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Architects: Perkins&Will
- Area: 270000 ft²
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Photographs:Hedrich Blessing
Text description provided by the architects. The 270,000-square-foot life science building is six stories tall and includes about 9,000 square feet of ground floor retail space as well as four levels of subterranean parking.
The design orients labs like flower petals around a large light-filled central atrium; the effect is like the inside of a bee hive where researchers can see each other and what they are doing, making the space more collaborative, flexible, and transparent.
Offices, open space, and interacting stairs enable chance encounters between colleagues and staff, helping build community.
Usually tucked-away lab work is made transparent and visible from the exterior via materials such as perforated shading and woven metal embedded within the glass façade.
Through an energy modeling of building systems, Perkins+Will was able to achieve a very high degree of exterior transparency. At 56-percent, it is almost double Seattle’s maximum requirements.
The space includes wet and dry labs, a data center, auditorium, atrium, and collaborative working spaces.
