Skanska to complete Virginia Tech Carilion Biomedical Research addition in Roanoke

Skanska USA said Monday that it has been awarded a $68 million contract to complete the Virginia Tech Carilion Biomedical Research Addition, a 140,000-square-foot building begun last fall on the Virginia Tech Carilion Health Sciences and Technology Campus in Roanoke.

The project is a collaboration between Carilion Clinic and Virginia Tech. The primary focus of the four-story building is to provide modern research facilities for enhanced biomedical research programs in five major t areas including:

·         Body device interfaces

·         Brain health and disorders

·         Cardiovascular science

·         Infectious diseases and immunology

·         Metabolism and obesity

“This building will allow Virginia Tech and Carilion Clinic to build on a successful partnership in Roanoke, in which we’ve played a significant role,” Greg Peele, executive vice president and general manager of Skanska’s building operations in Virginia/North Carolina said in a statement.  “The end result of our efforts will be an expansion of the biomedical research they’ve been conducting, greater learning opportunities for students, and expanded business opportunities for a highly-trained technical work force in the region.”

The building will house next-generation core instrumentation facilities including molecular, cellular and whole-body imaging and powerful computing facilities. Wet laboratories requiring direct ventilation and specialized piped utilities for water and various gases, MRI and CT scanning, high-resolution electron microscopy, necropsy, and pathology will be added. An atrium and multiple green roofs also are part of the project.

The expansion will be connected by an elevated walkway to the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine and Research Institute, previously constructed by Skanska and completed in 2010. That four-story, 152,850-square-foot building comprises a medical school, research institute and 52,000-square-feet of lower level parking.

AECOM is the architect for the addition, which is expected to be completed in February 2020.

Skanska said it has built more than 250 projects in Virginia. During the past 10 years, it has completed  projects worth $2.7 billion and now has about $1.3 billion of work in progress work in Virginia and North Carolina region. Based in New York, Skanska has offices in 31 metro areas, with 10,000 employees.