National Institutes of Health, John Edward Porter Neurosciences Research Center, Bethesda, Maryland
From Archiplanet
| National Institutes of Health, John Edward Porter Neurosciences Research Center | |
| Designer | Rafael Vinoly Architects PC, New York, New York, USA |
| Location | Bethesda, Maryland, USA |
| Date | 2004 |
| Building Type | Government, Research |
| Street Address | |
| Notes |
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| Building Details |
In 2000, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) conducted a design competition for a new research center that would consolidate within a single building nine neuroscience institutes spread throughout the campus. The winning entry by Rafael Viñoly Architects PC offered the most flexible and collaborative environment for scientists to work toward a common goal of understanding the human brain.
The facility is composed of six 121-foot square lab modules, or “pods,” arrayed on a nine-square grid in plan; the roughly cubical pods are arranged around a seventh module in the center, occupied by a highly transparent atrium. The naturally-lit atrium is the collaborative nexus of the facility—a welcoming environment of glass and steel beneath a faceted roof partially supported by the elevator core tower. Surrounded on three sides by labs, the broad space houses the building’s main entrance, meeting facilities, and a cafeteria. The centrally located atrium serves as a circulation hub and destination attraction within the complex and encourages random encounters between scientists.
The lab modules feature flexible, open plans with comprehensive interstitial mechanical floors that make them easily convertible to offices or dry labs. Cores for vertical circulation and mechanical shafts are positioned along each pod’s perimeter, and circulation corridors are maintained between each pod in order to maximize communication among labs and maintain their open plan. The building’s serrated enclosure, a curtain wall composed of three tilted, horizontal courses of glass per floor, shades a large portion of the building surface and thus reduces heat gain to the mechanical and ventilation systems. Loading and support spaces are located below-grade, along with a 25,000-cage rodent vivarium.
The project was divided into two phases, with Phase I entailing construction of the three westernmost pods. Phase II was not completed: changing political priorities led to a loss of federal funding, and the design was subsequently placed on hold.
