Best Higher Education/Research: Cutting Edge Laboratory

The National Synchrotron Light Source-II,

The National Synchrotron Light Source-II, a 600,000-sq-ft, third-generation synchrotron light source facility at Brookhaven National Laboratory, is the newest and most advanced facility of its kind in the world.

“Successfully constructing such a large, world-leading scientific facility required teamwork and a shared vision by the designer, owner and the contracting team,” says Martin Fallier, division director of photon sciences at Brookhaven National Laboratory, owner and developer of NSLS-II. “In addition to the many technical challenges of this unique facility, aggressive goals were set for project safety performance and sustainability that were ultimately achieved through partnering and the shared contributions of the entire design, construction and management team. The result is a facility that meets exacting scientific requirements, safely constructed ahead of schedule and on budget achieving and exceeding sustainability goals.”

The $912-million project features five laboratory and office buildings as well as a medium-energy storage ring that measures nearly half a mile in circumference. The facility will be used by more than 4,000 researchers each year to study biology, chemistry, environmental science, material science, medicine and physics. The facility is home to the brightest and most intense X-rays in the world, which are more than 10,000 times brighter than those used at the original National Synchrotron Light Source.

The project team was committed to using sustainable materials, and NSLS-II achieved a LEED Gold certification. The site includes 30 acres of open green space, has parking areas allotted specifically for bicycles and fuel-efficient vehicles, and is equipped with low-flow plumbing fixtures expected to cut water usage by roughly 40 percent. Eighty-seven percent of the construction waste was diverted from landfills.

The first part of construction was completed a year before the remainder of the project, allowing scientists at Brookhaven to begin their work ahead of schedule.