State of Michigan Public Health and Environmental Sciences Laboratory

Powering a healthier, more resilient Michigan

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Client
State of Michigan Department of Technology, Management & Budget (DTMB)
Location
Michigan, United States
Size
295,000 sf
Status
In Progress

The State of Michigan Public Health and Environmental Sciences Laboratory represents a future-focused investment in the health, safety and resilience of Michigan residents. Designed to consolidate and modernize critical laboratory services for multiple state agencies, the facility will strengthen Michigan’s ability to respond to emerging diseases, environmental hazards, newborn screening needs and evolving testing technologies. 

Envisioned as both a highly technical workplace and a bastion of public well-being, the laboratory brings together science, sustainability and operational precision in one purpose-built environment.

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Michigan’s landscape has always been defined by motion. Changes to the land, the shoreline, industries and communities continually drive new patterns of connection, logistics and innovation. The laboratory draws from this history of movement and reinvention, translating it into an architecture that supports the state’s mission to protect people and the environment.

Designed for movement 

The facility brings together multiple laboratory functions and agencies under one roof designed around public health professionals and how they work. With a planning concept that centers on a circulation spine that safely separates the movement of science and people, samples and supplies enter from one side of the building and move through connected central corridors with direct access to specialized laboratories, while staff and visitors enter from another. Laboratories are layered from most to least intensive, transitioning outward to offices, meeting rooms, collaboration areas and visitor spaces along the building’s perimeter. 

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Leveraging the central spine as the building's anchor, the design supports efficient workflows, secure operations and the rapid processing of a high volume and wide range of samples.
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Highly technical environments perform at the level public health work demands while giving scientists and staff access to daylight, views and one another.

Honoring the people behind public health 

Recognizing the intensity and importance of public health work and the reality that it is often performed in challenging work environments, this building aims to support focus, connection and well-being. Daylit offices, welcoming collaboration areas, accessible respite spaces and clear adjacencies between labs and support zones help staff move through demanding days with greater ease. 

Just as importantly, the building makes the work of laboratory professionals more visible to visitors. By placing staff-centered spaces alongside areas that support education, observation and collaboration, the facility elevates the people behind the science and reinforces that public health is powered by skilled professionals working with purpose on behalf of their communities. 

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This human-centered science environment features visual connectivity, collaboration spaces and elements that support staff well-being in a technically demanding setting. Dedicated spaces for gathering, training and respite are designed to encourage knowledge-sharing, coordinated action and camaraderie among the public agencies, healthcare organization and community partners who use the building.

High-performance design for a changing future 

The laboratory demonstrates how resilience and sustainability can work together in an energy-intensive building type. All-electric systems, a geothermal field, thermal ice storage and energy-efficient strategies help reduce long-term carbon impacts while improving operational performance. Cross-laminated timber and mass plywood strategies add warmth, reduce reliance on traditional materials and connect the building to Michigan’s natural resources. 

Flexibility is also a critical design element. Specialized laboratories are configured to meet exacting scientific requirements, from trace-metal testing environments that limit metal contamination to spaces designed for emerging environmental analyses. The result is a facility ready to support today’s public health needs while adapting to the technologies, workflows and challenges of tomorrow.