"How is Your Government Doing?" Implementing Sustainable Strategies at Three Very Different Federal Laboratory Facilities

Jonathan Romig, AIA, EwingCole Architects, Engineers & Planners
Howard Skoke, AIA, EwingCole Architects, Engineers & Planners

Some of the most progressive research facilities being built today are associated with government agencies or affiliated institutions. These projects, in addition to fulfilling sustainable design goals, must also balance budget and be "mission ready." This session will examine the specific research needs, planning objectives, and outcomes for three current projects, in different phases of development and all tracking toward LEED®.

  • NASA Goddard Space Sciences Center (completed)
  • Thomas Jefferson Lab National Accelorator Facility (beginning construction)
  • Smithsonian Institution Environmental Research Center (SERC) (in design)

NASA's need for reconfigurable laboratory and clean room spaces resulted in a highly developed, energy-efficient utility infrastructure framework. The nuclear physics "shops" at Jefferson Lab are designed to accommodate high bay prototype testing as well as specialty bench work. At SERC, research "guilds" are grouped together to share resources in a facility where both the building and the site showcase environmental sustainability. The three projects also represent different approaches to hybridization of existing retrofitted space with new construction from both a design and engineering perspective.

This session will also highlight lessons learned, levels of commitment, key design/decision drivers and how each facility achieved its sustainable goals. Projects will be examined against Executive Order 13514 numerical and non-numerical targets.

Biographies:

Jonathan Romig, AIA, is the director of EwingCole's Science and Technology practice for its east coast operations. Mr. Romig has more than 30 years of expertise and proven leadership in the design of science and technology facilities. Mr. Romig has planned and designed more than 20 million square feet of advanced science and technology projects for a variety of clients including healthcare, commercial, institutional, and federal government. Additionally, Mr. Romig helped develop more than 30 new science buildings for higher education. His past clients include Johns Hopkins University, Genzyme, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, MIT, Biogen, New York University, UCLA, Princeton University, and Merck & Company.

Prior to joining EwingCole, Mr. Romig was the director of science and technology at The S/L/A/M Collaborative, one of the largest A/E firms in New England. Before that, he was a principal at HOK where he led their New York City science and technology group.

A graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design with a Bachelor of Architecture degree, Mr. Romig is a member of the American Institute of Architects and the International Society of Pharmaceutical Engineers. He regularly presents at both Tradeline and Turnkey and has been published in many industry periodicals including Lab Design and Animal Lab News. Mr. Romig is also a faculty member of Project Kaleidoscope and the Eagleson Institute.

Howard Skoke, AIA, is a nationally recognized expert in the planning and design of facilities for a variety of research, corporate, and institutional clients including NASA, USDA, Jefferson Lab, Smithsonian Institution and Olympus Americas. He has more than 25 years of experience working inclusively with multiple project constituents, leading to successful consensus on complex functional, technical, cost, and design issues.

Mr. Skoke has presented at a variety of conferences, including Healthcare Facility Symposium, Tradeline, R&D Benchmarking Council, and AIA Professional Development Seminars. He has authored numerous articles and white papers on planning and design. His projects have been featured in Healthcare Design Magazine, American School and University Magazine, Hospital & Healthcare News, Lab Animal Magazine, HQ Magazine, and Context, an AIA publication. He is a member of the American Institute of Architects, the Society for College and University Planning (SCUP), and a former board member of the Community Education Center, in Philadelphia, Pennsylviania.

Mr. Skoke, a principal of EwingCole, joined the firm in 1984. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Syracuse University (Phi Beta Kappa) and a Masters of Architecture degree from Princeton University.