Perkins+Will completes UF's Clinical and Translational Research Building

The Miami office of global architecture and design firm, Perkins+Will, recently completed a major healthcare, education and research project, the University of Florida's (UF) Clinical and Translational Research Building (CTRB). The new five-story, 120,000 square-foot facility, provides a headquarters for clinical and translational research for not only the UF Gainesville campus but the state at large. The building houses the Clinical and Translational Science Institute and the UF Institute on Aging as well as several research groups studying topics including biostatistics, epidemiology, Muscular Dystrophy and Health Outcomes and Policy.

"The Clinical and Translational Research Building is a state-of-the-art facility designed to encourage collaborative study by incorporating three main components: healthcare, education and research," said Pat Bosch, LEED AP, Design Principal with the Perkins+Will Miami office. "It was important to the client and to us that the building foster researchers' goals of shortening the time from laboratory discovery to bedside treatment."

The highly collaborative nature of the CTRB's planning evolved through a series of informative workshops with the university's administration, representatives from the colleges that will use the facility, and the extended design and construction team. Perkins+Will sought to fulfill numerous goals for the building including creating environments that propel innovative, interdisciplinary research and discoveries; interfacing with the community through education; developing a space that is adaptable, flexible and modular; and providing a variety of indoor and outdoor interactive healing environments.

"The Institute on Aging has always been dedicated to improving the health and preserving the independence of older adults and this wonderfully sustainable new facility will help that mission," said Dr. Marco Pahor, Director of the Institute on Aging. "We are pleased that the IOA's initial construction grant from the NIH has led to this multidisciplinary facility where researchers and clinicians from diverse fields can work together in an environment that promotes wellness." 

Natural elements heavily influenced the building's design, especially the sustainability components. A prism-like glass curtain wall adds dazzle as it both reflects and refracts the area's copious sunlight. Along with providing energy-saving natural daylight, 8-12 percent of the building's electricity is produced by a solar photovoltaic system. Rainwater is collected to provide irrigation to the landscaping and to terrace planters. It is also used to flush the latrines throughout the facilities. Displacement ventilation systems help keep the building cool while limiting the need for air conditioning. Due to these elements and others, the building has been submitted for LEED® Platinum certification.

"The Clinical and Translational Research Building brought my colleagues at the University of Florida together from the planning stage," said David R. Nelson, MD, Director of the Clinical and Translational Science Institute. "From the funding process, to working with Perkins+Will on design and sustainability, and now as we use the building for research and treatment, this is a project that through every stage encourages collaboration."

Now complete, the CTRB was funded without using any investment from the State of Florida, drawing on sources such as an American Recovery Act grant and bonds to be paid from the future revenue stemming from research activities. The building stands as an example of what is possible in science and technology design, sustainability and financing for other science and research institutions to follow.