The clients primary objective was to provide a home for stem cell research

and regenerative medicine in an environment that fosters collaboration,

discoveries, and expansion. Their further goal was to create a hub on
the Health Sciences Campus for researchfrom basic research through
translational medicine through clinical studiesin a building that would
be home to 15 faculty members and over 100 staff and students tackling
fundamental questions that must be answered for regenerative medicine to
succeed. Increasingly, the researchers are working with clinical colleagues
at the Keck School, as well as recruiting additional translational stem cell
researchers, to help build upon existing strengths at USCincluding cancer,
neurosciences, cardiovascular disease, obesity / diabetes / metabolic
diseases, and immunology / infectious diseasein order to translate their
basic discoveries into innovative new treatments to cure disease.

UNIQUE CONCEPT

THE ELI AND EDYTHE BROAD CIRM CENTER

FOR REGENERATIVE MEDICINE AND STEM CELL
RESEARCH AT USC IS AN INNOVATIVE FACILITY;
DESIGNED TO REINFORCE THE STRONG
INTERRELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN EXISTING
RESEARCH AND CLINICAL PROGRAMS WITHIN THE
UNIVERSITYS HEALTH SCIENCES CAMPUS AND THE
LOCAL SCIENTIFIC COMMUNITY. THE SCIENTISTS
AT THE BROAD CENTER ARE PERFORMING HIGHLY
COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH; THEREFORE, IT
WAS AN ESTABLISHED IMPERATIVE THAT THE
DESIGN MAXIMIZE BOTH THE LABORATORY
FUNCTIONAL FLEXIBILITY AND THE COLLABORATIVE
ENVIRONMENT.

BUILDING DESIGN

As in science, there are new discoveries one experiences within this 91,485 SF, five-story buildings
open spatial sequence. The first floor is dedicated to more public functions with an airy lobby
and a large seminar room. The four floors above, reachable via security card access only, consist
of open laboratories, intimate in scale, which are best described as interconnecting research
neighborhoods linked by perimeter walkways and a linear equipment corridor at the center. Within
these neighborhoods, there are also common spaces and informal areas to encourage scientists to
interact. Different groups can work closely together, and as research groups grow, the layout can
accommodate reconfiguration. There is flexibility in bench areas, so that dry research areas can be
converted into wet laboratory benches. Thus, the building is very efficient in terms of space.
Ample interaction space is much more extensive at the Broad Center than in other research facilities
on campus. At each floor, a kitchen and balconies with casual seating further encourage intellectual
collaboration. A spacious conference room on every floor is linked to the AV equipment in the seminar
room on the first floor, offering overflow space during popular seminars. The conference rooms and
the AV equipment are a welcome upgrade for the users. Likewise, the combination of open bench
areas with adjacent rooms for cell culture and microscopy are a perfect fit to the requirements of
stem cell researchers. Open bays and the flexibility of desks in dry bench areas are also proving
very useful. The building is connected to the adjacent Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute (ZNI) via bridges
on each floor and a tunnel in the basement, which provides shared support services, as well as
opportunities for interaction. When the Broad Center, one of 12 California institutions considered to
receive major facilities grants from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), was
awarded nearly $27 million in funding, the CIRM committee noted it was most impressed by the
creation of the Centers research collaboration formed to use the facility, and by the very efficient use
of the floor areas.
The building design, inside and out, is inspired by the boundlessness of science. The building supports
and expresses the dynamic nature of science, which is about open inquiry and change. The minimalist
quality of the design and materials are expressed by the firmness of black granite, stainless steel, and
transparent glass, all of which rest on an earthy platform of locally quarried flagstone. The rectangular
form has glass faades running the full length of the long sides of the building, in an effort to
maximize natural daylighting in the offices and laboratories, allowing light to flow freely through the
building. The innovative glazing systems also respond to the suns orientation by controlling heat gain
and minimizing glare. The east faade features a ventilated, double glass wall, which acts as a buffer
to moderate temperatures to the interior spaces. The east faade has a play of alternating patterns
of transparent and translucent glass, creating oblique exterior views, while maximizing the feeling of
privacy in the laboratories. The outside layer of glass is supported by stainless steel cables, or cable
net, creating a curtain of glass. The system itself is particularly innovative in that it provides maximum
transparency and responds to the stringent seismic requirements in California. The west faade
utilizes angled glass fins to reduce glare of the afternoon sun, and the use of high-performance glass
reduces heat gain.
The unique quality of the building is expressed in the arrangement of seemingly standard program
elements, setting it apart from other laboratory buildings. The organization concept for the laboratory
floors is referred to as a transparent neighborhood scheme. Transparency has several meanings
for this plan. There are no obstructions across the width of the building, so the space is literally

