New York State’s investment in public health infrastructure has reached a major construction milestone, advancing plans to bring scientific research and diagnostic services together in a single facility. The Gilbane-Turner joint venture has completed the structural steel frame for the new Wadsworth Center Laboratory on the W. Averell Harriman State Office Campus in Albany.
The five-story, 663,000-square-foot project carries a reported value of $1.7 billion. Gilbane and Turner are delivering the project with HOK as the design partner, working with the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York (DASNY) and the New York State Department of Health.
The topping-out milestone marks the placement of the final structural steel beam. The completed frame comprises more than 8,200 major steel components weighing approximately 5,545 tons.
The new facility is planned to consolidate five Department of Health laboratory locations across the Capital Region, bringing nearly 800 employees into one building. Its intended functions include infectious disease surveillance, environmental health research, newborn screening and diagnostic testing.
The laboratory is being designed to accommodate evolving scientific and public health requirements, with provisions for energy efficiency, sustainability and long-term adaptability.
Construction has progressed to floor installation, fireproofing and the installation of electrical, plumbing and other building systems. Exterior facade installation is expected to begin later in 2026, while full building enclosure is anticipated in 2027.
Substantial completion is scheduled for late 2029, followed by final construction completion in early 2030.
More than 200 skilled tradespeople are working at the site each day, representing approximately 40 contractor businesses. The project has also exceeded its combined 36% participation goal for minority- and women-owned business enterprises and service-disabled veteran-owned businesses.
The scale of the project requires coordination across structural construction, laboratory-specific building systems, specialist trades and public-sector stakeholders. As the work advances beyond the steel frame, installation of building systems and enclosure will become important stages in preparing the facility for its intended operations.
The Wadsworth Center Laboratory is one of New York State’s major investments in public health facilities and the largest construction project undertaken by DASNY. Consolidating laboratory operations is intended to support collaboration among scientists and public health professionals while providing infrastructure for research, testing and disease monitoring.
For construction owners and project delivery teams, the development illustrates the scale of coordination involved in delivering a large, technically specialised public-sector facility. The remaining schedule extends through the end of the decade, with building systems, enclosure and completion activities forming the next major phases of work.
Source: Gilbane.
