2027 Design Excellence Awards Now Open for Entries
Entries are now open for the 2027 Design Excellence Awards, presented by Lab Design News to recognize outstanding achievement in the design, planning, and construction of research laboratories. Now in its eighth year, the competition celebrates the projects and collaborative teams advancing laboratory design through innovation, sustainability, and thoughtful approaches to the research environment.
From new research facilities to targeted renovations and smaller-scale projects, the awards recognize laboratory environments that support scientific work while addressing the needs of the people who use them. Architects, lab planners, engineers, contractors, manufacturers, facility owners, laboratory end users, and other project partners are encouraged to enter.
Eligible projects must be laboratory facilities completed and occupied between January 1, 2025, and January 1, 2027, and must not have been previously submitted to the competition. Projects from anywhere in the world may be considered, provided they meet the requirements of their selected category.
The 2027 Design Excellence Awards feature four categories:
Whole Building/Holistic Design: Recognizes facilities that integrate laboratory spaces, building systems, workplace environments, and amenities to support research, collaboration, productivity, and occupant well-being.
Sustainable Design: Celebrates projects that advance energy efficiency and sustainability through building systems, materials, equipment, and other design decisions, with an emphasis on measurable benefits.
Interior Design: Highlights interiors that support research and occupant well-being through thoughtful choices in furnishings, casework, lighting, flooring, finishes, accessibility, and other design elements.
Small Project Design: Recognizes laboratory projects with a total cost under $20 million that maximize available resources through creative solutions, efficient use of space, and effective responses to project constraints.
Projects may be entered in one category or submitted to additional categories when they demonstrate excellence across multiple areas. The entry fee is $350 per project for one category, with additional projects costing $300 each. Entering the same project into another category costs an additional $100 per category.
Beyond industry recognition, the awards offer teams an opportunity to share their work with the broader laboratory design community. Winning projects receive recognition through Lab Design News and the Lab Design Conference, including editorial coverage and a plaque for category winners. The program also helps showcase design strategies and solutions that may inspire future laboratory projects.
A successful entry should communicate more than the appearance of a completed facility. It should help judges understand the project's goals, the decisions behind its design, and the ways the finished environment meets the needs of its users and research mission. Entrants should be prepared to provide project information, a written narrative, floor plans, photography, image permissions, and complete project team details.
Winners will be recognized in connection with the 2027 Lab Design Conference, taking place in Dallas, TX on May 10-13. The event brings together architects, engineers, lab planners, facility professionals, laboratory users, and industry partners to explore the challenges and opportunities shaping research environments.
The deadline to submit is December 4, 2026. Complete entries and payment must be received by that date.
To review the award categories, eligibility requirements, and submission instructions, visit the Design Excellence Awards website.
