Biodesign Boom
By K. Robert Wendel

Bio is big and getting bigger as the second phase of the new Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University in Tempe takes shape.

advertisement

The second building - Biodesign B - is part of a larger strategy to create a biotechnology campus at ASU. Plans call for two more buildings, after the second phase is completed. The first phase, the Bio A building, finished in January.

The new, $53 million Biodesign B features 172,000 sq. ft. on four levels, with one level below grade. The building is designed to be the headquarters of the Biodesign Institute, so it features more office space than Biodesign A.

"The Biodesign Institute represents the state's largest investment to date in biotech research facilities," said George Poste, the institute's director. "It's the fulfillment of a public trust, because this project would not have been possible without voter-approved funding in 2000 and legislative support for research infrastructure appropriations in 2003."

The project is just one of a flurry of new biotech construction efforts taking place in Arizona. Other projects include the downtown Phoenix TGen/IGC facility, a new bioscience center at the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale and a new chemistry building dedicated to bioengineering in Tucson at the University of Arizona.

At ASU, the two biodesign buildings will form a new gateway on the east side of campus. There also are plans for an extensive desert garden.

Working under a construction manager at-risk contract, the Arizona firms Gould Evans Associates, Sundt/DPR, a joint venture and Atlanta-based Lord Aeck and Sargent Architecture will complete the project in the fall. Work started in April. The construction team is shooting for L.E.E.D. Silver designation, with plans to use waterless urinals and to recycle condensate from mechanical systems for landscaping. Contractors are also recycling at the site near Rural Road on Terrace Street, although that has not been easy.

"It's such a tight site we don't have places to put all the dumpsters we need," said DPR project manager Brett Helm.

"And if a contractor sees an empty dumpster, he's going to use it for whatever, even though the dumpster sign may say 'cardboard only.'"

Like other biotechnology projects, programming the new biodesign building is difficult. Scientists conduct a wide array of experiments, so one type of lab won't meet everybody's needs.

"The labs are designed to be as flexible and adaptable as possible for a variety of uses," said architect Barbara Hendricks in the Phoenix office of Gould Evans Associates. "All of the benches are on wheels and the various systems are systematically laid out to maximize the lab's flexibility."

Both Biodesign A and B increase interaction between the sciences.

"The thing that makes this sort of building unique is an environment based on research collaboration," said design principal Jay Silverberg of the Phoenix office of Gould Evans. "We are creating spaces for researchers to cross paths."

Although Biodesign A and Biodesign B share similar architecture, Biodesign B will be the key entryway onto the campus's east side. The building's eastern and northern sides feature an extensive glass curtain wall. Designers created a complex shading system that will echo a strand of DNA.

"We wanted high-tech things for high-tech people, and part of that is showing through the architecture," said architect Craig Peavy of Lord Aeck and Sargent Architecture. "In the morning when sun comes up, the shades start tracking the sun and automatically adjust to allow light. Then the louvers track back to full open in the evening."

As the new face of bio technology, the project features upscale finishes, with architects using the context of the Tyler Mall as a starting point. The new building is also near the eventual light rail station. The building also functions as the Biodesign Technologies administration center, so more space is dedicated to offices than in Biodesign A.

The project also features gallery space and an auditorium.

"This project has more of a public component to it," Silverberg said. "This building really dovetails back into the campus and the community at the same time."