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Background |
The Brown Building is one of the four turn-of-the-century buildings which have been combined into a single city-block conglomeration. Gut renovations on the 3rd, 6th, and 9th floors were required to transform the aging classroom floors into state-of-the-art advanced laboratories. Program and design included 8,000 SF Organic Chemistry Laboratory on the 3rd floor; the 12,000 SF Molecular Design Institute on the 3rd floor and 8,000 SF Genomics Research located on the 9th floor. The renovations featured an open, light filled space, where benches and instrumentation areas were ringed with windowed offices and common areas. The open plan of these labs maximize efficient use of space, facilitating interaction and creating synergy among NYU faculty, students, staff, and visiting researchers. Instrumentation areas were highlighted as a show piece featured in the design and labs were designed for maximum responsiveness for constant change in research with overhead carriers and minimal floor coring. |
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Challenges |
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Limited mechanical spaces and low ceiling height of under 10’6” |
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Expedited schedule to accommodate university curriculum |
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Intense programmatic requirements within limited space |
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H-2 chemical storage area with blast panels for class 1A flammables |
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Vibration control for two photon, confocal and TEM microscopy suites |
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Wood floors, irregular and inconsistent structural grid |
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Historical preservation issues and community concerns |
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Design for facilitating future applications |
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Solutions |
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All aspects of the design and programming were streamlined and project was delivered at an accelerated schedule and kept on track by an efficient and lean team. Construction documents for all floors were delivered within 5 months of contract award |
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Lab functions were moved to the interior of the floor area to create a research core on the floor and allow for multiple egress paths for lab safety. |
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A fast track programmin & client approval process utilizing decision ready information was utilized to streamline schedule |
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Community meeting area and officing areas were designed on the perimeter to create open circulation |
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Construction schedule was coordinated to minimize disruption to adjacent areas and floors and during off hours |
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Services provided on behalf of EYP |
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