North American Life Science Sector Wraps Up Construction on 69 Projects Topping $3 Billion in Second-Quarter 2013

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Reported by Annette Kreuger, Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--With 2013 almost half over, the Life Science sector is busy finishing out an impressive array of capital construction projects. As the second quarter enters its final days, the Life Science sector is on target to complete construction on a total of 69 North American capital projects, each as diverse as the industry itself. A recent survey of reported projects in Industrial Info's Pharmaceutical Tracker - Online Database reveals that the projects represent a total investment value (TIV) of $3.2 billion.

Click on the image at right for a graph detailing North American Life Science projects to be completed in second-quarter 2013 by region.

Sources for the second-quarter activity include private industry, commercial developers, universities and the federal government. The projects reported involve grassroot facilities, major building additions to existing sites, and in-plant capital. The projects are a varied group in both size and focus. The average TIV for each of the projects is a noteworthy $46 million.

The largest of the projects completed is the $700 million Weill Cornell Medical College's Belfer Biomedical Research Building in New York, New York. Designed by Ennead Architects LLP (New York, New York), the 16-story, 500,000-square-foot building was built by Tishman Construction (New York, New York). The main research focus of the new center will be on translational biomedical research, which involves accelerating time getting treatments from "bench to bedside." While construction is scheduled for completion this month, validation of the building systems and equipment will continue through March 2014.

On the other side of the country, Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) (Foster City, California) completed its $140 million biopharmaceutical drug development New Laboratory Building 1 (NLB1) on the Foster City campus. Following the demolition of two existing buildings, Rudolph & Sletten (Redwood City, California) and Southland Industries (Union City, California) constructed the four-story, 192,000-square-foot research building. This is all part of Gilead's ambitious expansion plans for Foster City.

In Plymouth, Minnesota, medical device manufacturer St. Jude Medical (NYSE:STJ) (St. Paul, Minnesota) is in final commissioning of a $110 million project to consolidate its cardiovascular operations from nearby Minnetonka and Maple Grove. BWBR Architects (St. Paul, Minnesota) and McGough Construction (St. Paul, Minnesota) teamed up to construct and equip a three-story, 275,000-square-foot addition to the former 26-acre Aga Medical site.

From a regional standpoint, the Northeast completed the most projects with the highest TIV, having finished 10 projects valued at $1.2 billion during the second quarter of 2013--a dollar figure mirroring the region's first-quarter 2013 performance. Next up is the West Coast, with 14 projects valued at $816 million. The top three was rounded out by the Mid-Atlantic, which saw nearly $300 million invested into completing seven projects. The remaining projects were scattered across North America.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.