Northern Arizona University Science and Health Building

The Science and Health facility shows Northern Arizona University's commitment to their future of science education. It provides state-of-the-art research labs that will attract the best researchers and professors alike.

This STEM building construction project delivered a new five-story, 120,000 square foot facility. The facility features new teaching and research laboratories, as well as classrooms for chemistry, biology and health sciences. The building includes faculty offices, interaction rooms, several research and instructional labs, classrooms and multiple lecture halls. At the time of construction, the university estimated over 10% of NAU's students will use the facility each semester. As part of Mortenson's broader work in higher education construction, the project reflects the growing need for state-of-the-art science and research facilities on today's college campuses.

Collaborative Problem-Solving on an Education Facility Construction Project

Early trade partner collaboration and the team's problem-solving abilities were both key to the project's success. During the schematic design of the enclosure systems, the team brought on trade partners to help reduce the number of different types of systems. 

The team then included the trade partners' shop drawings in the contract documents, lowering the cost of the system while increasing the speed of construction. This education facility construction project also relied on local labor: over 57% of the craft labor used was local to Flagstaff and its surrounding communities.

Built to LEED Gold Standards

The project team took an all-inclusive, comprehensive approach to achieving LEED Gold certification. This affected all aspects of the project – from pre-construction site selection, responsible waste control, and intelligent design to the selection of fixtures, equipment, building envelope, low volatile organic compounds (VOC) and recycled materials. 

This building is an example of what a LEED project can achieve when the team considers and executes all details, rather than one large-scale design innovation. For more on how Mortenson approaches lab-heavy academic buildings, see Essential Elements of Future-Ready Life Science Buildings.