UW High Bay Research Center Wins Regional Construction Honor

The University of Wyoming’s new High Bay Research Facility has been recognized by a construction industry publication as the best 2017 higher education/research project in a region that includes Colorado, Wyoming, North Dakota and South Dakota.

Engineering News-Record (ENR) Mountain States made the announcement earlier this month, and the award will be presented Oct. 25 at an event in Denver.

A panel of nine judges from all areas of the construction industry -- including architects, general contractors, green consultants, virtual designers and engineers -- selected the High Bay Research Facility and other winners. This is the 17th year of the ENR Mountain States project awards.

In 2016, ENR Mountain States recognized UW as its “Owner of the Year” for Colorado and Wyoming, for its array of construction projects with innovative designs.

The High Bay Research Facility, which opened this summer, is a $68 million, 90,000-square-foot building that includes traditional and high-bay research laboratories, offices and meeting areas. The facility provides sufficient space, capacity and state-of-the-art equipment to grow niche areas of research being conducted at UW. It has been designed to be easily reconfigurable, modular and expandable as research areas grow or change over time.

A shared UW resource of the School of Energy Resources and the College of Engineering and Applied Science, the facility features space for the following research areas: the Center of Innovation for Flow Through Porous Media (COIFPM), improved oil recovery, geomechanics and structural engineering.

Haselden Constructors served as construction manager at risk on the High Bay project.