By John Gregerson, Managing Editor

tight, awkward site and an unwieldy pro- of the land," he said. Integrating new and
gram could have added up to trouble for the But not without a structural
Francois-Xavier Bagnoud (FXB) Building detour. According to Jolanda existing research
in Boston, a new research facility for the Kenyeres-Pavlinic, principal
Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH). with Souza, True & Partners buildings on a small
But project architect Payette Associates of Boston (ST&P), the project's
used geometry to solve the problem, employing a series Watertown, Mass.-based struc- p a r c e l p r o m p t s p r o -
of bold triangular forms to overcome site constraints tural engineer, existing below-
and reconcile some of the program's more diverse grade labs beneath the planned
ject members to
points. steel-framed lobby precluded
evaluate design and
Chief among them were directives to furnish HSPH the use of interior columns to
with sorely needed labs for AIDs and cancer research; support its roof and mezzanine c o n s t r u c t i o n i s s u e s
integrate the new spaces with a pair of older, neighbor- floor. The solution was to sus-
ing lab facilities; create a formal entrance for the larger pend the mezzanine from the from all angles
HSPH campus, located behind the FXB site; and pro- structure's roof beams via 1
vide HSPH with a contemporary image that comple- 1/2-in.-diameter steel rods. In
mented elements of the surrounding area. turn, the 55-ft. beams span
Payette responded with a 104,000-sq.-ft. complex from new perimeter columns along CONSTRUCTION COSTS
comprised of three interlocking triangles, the first a Huntington to the 11- and four-story Sitework $1,050,000
seven-story research center abutting an existing four- buildings, where they were tied into Concrete 2,430,000
story lab, the second a four-story skylit atrium nestled the structures. Masonry 710,000
between the seven- and four-story structures - essential- "The new roof beams rest on exist-
Metals 2,390,000
ly a triangle within a triangle - and the third a two-story ing beams, which needed to be adapt-
Carpentry 1,170,000
lobby - or "front door." The lobby connects to portions ed to accept the additional vertical and
Thermal/moisture protection 780,000
of the seven- and four story structures, as well as an horizontal loading," Kenyeres-Pavlinic
existing 11-story research building, providing grade- said. "We had to strengthen the beams Doors/windows 974,000
level access to all three. and beam-column connections with Finishes 2,543,000
If the solution sounds convoluted, consider plate stiffeners and with brackets Conveying systems 290,000
the architect's reaction. "After visiting the site - which is located beneath the beams. The plan Environmental rooms 480,000
only about 10,000 square feet in size - I found it hard to basically allowed us to use existing Mechanical 4,235,000
believe we were drawing to the correct scale," recalled beams to transfer lobby loads to exist- Electrical 2,832,000
David Feth, project designer for Payette. "It didn't look ing columns." Telecommunications 166,000
as if it would all fit." Integrating the seven- and four- Plumbing 1,130,000
Fit it does, albeit snugly. Paul Riccardi, associate story buildings likewise posed chal- Fire protection 428,000
dean of operations for HSPH, indicated that the site lenges for ST&P, and for contractor Other 2,392,000
helped drive the placement and configuration of FXB's Richard White Sons of Auburndale, Total $24,000,000
major components. He explained that while the existing Mass. Plans called for joining common
research buildings defined two edges of the site, the levels of the two by punching openings into the facade of
third edge was defined by a major diagonal street, the four-story structure where corridors for the two facili-
Huntington Avenue. This resulted in a roughly triangu- ties met, then cantilevering portions of the new floor slab
lar parcel. "To maximize space, we followed the layout across a 1 1/2-ft. joint separating the two buildings. (The
 Second-Floor Plan

A. Atrium
B. Open lab
C. Office and support
D. Special purpose lab
E. Equipment room
F. Environmental room
G. Glasswash room
H. Desk room
I. Lounge
J. Entrance lobby (open to below)
K. Level to connector

Tight fit: To maximize square

footage for the $24 million,
104,OOO-sq.-ft. Francois-Xavier
Bagnoud building, "We followed
the layout of the land," said Paul
Riccardi, associate dean of opera-
tions with the Harvard School of
Public Health in Boston. The
resulting triangular structures - a
two-story lobby and seven-story
research center - tie into a pair of
existing HSPH buildings. Labs in
the new seven-story structure are
primarily configured as open plan
suites.
Photos: (above) Peter Vandervwarker;
(right) Bruce Martin
 remainder of the existing facade was to remain Riccardi recalled.
intact, forming one of the edges of the triangular Before breaching the existing facade, White
atrium.) The joint would also serve as the loca- Sons first had to ensure that negative air pres-
“After visiting tion for a new full-height braced frame for the sure was maintained in the building. “Due to
the site, I four-story structure, providing the required seis- ongoing lab operations, the entire building was
mic capacity to eventually add three new floors under negative pressure, and there was concern
found it hard to to it. that dust and debris would get sucked into it,”
“The work had to be performed before con- said White Sons project manager Paul
believe we struction of the new building rendered the exist- Gransaull. To maintain pressure, workers con-
were drawing ing structure inaccessible for upgrades,” structed temporary plywood “air locks” behind
Kenyeres-Pavlinic said, noting that steel tubes areas of the facade that were to be opened. The
to the correct were specified to connect the frame to the exist- plywood enclosures were eventually replaced by
scale” ing beams at each level. permanent ones constructed of metal studs, gyp-
As a result, "we were trying to maintain opera- sum board and doors equipped with stops and
tions in the building while workers were drilling gaskets, according to Ted Athanas, partner with
steel into each of its floors," Riccardi said. "The Bard, Rao + Athanas Consulting Engineers
work caused a huge amount of noise and vibra- (BR+A), the project's Boston-based mechanical
tion." As part of weekly construction meetings, designer.
White Sons would advise representatives from Because of FXB's close proximity to the
the building about work scheduled to occur three four-story structure, project team members had
weeks later, so that the timing of specific tasks to likewise reroute the latter's air-intake vents to
could be coordinated with research activities. prevent dirt and fumes from reaching labs dur-
"That went on for the better part of two years," ing construction. “The intakes were at grade

