Biomedical Sciences & Engineering Education Facility, Rockville, MD, USA

Biomedical Sciences & Engineering Education Facility

At the Universities at Shady Grove (USG), nine public universities in the University System of Maryland (USM) have successfully joined together to provide high-quality higher education at a shared location in Montgomery County.
The new six-story Biomedical Sciences and Engineering Sciences building (BSE) is designed to offer advanced degree programs in cutting-edge technologies and medical sciences and to share teaching facilities across disciplines. The overall climate concept focused on optimizing access for daylight and natural ventilation for the majority of regularly used spaces. The south wing of the Biomedical Sciences and Engineering Building-which consists primarily of teaching labs, classrooms, and common study areas-is connected to an atrium to the north that houses faculty offices and computer labs.
At the beginning of the project, Transsolar led an integrated visioning charrette. energy and comfort goals and desires were discussed, leading to the formulation of a project charter. This was the basis for guiding the rest of the design process; each member of the design team reported on their progress to assess achievement of stated goals.
During the schematic design phase, Transsolar focused on the particularly important early design decisions, such as massing, orientation, air cascade between different space types, and the like. A One area of high impact for Transsolar was proposing the unique twisted fabric shading on the atrium façade. In the design development phase, the focus shifted to the details of the façade design, shading, material selection, and integration of mechanical systems into the architectural design.
Solar panels installed on the building, as well as the adjacent parking garages, are used for energy conservation and as a display for students. The building connects the site with a user-centered, nature-based design that emphasizes energy efficiency, occupant health, and productivity, and meets the needs of the operators and meets the educational needs of the students.

2024 AIA COTE Top Ten Award
2022 Society for College and University Planning: Excellence Award Honorable Mention
2021 LEED Platinum
2021 AIA San Antonio Merit Award
2021 AIA Maryland Vision Award
2021 AIA Maryland Jury Citation for Institutional Architecture
2021 AIA Potomac PV Award
2021 AIA Potomac Valley Honor Award
2021 USGBC National Capital Region Judge’s Choice Award
2021 Montgomery Planning Design Excellence Award
2021 IIDA Georgia Best of the Best Awards
2020 NAIOP DC | MD Award of Excellence

Biomedical Sciences & Engineering Education Facility

Solar radiation

Biomedical Sciences & Engineering Education Facility