TRENDS
BEST PR AC TICES FOR LIFE SCIENCES DESIGN
This last decade has seen a flood of advancements in medicine, biotech, and pharmaceuticals—mRNA vaccines, CRISPR gene editing, cancer treatments, and regenerative medicine, just to name a few. These breakthroughs, and all of the work they inspired, help to explain why the design and construction of life sciences buildings boomed over the last decade. In large markets from San Francisco to San Diego, Raleigh-Durham, Philadelphia, New Jersey, Washington, D.C.-Baltimore, Seattle, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Denver-Boulder, millions of square feet dedicated to scientific research, development, and manufacturing have opened. According to CBRE, occupancy levels of lab/R&D space in these markets have never been higher and continue to grow.
Experts from: Gensler, HKS, ZGF Architects, Syska Hennessy, HDR, and Pickard Chilton
With all the recent design activity in these highly specialized types of space, best practices have emerged from lessons learned. Principals from Gensler, HKS, ZGF Architects, Syska Hennessy, HDR, and Pickard Chilton shared their insights with Architectural Products on the trends and technologies informing the next era of life sciences design.
The Key Design Trends According to ZGF Architects Principal Steven Chang, aia, leed ap, life sciences projects today often demand a unique blend of the following design objectives. Flexibility: The needs and priorities of life sciences researchers are constantly evolving. Design solutions should maximize flexibility. It primes a building to pivot when research priorities change. Sustainability: Sustainable buildings increasingly command higher rents and sale prices with structural resilience, occupant health, and good design serving as key selling points. Adaptive Reuse: Transforming vacant space into laboratory space creates a win-win for building owners and the environment due to the inherent embodied carbon and cost savings that come with reusing rather than building new.
Photo courtesy of Magda Biernat
Building Community: Research talent prefers vibrant communities with diverse people and areas of expertise, amenities, and other scientists from various disciplines. The idea is that worldchanging discoveries are made when ideas collide in unexpected, unplanned ways and design can help foster the collisions that create these intellectual overlaps. Collaboration: This trend is inspired by workplace strategy and driven by stiff competition for top talent, employee wellness, and speed to market concerns. Crucial for the future of scientific discovery are venues for interdisciplinary collaboration. ARCHITECTURAL PRODUCTS
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