WAT E R P R O O F I N G
Waterproofing requirements turned plans inside out
When Paul Riccardi became associate dean for operations at the Harvard School for Public
Health (HSPH), “I inherited three buildings that leaked," he said. He and other administrators
were determined to make sure that HSPH’s new seven-story Francois-Xavier Bagnoud
Building (FXB) didn't add to his troubles.
As a result, project architect Payette Associates selected a concrete masonry unit wall as
back-up for the building’s precast exterior, then
specified a continuous mastic sheet membrane to
waterproof the inner wall. The design also called
for locating 2-in.-thick insulation and a flashed 2-in.
air cavity between the masonry and precast walls.
The plan presented complications, however. “With
precast, you typically build from the outside to the
inside so there's nothing in the way when you're
securing panels to the building frame,” said Paul
Gransaull,
project manager with FXB contractor Richard
White Sons. “If we had done that here, we wouldn't
have had any room to apply waterproofing to the
masonry. There was only a 4-in. space between
the face of the masonry and the back of the pre-
cast."
The solution was to construct the masonry first,
leaving “tieback” and “bearing” openings in the wall
so that the precast anchors could be secured to
framing behind it. “The precaster had to be well-
coordinated with masons placing the block in the
field,” said Payette project designer David Feth
“And that's a step you usually don't worry about
much - how the block gets laid between column
“With precast, you often have metal studs as lines. We couldn’t afford to have huge precast mem-
your back up,” said Paul Gransaull, project bers dangling from a crane as a result of our points
manager with contractor Richard White Sons. not lining up.”
“But Harvard wanted masonry - something Once precast members were anchored in place,
that would last.” Openings in the masonry “we wrapped the openings in waterproofing from
wall allowed workers to anchor precast inside the building, insulated them, then closed
panels to the building structure behind it. them,” Feth said.n
 Air-intakes had
to be rerouted
to prevent
dust from
reaching labs

Fitting in: FXB's angular forms

PROJECT SUMMARY
and precast cladding (above)
Francois-Xavier Bagnoud Building, were intended to complement
Boston, Mass. contemporary buildings near the
n Building team site. The design also reflects
Owner: Harvard School of Public Health modern technologies inside the
Architect: Payette Associates new seven-story research center,
Interior architect: Bruner/Cott & according to David Feth, project
Associates designer for architect Payette
Structural engineer: Souza, True and Associates. Open lab spaces in
Partners the center promote flexibility.
Mechanical/electrical engineer: Bard, Photos: (above) Brian Vanden Brink;
Rao + Athanas Consulting Engineers (left) John Horner
General contractor: Richard White Sons
n General information
Area: 104,000 gross square feet
Number of floors: 7
Construction time: July 1994 to June 1996
Construction cost: $24 million level, with a below-grade, grated areaway researchers essentially adapt to the space,”
Delivery method: Design/bid/build routing air into a basement mechanical room,” Riccardi said. So that spaces remain as open
n Project suppliers Athanas said. Before excavation, workers and generic as possible, researchers share
Exterior glazing: PPG extended the areaway by constructing tempo- common glasswash and equipment rooms
Masonry, brick: Belden rary plywood stacks up the side of the struc- clustered outside the suites, at their midpoint.
Windows: Vista wall Within suites, researchers similarly share
ture, so that fresh air could be drawn instead
Roof system: Versico
from the top of the building. Carbon filters environmental rooms and special purpose labs
Roof insulation: Owens Corning
Life safety/security system: Simplex were placed at stack inlets to ensure that located directly opposite lab stations. Risers
Elevators: Payne residual dust and debris didn't infiltrate the in these shared spaces supply gases, distilled
Energy management controls: building, Athanas said. water and other services to the adjacent lab
Landis & Staefa As built, the triangular, precast-clad struc- stations. The stations themselves are modular
Plumbing fixtures: American Standard tures help to create a "modern aesthetic that in nature, allowing suites to be divided into
Doors: Weyerhaeuser smaller units in the event that renovations are
reflects adjacent buildings, as well as modern
Entrances, storefronts: Vistawall
technologies found in FXB,” Feth said. The required. “Typically, you have a four-person
Wall/floor tile: American Olean
forms also proved useful for integrating labs, lab every column bay,” Feth said.
Resilient flooring: Armstrong
Ceilings: Armstrong administrative functions and common areas. Variable-volume air-handling units and
Interior walls/partitions: USG; In the seven-story facility, Payette located fume hoods provide 100 percent outdoor air
Georgia Pacific suites of labs along the arms of the triangle, to the open lab spaces, Athanas said, noting
and meeting and administrative spaces in that 100 percent of the air is also exhausted
adjacent corner “elbows.” from the building via manifold ductwork. To
Because research in many of the labs is reduce energy consumption, BR+A specified
tied to grants, and therefore subject to change, a heat recovery system consisting of a glycol
Payette employed an open plan in several of loop system to extract heat from the exhaust
the suites to promote flexibility. “'The and transfer it to the incoming outside air.n

Reprinted from BUILDING DESIGN & CONSTRUCTION April, 1998

@1998 by CAHNERS BUSINESS INFORMATION