Renovation of a mixed-use development in Abington, Pennsylvania. Completed plans call for the renovation of a 7,500-square-foot laboratory facility.

**As of June 7, 2024, selection has not been made yet. A timeline for award has not yet been established. The Pennsylvania State University is excited to begin the Design-Build (D-B) Team Selection process for the Abington Campus Biology Lab Renovation project. The project site is in Abington Township, Montgomery County at 1600 Woodland Rd, Abington, PA 19001, on University owned property. The $4.6M project (total project cost) will support teaching and research labs for biology. Penn State Abington would like to renovate approximately 7,500 sq. ft. on the second floor of the Woodland Building. This area currently serves the Biology Division and includes laboratory, preparation, and office space. The University does not have enough laboratory space for the biology program, and the existing spaces need an upgrade to meet current academic standards. Currently, the University has two teaching labs, Room 242 and Room 246, that serve students with varying levels of experience. Most of these courses require multiple sections per week and it is extremely difficult to accommodate all these courses every semester. Therefore, some courses are only taught once a year. This arrangement is not ideal as introductory courses should be offered every semester. There are also small labs that are assigned as research spaces and several small prep and storage spaces that are not laid out in an efficient manner. A more thoughtful layout could use the same spaces in a much more productive way and result in a new gain of a teaching lab, which would help solve the above noted problem. The project will include the complete interior, lab, and building system renovation to modernize and improve the facility. A feasibility study for the renovation was completed by Hord Coplan Macht in September of 2019. The goals of the project include the following: Update the laboratory spaces using modern technology, equipment, and lab planning principles. Create a well-designed and unique learning environment that fosters interaction, creates a sense of community and engagement, and provides an exceptional learning experience for students and faculty. Maximize student retention. Accommodate additional class sections and offer introductory classes every semester. Create a marketable space for campus to show prospective students and be able to generate grants, secure sponsored projects, and hire prolific researchers. The completed feasibility study will be shared in the next phase of the selection process. The selected D-B Team will perform a program validation followed by the typical steps for a PSU project through design and construction - SD, DD, CD, CA. It is critical that the selected D-B team have proven expertise with program validation, designing and constructing similar projects, especially laboratory renovations of a similar size/scale/complexity. We anticipate the Design-Build contract award following the team selection after the January 2024 interviews. The expected construction completion date is August 2025. The space must be complete for the start of Fall 2025 classes. The project will be executed with a Design-Build contract with a Guaranteed Maximum Price. If your firm is interested, please submit the following within your Letter of Interest: 1. Clearly identify the proposed design and construction entities that make up your team, who is leading the project, and describe your legal structure (i.e.: joint venture, etc.). Include a brief statement detailing your teams profile (for both design and build), and your unique qualifications in the design and construction of facilities of similar type, size, and complexity. 2. Include a statement detailing your teams unique qualifications for validating program, designing and constructing facilities of this type and scope. Include a sampling of your previous relevant project experience. Clearly identify who from your team is responsible for the examples shown. Include illustrative examples representative of your architectural design, interior design, and lab renovations. 3. Your teams vision of what, beyond purely functional issues, constitutes the essence of this type of facility. Discuss key issues important in the design and construction of a project of this type. 4. Outline your D-B methodology for this project and the value your team provides to the project. Provide information on your teams experience in working together on similar D-B projects. Contact Rustyann Echard (rae12@psu.edu) with any questions. The University will use a qualifications-based selection process for selecting the D-B team with long list, short list and interviews. The CM Selection Committee will select a long list of firms based upon an evaluation of the responses to this RFQ. A Request for Proposals (RFP) will be issued to the long-listed firms the week of November 21, 2023. After reviewing the RFP responses several short-listed firms will be selected for interviews. Interviews will be tentatively planned for the week of January 29, 2024 at the Abington Campus. The final selection will be made after the interviews are completed. Site tours are not necessary at this step in the selection process. We will arrange for scheduled visits with the long-listed teams. The University reserves the right to waive any informality in any or all proposals, and to reject or accept any proposal or portion thereof. The Universitys intent is to identify the firm that can best meet the demands of the project while ensuring success. The dates listed are target dates established by the University. The University reserves the right to modify the dates as it deems necessary.