a USTAR Innovation Center—is being designed by the Atlanta office of Lord Aeck & Sargent, in association with Salt-Lake City-based Architectural Nexus.
| Aug 11, 2010
Construction begins on Louisiana State Sports Hall of Fame
Heavy construction and foundation work has started on the new Louisiana State Sports Hall of Fame and Regional History Museum in Natchitoches, La. Designed by Trahan Architects, Baton Rouge, the $12 million, 28,000-sf museum will be clad in sinker cypress planks as a nod to the region’s rich timber legacy and to help control light, views, and ventilation throughout the facility.
| Aug 11, 2010
Modest recession for education construction
Construction spending for education expanded modestly but steadily through March, while at the same time growth for other institutional construction had stalled earlier in 2009. Education spending is now at or near the peak for this building cycle. The value of education starts is off 9% year-to-date compared to 2008.
| Aug 11, 2010
Perkins Eastman awarded Indian School of Business campus
The New York office of Perkins Eastman has been commissioned by the Indian School of Business for a 70-acre, 1.5 million-sf new business school campus as part of a 300-acre “Knowledge City” in Chandigarh, Mohali, India. The sustainable campus will accommodate four centers of excellence: healthcare management, public policy, manufacturing/operations, and physical infrastructure manag...
| Aug 11, 2010
Opening night close for Kent State performing arts center
The curtain opens on the Tuscarawas Performing Arts Center at Kent State University in early 2010, giving the New Philadelphia, Ohio, school a 1,100-seat multipurpose theater. The team of Legat & Kingscott of Columbus, Ohio, and Schorr Architects of Dublin, Ohio, designed the 50,000-sf facility with a curving metal and glass façade to create a sense of movement and activity.
| Aug 11, 2010
Residence hall designed specifically for freshman
Hardin Construction Company's Austin, Texas, office is serving as GC for the $50 million freshman housing complex at the University of Houston. Designed by HADP Architecture, Austin, the seven-story, 300,000-sf facility will be located on the university's central campus and have 1,172 beds, residential advisor offices, a social lounge, a computer lab, multipurpose rooms, a fitness center, and a...
