Clinical and Medical Research Building: Gates Vascular Institute (GVI) and UB Clinical Translational Research Center (CTRC)

The spirit of collaboration was the driving force uniting Kaleida Health and the University at Buffalo within a single structure, and the building strives to bring several disciplines and its patients, surgeons and researchers, together for the exchange of knowledge and growth. The 476,000 sf facility achieves this by stacking a translational research building over a clinical vascular institute. The first four floors of this 10-story “vertical campus,” house the Gates Vascular Institute, with the Clinical and Translational Research Center occupying the top half of the building. Sandwiched between the two, is a two-level “collaborative core”—the “binder” that connects doctors and researchers from varying specialties to meet in a variety of dynamic situations to accelerate medical discoveries—moving science from the bench to the bedside.

The Gates Vascular Institute boasts a “hotel” comprised of 62 private patient rooms arranged into four nursing pods—each capable of independent operation, but flexible enough to work together with adjacent pods over the ebb and flow of patient volume. The “hotel” creates a more restive environment distinct from the active treatment areas. The GVI also features 59 exam rooms, five admissions offices, 16 intensive care beds and seven surgery rooms, as well as several patient and family amenities. A state-of-the-art emergency department is designed to accommodate 60,000 patient visits per year—entered through a spacious main waiting room. The perimeter of the building is designed to admit abundant natural daylight. These architectural responses, combined with an approach akin to a concierge desk, provide the positive first and last impressions so vital to patient and family satisfaction.

The spirit of collaboration was the driving force uniting Kaleida Health and the University at Buffalo within a single structure, and the building strives to bring several disciplines and its patients, surgeons and researchers, together for the exchange of knowledge and growth. The 476,000 sf facility achieves this by stacking a translational research building over a clinical vascular institute. The first four floors of this 10-story “vertical campus,” house the Gates Vascular Institute, with the Clinical and Translational Research Center occupying the top half of the building. Sandwiched between the two, is a two-level “collaborative core.” Included within the core is a 4,000 sf business incubator—part of the “binder” that connects doctors and researchers from varying specialties to meet in a variety of dynamic situations to accelerate medical discoveries—moving science from the bench to the bedside. Housed on the fifth floor of the core is the 20,000 sf Jacobs Institute—made up of a pre-eminent team of neurologists and other healthcare professionals who provide comprehensive care for patients with neurological disorders.

The CTRC occupies the top four floors of the building with a total of 170,000 sf of dedicated laboratory space, advanced imaging facilities; a bio-repository and a clinical research center. Design features such as open-plan laboratories, put researchers side-by-side, when traditionally they would be isolated in individual labs. The goal is to break down the “silos” that result when researchers in one discipline are isolated from researchers in another discipline. This New Scientific Workplace design encourages the exchange of ideas and collaboration between researchers in different areas of inquiry.

The spirit of collaboration was the driving force uniting Kaleida Health and the University at Buffalo within a single structure, and the building strives to bring several disciplines and its patients, surgeons and researchers, together for the exchange of knowledge and growth. The 476,000 sf facility achieves this by stacking a translational research building over a clinical vascular institute. The first four floors of this 10-story “vertical campus,” house the Gates Vascular Institute, with the Clinical and Translational Research Center occupying the top half of the building. Sandwiched between the two, is a two-level “collaborative core”—the “binder” that connects doctors and researchers from varying specialties to meet in a variety of dynamic situations to accelerate medical discoveries—moving science from the bench to the bedside.

Designed to attract people to the collaborative core areas, the interior design is enlivened with creative lighting, focal points, bright colors and warm woods that counter play with the crisp neutrals of the building palette. To emphasize the continuity between outside and inside and among groups of occupants, the curvilinear forms of the structure are reintroduced into the millwork and solid surfaces, accented through use of color.

It was determined early on that the material character of the superstructure should enfold and be evidenced in the interiors as an underlying fabric, throughout which threads of individuality emerged. Specialty colored glass panels, mosaics, paint colors, solid surfacing and furniture – set against the timeless white and gray of the structure – create an identity and brand for each of the spaces. The terrazzo and color-matched resinous flooring systems create durable, seamless movement from space to space, while providing a finish appropriate to specific uses. Lighting fixtures and architectural elements are thoughtfully positioned to provide pattern, form and function. Glowing color at the face of the nursing and reception stations assists with wayfinding and sense of arrival. In interior spaces, with limited daylight, lighting systems subtly change colors and move slowly over the course of a day, reminding occupants of the passage of time.

Challenge: Create a hospital and translational research center with “100 year” flexibility.

Located on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, the 10-story building houses Kaleida Health’s Gates Vascular Institute, the University at Buffalo’s Clinical Translational Research Center, and a UB biosciences incubator. Together, these parties collaborate to develop and deliver the most advanced vascular care.

A minimally invasive approach to future modifications is built into the building fabric, which is intended to accommodate the evolution of research and medicine for the next 100 years. Both its structure and its engineering systems are based on a universal grid, a 31’6” x 31’6” x 18’ floor-to-floor structural system, with “headered” mechanical and electrical systems distribution. This approach facilitates the installation of new technologies and conversion of building zones to entirely different functions without modification of “headend” mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems.

To accommodate the building’s electrical capacity, all primary electrical distribution serving the existing hospital was upgraded in phases, including expanding a 23kV substation, replacing secondary 5kV distribution switchgear, and relocating underground feeder ductbanks transversing the site.