The HOK-designed research facility earns a SEFA Lab of the Year and an I2SL Sustainable Laboratory Award.
Emory University Health Sciences Research Building II (HSRB-II) recently won two top awards for design excellence in the science and research sector. The awards add to a growing list of design accolades HSRB-II has earned since its opening in 2023.
The eight-story, 350,000-sq.-ft. building in Atlanta unites more than 1,200 researchers from cardiology, vaccinology, neurology, oncology and pediatrics in an environment designed to spur collaboration and innovation.
SEFA Lab of the Year Award
Presented by the Scientific Equipment and Furniture Association (SEFA), Lab of the Year recognizes lab buildings that excel in all levels of project delivery (planning, design and execution). Lab of the Year buildings also incorporate new and innovative features that will influence the future of laboratory design. Design elements that shaped HSRB-II include:
- A majestic central atrium that serves as the beating heart of HSRB-II. The light-filled space—connected via pedestrian bridges, open stairways and interior views into computational and experimental labs—creates a central hub where researchers share and collaborate.
- A ground-level innovation zone allows academic researchers to pair with startups and private industry to fuel innovation and translation.
- Integration of highly specialized and sensitive research tools, including a 7 Tesla MRI, cyclotron and multiple other imaging modalities.
- Connection to nature and wellness strategies including exterior balconies and a five-story living green wall.
I2SL Sustainable Laboratory Award
Presented by the International Institute for Sustainable Laboratories (I2SL), the Sustainable Laboratory Award recognizes buildings that achieve not just energy savings, but a lower carbon and environmental footprint. HSRB-II won in the New Construction category.
The LEED Gold-certified HSRB-II uses half the energy of similar-size lab facilities and just 40% of the water. HOK incorporated energy modeling and cost estimating to evaluate 96 different energy and sustainable design measures for the building. Those measures were then bundled into nearly a thousand combinations to optimize energy performance, first cost and maintenance.
“HSRB-II set a high standard in research facility design—earning awards for design excellence, innovation and sustainability,” said Chirag Mistry, HOK’s project lead and director of Science + Technology. “These wins celebrate Emory University’s forward-thinking vision and the incredible teamwork that brought this groundbreaking facility to life.”
Other design awards for HSRB-II include: Honorable Mention in LabDesign News Design Excellence Awards (2025); a Structural Engineering Excellence Award (2024); an ASID Design Excellence Gold Award (2024); a USGBC Georgia Sustainability Award (2024); ENR Southeast Best Higher Ed/Research Award and Excellence in Sustainability Award (2023): and an AIA Georgia People’s Choice Award (2023).