transparent from side to side. There are no obstructions between laboratory bench zone, and desk /
dry bench zone. The relationship between these program elements is as close as possible. There is
also a visual connection between laboratory neighborhoods running the length of the building.
Flexibility, the key to future-proofing any laboratory space, is provided in a variety of ways throughout
the building. As laboratory group sizes grow they will be able to expand into an adjacent neighborhood,
with no doors to isolate parts of the group. Wet laboratory bench zones and desk / dry laboratory
zones have initially been opened to each other, but the layout can be reconfigured by staff so that
wet bench and desk / dry benches are intermingled. As a corollary, the ratio of desk to bench
can be adjusted as needs change. The only fixed elements are laboratory sinks, fume hoods, and
sterilizers. Benches and desks are movable. Services are provided on overhead service carriers, which
themselves are removable. Circulation is via aisles or halls (mostly open) on the two lengths of the
building, with a center spine that acts intermittently as a linear equipment room or galley.

FLEXIBLE LABORATORY LAYOUT

Wet Laboratories Only

Wet and Dry Laboratories Divided by Glass Wall

Due to the unique layout of the laboratory

floors, no circulation corridors were required,
resulting in very flexible laboratories that allow
for changes in the configuration, location,
and ratio of wet bench and dry computational
stations. The east and west faades of the
building reflect important differences in
design intent and performance, while allowing
sunlight to penetrate the laboratories and
create transparency throughout the building.
The east faade features a ventilated, double
glass wall, which acts as a buffer to moderate
temperatures to the interior spaces. The cavity
is open at the bottom, with automated louvered
vents at the top. When heated cavity air is
unwanted, the louvers are opened and the
stack effect ventilates the cavity through the
top. Otherwise the louvers remain closed and
the cavity acts as a large airspace to mitigate
the effects of thermal transfer through the inner
skin. The reduced heat gain is achieved by a
combination of horizontal shading in the cavity
and a play of alternating patterns of transparent
and translucent high-performance glass. The
outside layer of glass is supported by stainless
steel cables, called a cable net, creating a
curtain of glass. The system itself is particularly
innovative in that it provides maximum
transparency and responds to the stringent
seismic requirements in California. The west
faade is a conventional unitized curtain wall
system, augmented with vertical frosted angled
glass shading fins to protect the interior heat
gain and glare of the afternoon sun.

The east and west faades of the building

compliment the passive design strategies
intended to optimize building energy use.
The wall system on the east faade features
a ventilated, double wall system with a cavity
spanning the full height of the faade, which
reduces the solar gain and creates oblique
views out of the laboratories with its play of
transparent and translucent glass.

Circulation paths and equipment galleys tie the

laboratory neighborhoods together and meld
the best features of open and closed planning
concepts into a laboratory that is at once both
intimate and without boundaries. Circulation
occurs via aisles on the two lengths of the
building and a center spine that serves as a
linear equipment room or galley. The center
spine is also the path for moving material and
supplies through the laboratories, while the
aisles are primarily for personnel.

MECH
MECH

MECH

MECH

BASEMENT

MECH

MECH

KH
TO Z IL

F ROM

Z ILK H

MECH

1
2

Vivarium
Core Laboratory

1 Chemistry Core

Circulation

2 NMR Core

Mechanical / Electrical

3 LN2 Storage Core

Conference
Circulation
Mechanical / Electrical

LEVEL 1

KH
TO Z IL

LEVEL 2

KH
TO Z IL

2
1
3

Laboratory
Laboratory Support
Office

1 Flow Cytometry Core

Conference

2 Imaging Core

Circulation

3 Stem Cell Core

Mechanical / Electrical

4 Hystology Core

Laboratory
Laboratory Support
Office
Conference
Circulation
Mechanical / Electrical

LEVELS 3-5

KH
TO Z IL

The building program includes four floors

of laboratory, office, and meeting spaces
over two floors of support space. Public and
common spaces were designed to enhance the
exchange of ideas.

