Skanska Tops Out $65M North Carolina State Laboratory Project

Skanska has topped out a $65-million renovation and expansion project at the North Carolina Dept. of Environmental Quality’s Reedy Creek Laboratory in Raleigh. Totaling 86,000 sq ft, the project aims to enhance research capabilities and optimize workflows at the 35-year-old facility, which currently houses labs serving the agency’s Air Quality and Water Resources divisions. DEQ’s Division of Environmental Assistance and Customer Service, and all divisions of its Raleigh Regional Office will also relocate to the expanded campus.

The project, which broke ground this past March, includes a new 33,000-sq-ft administration building and visitor center that will connect existing buildings and create an interior courtyard. The lobby will showcase a laboratory simulation area where the public can learn testing procedures and the importance of DEQ’s mission to the state. Nearly 11,000 sq ft of lab space for DEQ’s microbiology, metals and air quality operations will be housed in the new building as well.

In addition, the project team is renovating approximately 53,000 sq ft of space across three existing laboratory buildings to create modular laboratory spaces, modern offices, research zones and new conference areas. Laboratory types include nutrients and wet chemistry, algae, volatiles, extractions, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAs) biochemistry.

A portion of the existing air quality building will be repurposed into a central energy plant to provide mechanical and electrical systems for the entire campus. The remainder of the building will be converted into a central shipping and receiving area, and glass-wash space.

The campus will feature energy-efficient walls and windows, a depolluting roofing system, high-efficiency HVAC systems, sustainable building materials and photovoltaic arrays that will provide 33% of the electricity needed by the office building. The new campus is expected to be certified under the Green Building Institute’s Green Globes program, demonstrating its achievements in environmental sustainability, health and wellness, and resilience.

The Reedy Creek facility will remain fully operational throughout construction, which is expected to be completed in January 2028.

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