Providence, RI – The Providence VA Medical Center, Providence, RI, recently celebrated its new home for the Center for Restorative and Regenerative Medicine with a dedication ceremony. EYP Architecture & Engineering designed the adaptive reuse and dramatic transformation of this building. Open and in operation since January 2010, the facility currently serves as a rehabilitation center for Veterans who lost limbs in combat, primarily in recent conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq. Housed within the Providence VA Medical Center campus is the Center for Restorative and Regenerative Medicine, a collaborative, multi-disciplinary effort between the Providence VA Medical Center, Brown University, and MIT that looks at creating bio-hybrid limbs that have a greater range of motion and function than currently available prostheses.
Showcasing EYP’s expertise in adaptive reuse and design for government clients, the firm created the new $6.1-million research building from a former high school gymnasium. The former gymnasium space was converted to research and rehabilitation laboratories with a modest addition that wraps the existing building and includes research offices, physical therapy space, separate waiting areas, and space for treating Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. The existing 11,482-square-foot building (gymnasium only) was combined with 10,782 square feet of new construction, for a total of 22,244 square feet.
At the Center for Restorative and Regenerative Medicine, ground-breaking research is underway through a program entitled, “Rebuilding, Regenerating, and Restoring Function after Limb Loss.” The initiative comes as the U.S. military is seeing a sharp increase in the number of combat-related amputees. Due to advances in body armor and battlefield first aid, many soldiers who would otherwise have been killed in action are surviving, but with severe injury to their extremities. Researchers at the Center are advancing the concept of a “bio-hybrid” limb: an intricate meshing of restored and enhanced biological tissues skin, bone, nerves, cartilage with high-tech prosthetic components. The goal is to provide amputees with limb that function as naturally as possible. The program’s scientists are even working on harnessing brain signals to directly control robotic limbs. The innovative Center also provides patient care and conducts research in tissue engineering, neurotechnology, materials science, robotics, and advanced surgical techniques.
EYP is the expertise-based, integrated architecture and engineering design firm that specializes in education, government, and historic preservation projects. EYP Energy is a division of EYP that delivers integrated, comprehensive energy and sustainability services. Located in Albany, Boston, Greenville, New York City, Orlando and Washington, D.C., the firm is ranked among the largest A/E firms in the nation by Building Design & Construction magazine and recently ranked number 22 in The Architect 50, Architect Magazine’s annual ranking of top architecture firms.