Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/178290
PHOTOS COURTESY UNIVERSITY OF SASKATCHEWAN Academic Health Sciences D Wing – University of Saskatchewan by Robin Brunet or years, the University of Saskatchewan faced a problem familiar to many institutions of higher learning: one of its facilities was badly outdated, plus architecturally it stood at odds with the rest of the campus. The facility in question was the Health Sciences complex, and initially the solution the university came up with was another potential addition (there had been two in past decades) in the form of a block-shaped wing. What a difference collaborating with companies like HDH Architects, Flad Architects and Graham Construction makes. Today, although the original Health Sciences complex is still in operation, much of it is concealed by a new structure, D Wing, that complements what HDH principal Keith Henry refers to as "the collegiate gothic style of the university's other core facilities." D Wing is an adjunct to the B Wing of the existing Health Sciences Building: a $157-million, 16,680-square-metre, L-shaped facility with four storeys on the east side and six storeys on the north. D Wing accommodates biomedical laboratory space, with the interiors designed in an open concept format. Each leg of the L is anchored by a major atrium and each point of the L has informal collaborative meeting space to encourage interaction as people circulate through the space. The original Health Sciences Building (A Wing) was constructed in 1948 in the collegiate gothic style. But during the 1960s two additions – B Wing and C Wing – were constructed in the Brutalist design common throughout learning institutions of that era. "Unfortunately, this design combined with the complex's close proximity to the Royal University Hospital frequently led guests to assume that it was part of the hospital rather than the university," says Henry, whose company was enlisted in 2006 to come up with a viable design for D Wing. More importantly, while numerous renovations and upgrades had been performed over the years, the basic loor plan of laboratories and other components remained the F Academic Health Sciences D Wing – University of Saskatchewan p.64-67D-Wing Sask.indd 65 same. "It was very much the case of individual researchers in individual, narrow workspaces," says Ron Cruikshank, the university's director of planning and development, facilities management division. "Not only did we want to foster interaction, we wanted to establish a multi-disciplinary workplace." HDH and Flad's concept of using the L shape achieved two objectives: it effectively 'hid' the Brutalism of B and C Wings from view, and it accommodated the layout needed for the open concept interiors. "We couldn't have it all the required programs in a block building without designing a very tall structure," says Cruikshank, to which Henry adds, "The L shape was also conducive to connectivity with the old facilities. When the design team came up with the concept it was a 'eureka' moment that the university fully embraced – even though it meant relocating adjacent Campus Drive east by 30 feet and updating the underground infrastructure." Although HDH had collaborated in the past with the university (most notably on the Kinesiology Building – Physical Activity Complex), in order to ensure the timely completion of D Wing the architects enlisted the aid of Flad Architects of Madison, Wisconsin. "They are laboratory specialists, and they participated in the preliminary design work," says Cruikshank. "Their contribution was crucial to the success of the project, considering it typically takes years and a huge amount of intricate planning to build out a lab." Interfacing issues between D Wing and the old wings were APRIL 2012 /65 3/26/12 2:33:42 PM