Health Futures Center

The 150,000-SF Health Futures Center (HFC) marks the beginning of a new chapter in the partnership between Arizona State University and Mayo Clinic. Situated on 24 acres of previously undeveloped land, the HFC is the flagship facility for ASU’s new campus adjacent to Mayo Clinic Phoenix. With a Modernist-inspired presence, the building emerges from the desert landscape as a crisp, sculpted volume. Its iconic design represents the university’s mission to improve patient care, transform medical education and support innovative research discoveries.

The project began with an intensive programming process to define the goals, parameters and budget constraints. Key stakeholders were engaged from several ASU schools, colleges and groups as well as partners from Mayo Clinic. This process resulted in a building with a hyper-flexible framework for laboratories and classrooms that can adapt to changes over time.

Designed to encourage collaboration and the exchange of ideas, the HFC enables a broad range of strategic ventures that will foster better health outcomes and advance health science education. Its interdisciplinary program is a unique blend of wet and dry research laboratories, medical simulation, a MedTech accelerator, workspace and meeting spaces, and a conference center with a 300-seat auditorium to host lectures and events.

Set in a challenging desert climate, the building’s trapezoidal-shaped, faceted facade limits solar heat gain and glare, while creating a landmark design for the inaugural building on ASU’s innovation campus. Extensive energy modeling during the design process estimated the facade articulation will reduce annual solar heat gain by 35 percent. To meet an accelerated schedule, the team worked closely with the contractor to develop a predictive cost-analysis tool, used before and during programming to ensure the HFC was delivered within budget and time constraints.