McMaster University -
Undergraduate Chemistry Facility

This major renovation for a new Undergraduate Chemistry facility comprised the following components:

• Complete renovation of one wing of the building consisting of four storeys plus basement and penthouse totalling 42,000 square feet housing new Chemistry teaching laboratories for Levels 1, 2, 3 and Advanced Organic, Analytical, Physical & Specialist classes, associated Preparation Labs, Analytical Instrument Lab, Gas Chromatograph Room, Nuclear Magnetic Resonance research room and storage rooms. The existing penthouse mechanical room above the building houses the new mechanical equipment serving the new facilities.
• Special construction features include new service shafts for piping, ductwork and electrical, double-sided custom teaching fume hoods with glass sides and centre partition, laminar flow air supply diffusers and poured-in-place concrete service tunnel tied into the existing campus utilities building for chilled water, steam, city water, compressed air, natural gas, electrical main and emergency power, DDC central network and data and communications infrastructure.
• New laboratory systems include triple high plume fan manifolded exhaust for 110 fume hoods, 37 flexible fume arms and two canopy exhausts, new variable volume air handler with chilled water-to-glycol heat exchangers for winter free cooling of district chilled water system, DDC controls for the building environmental conditions and Laboratory room pressurization control, reverse osmosis/softener and ultraviolet water purification system and distribution, compressed air dryer and distribution, individual air powered vacuum pumps and piping, natural gas, and domestic water services to lab benches and fume hoods.