The Vantage Laboratory project involved the renovation and complete modernization of 12,262 sf of aged, poorly-utilized laboratory space in the basement of an existing mixed-use building, centrally located within the Vanderbilt University campus. We developed the program and planning working with VUMC to submit a G-20 grant submission to the National Institute of Health. Vanderbilt was awarded the NIH grant, and we were engaged to develop the project.

The goal of the renovation was to optimize new discovery through consolidation of similar, yet physically separate research groups. The design of the new lab merged four existing core facilities into a single, flexible lab space organized around an existing courtyard. The complex robotic labs required equipment coordination with international vendors.  Robust HVAC systems, meeting NIH standards, were required due to the high concentration of equipment.  Consolidating the modular lab spaces around shared resources, each research entity shares communal spaces and resources, extending and strengthening already successful collaborations. The existing courtyard was refurbished to provide an exterior communal space, and the corridor walls incorporated custom-designed glazing in order to provide natural light across the corridors, and into the labs.