The Broad Center is designed around a 10-6

standard laboratory module defined by the width
and clearance of research tables and support
equipment. The laboratory integrates plug and
play modular furniture. To accommodate the
initial science being conducted there, laboratory
benches were installed throughout, with the
flexibility to change them to computational
stations as needed. This approach will allow
the laboratories to be modified over the life of
the building at a minimal cost, and with minimal
physical disruption to the scientific research.

The buildings openness and transparency

reveals the intent to use it to enhance the
collaborative culture of the occupants and to
provide a nurturing environment that allows
diverse research to exist side-by-side. Enclosed
offices borrow natural light, reversing the usual
hierarchy where offices are placed along the
exterior wall. Each office is equipped with
energy-saving motion sensors; and sustainable
materials were used in office furnishings and
architectural elements.

Where circulation does occur at the elevator

lobbies and bridge connection, the space has
been configured with seating and white boards
to encourage the intellectual collisions that
ultimately enhance the research environment.
The tables and chairs located on bridges and
balconies are popular places for scientists and
staff from both buildings to congregate and
enjoy the open air and Southern Californias
excellent weather.

NATU RAL DAYLIG HTI NG AN D VI EWS

Indirect and controlled lighting in all normally occupied spaces and light harvesting
controls in the laboratories reduce or eliminate the need for electric lighting during
the daylight hours.
TE M PE RATU R E CONTROL

Chilled beams are used to remove heat from the laboratories using water instead
of the traditional air systems.
COM M ISSION I NG

Enhanced commissioning will significantly improve researcher comfort, reduce

energy costs, and reduce ongoing maintenance costs by ensuring that the systems
are operating as intended.
R ECYCLE D CONTE NT

Rapidly renewable wood products, such as bamboo veneer doors and

architectural casework, are used throughout the building.
LOW-E M ITTI NG PRODUCTS

The use of low-emitting adhesives for carpets / fabrics improves the indoor
air quality and the associated well being of the researchers conducting stem
cell research.
LIG HT POLLUTION R E DUCTION

Light fixtures located internally and externally to the building are Dark Sky
Friendly and thereby, minimize light pollution.
LAN DSCAPE DESIG N

The project has used native species that require less irrigation and maintenance.
H EAT ISLAN D R E DUCTION

Low Albido materials are used on the roof surfaces to mitigate the building heat
island effect on the local environment.
WATE R-USE R E DUCTION

Using plumbing fixtures with flush valves and flow restrictors significantly reduces
the consumption of water by over 30% for the building.
TRANSPORTATION

Reduction of transportation impacts include the USC bus service, bike storage with
readily available showers, and preferred parking for fuel efficient cars.

SUSTAINABILITY

SOLAR CONTROL

A double skin faade on the east elevation reduces energy consumption, while
solar fins on the west elevation help reduce glare to the building interior.

PROJECT TEAM
ZGF ARCHITECTS LLP

Architect

JACOBS CONSULTANCY

Laboratory Planner

AFFILIATED ENGINEERS, INC.

M/E/P Engineer

KPFF CONSULTING ENGINEERS, INC.

Civil and Structural Engineer

DAVIS LANGDON

Cost Estimator

VAN ATTA ASSOCIATES, INC.

Landscape Architect
MORLEY BUILDERS

General Contractor

PORTLAND
1223 SW Washington Street
Suite 200
Portland, Oregon 97205
T 503.224.3860
F 503.224.2482

LOS ANGELES
515 South Flower Street
Suite 3700
Los Angeles, California 90071
T 213.617.1901
F 213.617.0047

NEW YORK
419 Park Avenue South
20th Floor
New York, New York 10016
T 212.624.4754
F 212.624.4753

SEATTLE
925 Fourth Avenue
Suite 2400
Seattle, Washington 98104
T 206.623.9414
F 206.623.7868

WASHINGTON, D.C.
1800 K Street NW
Suite 200
Washington, D.C. 20006
T 202.380.3120
F 202.380.3128

www.zgf.com

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