Be a Leader in Lab Design: Submit Your Project for the 2025 Design Excellence Awards
The sixth annual Design Excellence Awards will recognize outstanding achievements in lab design across categories including Whole Building/Holistic Design, Sustainable Design, Interior Design, and Small Project Design. Open to architects, lab planners, engineers, and manufacturers, the program celebrates innovation, sustainability, and collaboration within the lab design community.
Applications, due December 6, 2024, should detail the unique vision, execution, and impact of recent projects, showcasing advancements in holistic design, sustainability, and user-centered design. Winners will gain international recognition, a digital badge, and a plaque presented at the Lab Design Conference in Denver, CO, on May 12, 2025. Join this elite community by sharing how your project fosters collaboration, overcomes challenges, and advances excellence in lab environments.
A historical list of award winners can be found below. Links are included to in-depth articles on select lab facilities. Enter this year’s competition for your chance to join this exclusive list!
Excellence in Whole Building/Holistic Design
Winner: Rice University Ralph S. O’Connor Engineering and Science Building
Submitting firm: Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), in collaboration with Scientia Architects
Excellence in Interior Design
Winner: State of New Mexico Forensic Laboratory
Submitting firm: Dekker
Excellence in Small Project Design
Winner: NASA Asteroid Sample Curation Lab
Submitting firm: RS&H
Special Merit honorees - sponsored by El Sea LLC
Special Merit: Technical Complexity
Australian National University Research School of Physics Stage 1 Building
Submitting firm: Hassell
Special Merit: Sustainable Practices in Design
California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, William and Linda Frost Center for Research and Innovation
Submitting firm: ZGF Architects
Special Merit: Educational Lab Innovation
Tāwharau Ora–School of Veterinary Science
Submitting firm: Lab-works Architecture
Special Merit: Technical Excellence
Pacific Northwest National Lab Energy Sciences Center
Submitting firm: Kirksey Architecture
Special Merit: Design Excellence
University of San Diego Franklin Antonio
Submitting firm: Perkins&Will
Excellence in Innovation Category
Winner: Joan & Sanford I. Weill Neurosciences Building, University of California, San Francisco
Submitting firm: SmithGroup
Honorable Mention: Materials Characterization and Processing Facility at Johns Hopkins University
Submitting firm: Page Southerland Page, Inc.
Excellence in Sustainability Category
Winner: Promega Corporation Kornberg Center
Submitting firm: SmithGroup
2022 Winners
Excellence in Innovation Category
Winner: California Institute of Technology Chen Neuroscience Research Building
Submitting firm: SmithGroup
Honorable Mention: Ball Horticultural Company Helix Central Research and Development Center
Submitting firm: Christner Architects
Excellence in Sustainability Category
Winner: California Air Resources Board, Southern California Headquarters, Mary D. Nichols Campus
Submitting firm: ZGF
Honorable Mention: Phil and Penny Knight Campus for Accelerating Scientific Impact at University of Oregon
Submitting firm: Ennead Architects
Safety Category - Honorable Mention
Winner: Argonne National Laboratory Materials Design Laboratory
Submitting firm: IMEG Corp.
2021 Winners
Excellence in Innovation Category
Winner: University of Michigan Biological Sciences Building & Museum of Natural History
Submitting firms: SmithGroup; Ennead Architects LLP
Excellence in Safety Category
Winner: Texas A&M University Global Health Research Complex
Submitting firm: Perkins&Will
Sustainability Category - Special Mention for Adaptive Reuse
Winner: University of South Carolina Science & Technology Building
Submitting firm: EYP
2020 Winners
Excellence in Innovation Category
Winner: Eli Lilly and Company Innovation Development Center
Submitting firm: Flad Architects
Honorable Mention: Engineering Research Center, Brown University
Submitting firm: KieranTimberlake
Excellence in Sustainability Category
Winner: Arizona State University, Biodesign Institute C
Submitting firm: ZGF
Honorable Mention: Aerospace & Engineering Sciences Building, Metropolitan State University of Denver
Submitting firm: Anderson Mason Dale Architects
Excellence in Safety Category
Winner: Butte College Welding & Manufacturing Building
Submitting firm: JK Architecture Engineering
