Utilizing a mass timber technology known as MPP plansor mass ply panels woods that is reportedly stronger than cross-laminated timber and lighter than steel, an architecture firm plans to build a $213m experimental research lab on the campus of Oregon State University (OSU).

The Jen-Hsun Huang and Lori Mills Huang Collaborative Innovation Complex at OSU will be the first all-mass-timber experimental research laboratory in the US that meets rigorous vibration criteria of 2,000 micro-inches per second (mips), which is a vibration velocity criterion (VC) curve that's often used for general laboratory areas.  

Designed to foster the collaboration of faculty, students, and the private sector, the 143,000 SF facility has the potential to be net zero operational carbon by 2030, supporting the university’s desire to meet bigger campus sustainability goals, as part of their 2025 Path to Carbon Neutrality, in a way that integrates performance, experience, and aesthetics.  

Located within OSU's National Historic District, the 2-level complex features flexible wet and dry laboratories; a 10,000 SF clean room; and cross-functional collaborative research and teaching spaces for climate science, sustainability, oceanography, materials science and robotics, and artificial intelligence. Other signature facilities include a cyber-physical playground, an extended reality theater, a state-of-the-art water lab, and an indoor/outdoor makerspace.

The structure will also house—and showcase on its public ground floor—one of the world's fastest university supercomputers and an associated heat recovery system.  By working closely with OSU and their chiller plant it will be possible to capture the rejected heat of the supercomputer to heat the building and adjacent buildings translating to a significant cost savings for the university in the long term; with the potential to expand this system to heat additional buildings in the future.

The architecture also represents unique innovations within the mass timber industry. By working with OSU and the timber manufacturer to leverage their expertise in wood and regional forestry practices—the project was able to attain certification for the use of MPP (Mass Ply Panels) for the structural members. Higher performing than glulam and visually more beautiful, the use of MPP creates a seamless aesthetic approach for the interiors.