A first-of-its-kind-facility in the United States – the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate’s (S&T) National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF) – received a best project award from Engineering News-Record (ENR) Midwest this week.
That award, centered on government/public buildings, honored the facility for its quality of work, innovative ideas during construction and significant challenges overcome. ENR is a heavyweight for the construction industry, and the endorsement represented a high mark for the first U.S. facility to maintain maximum biocontainment lab space for large animals and the development of vaccines/diagnostics for animal diseases.
“With NBAF, S&T built the first advanced biocontainment laboratory of its kind in the United States, dedicated to research on diseases threatening both the animal agricultural industry and public health,” Dr. Dimitri Kusnezov, DHS Under Secretary for Science and Technology, said. “The work completed at this new lab will include everything from researching and developing vaccines, performing diagnostic testing, and training researchers and veterinarians to recognize the clinical signs of foreign animal diseases in livestock.”
Construction of the facility itself was undertaken by the joint venture McCarthy/Mortenson, while design services were tackled by the collective NBAF Design Partnership. S&T focused on making the lab sustainable, earning LEED Gold Certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. It cost $1.25 billion overall.
The USDA now owns, manages and operates the 700,000 square foot facility. It will be used to replace the existing Plum Island Animal Disease Center in New York.