Emory University Biomedical Research Building Project Completes in Atlanta, Georgia

Emory University’s new HSRB II, built by JE Dunn Construction, is a preeminent eight-story biomedical research building that is home to the Woodruff Health Sciences Center and the School of Medicine and will facilitate the discovery of new ways to improve human health worldwide.

This facility has both wet and dry laboratories, an imaging facility, BSL 2 and 3 labs, Cyclotron, Hot Cell, MRI, PET/CT, faculty offices, collaborative spaces for researchers, support and conferencing spaces, as well as connections to the auditorium and café at HSRBI. At the center of the building’s design is a six-story central atrium that includes sculpted pedestrian bridges, a multitiered cantilever stair, a prominent full-height façade supported by a concealed truss at the roof level, and a large skylight that fills the interior with natural light and a six-story interior green wall at the entrance, which is meant to encourage the use of an adjacent stairway and connect people with nature.

The building includes lab and collaborative spaces for researchers. Open labs and workspaces with soft barriers facilitate rapid discovery. Core facilities include advanced imaging, flow cytometry, a biorepository, genomics and other technologies. Spreading these core functions throughout the building fosters interaction among experimentalist, computationalist and core technology platforms.

Opening its first LEED Silver building in the Southeast 20+ years ago, Emory University continues to push the sustainability boundaries by setting significant targets for reduction(s) in both energy use intensity and water use and Emory requires each of their projects to achieve a minimum of LEED Silver certification. On the HSRB II, the university set an ambitious EUI goal and are targeting USGB LEED Gold certification.

Biophilic design elements support occupant wellness while establishing a strong sense of place. A skylight at the center of the atrium permeates the interior with natural light that, along with the dynamic artificial lighting, aids in maintaining people’s circadian rhythms.

A six-story interior green wall at the entrance encourages use of an adjacent stairway and connects people with nature. Balconies along the north facade invite the outdoors inside and provide spaces for respite. Outdoor landscape elements with natural vegetation bring the feeling of the forest close to the building.