Michigan Tech’s H-STEM Facility: The Divergent Lab as a Catalyst for Change and Growth
2025 Lab Design Conference speaker—Marilee Lloyd, associate principal and national lab planning leader, HED
At the 2025 Lab Design Conference in Denver, CO, attendees explored Michigan Technological University’s (MTU) bold vision for its new Health-related STEM (H-STEM) facility in a session titled “The Divergent Lab as a Catalyst for Change and Growth.” Far more than a building, the H-STEM facility serves as a strategic platform for MTU’s first Research Institute and marks the university’s expansion into interdisciplinary, health-focused research.
The presentation featured Marilee Lloyd, associate principal and national lab planning leader at HED; Dr. Caryn L. Heldt, director of the Health Research Institute (HRI), the James and Lorna Mack Chair in Continuous Processing, professor in the department of chemical engineering, and an affiliate professor in biological sciences at Michigan Technological University; and Tim VanAntwerp, vice president of Granger Construction. Together, they detailed the institute’s development, the implementation of the “Divergent Lab” design concept, and the unique construction challenges—including those posed by MTU’s remote location and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Pioneering health research at a STEM university
Historically recognized for its STEM programs, MTU has 60 percent of students enrolled in engineering or computing disciplines. The creation of the HRI represented a new institutional direction. As Dr. Heldt—who identified herself as the “lab user in this, in this presentation”—explained, the HRI’s mission is to provide “translational, interdisciplinary and increasingly convergent health related research, focusing on education and outreach activities.”
Since its founding in 2019, the HRI has quickly made an impact, establishing a CLIA-certified COVID testing lab during the pandemic—a remarkable feat for a school without a medical or veterinary program—and forming collaborations such as one with Michigan State University’s College of Human Medicine. Today, 58 faculty members from 14 departments across four of MTU’s five colleges contribute to its research, spanning areas from biochemistry and biomaterials to neuroscience and environmental public health. The result, as Heldt described, is “interesting collaborations and interesting projects.”
This success directly enabled the H-STEM facility’s authorization and construction. By 2025, the HRI was designated a Tier One Institute, while the university achieved Carnegie R1 status, reflecting significant growth in its research portfolio and external funding.
The divergent lab: a holistic, adaptive approach
2025 Lab Design Conference speaker—Dr. Caryn L. Heldt, director of the Health Research Institute (HRI), the James and Lorna Mack Chair in Continuous Processing, professor in the department of chemical engineering, and affiliate professor in biological sciences, Michigan Technological University
The H-STEM building, a major addition to MTU’s existing Chemistry Sciences Tower, unites chemistry, engineering, and biology disciplines. Lloyd explained to the Lab Design Conference audience that the design was guided by the Divergent Lab concept, which she described as “a holistic thing about the environment as a whole, the building as a whole, functional space… they are conceived as a whole platform.”
Unlike convergent thinking—which focuses on single solutions typical of research staff—the Divergent Lab emphasizes “exploration and that ideation and novelty.” This adaptable, modular platform allowed the building to accommodate new user groups post-COVID. Lloyd noted the design could pivot to new “Research Systems and styles,” even for “researchers who were placed in the building and will be placed in the building [who] are not those that the building was originally conceived for.”
Key design elements supporting this approach include:
Integrated spaces: Separation between lab and other spaces was minimized. Learning, research, and collaboration zones are unified, with collaboration areas strategically centralized to encourage faculty-student interaction.
Culture building: Placement of graduate students, faculty offices, and visible research supports the “culture of the institution.” Lloyd likened the layout to a “layer cake design,” integrating collaboration, office, and private research areas.
Strategic interventions: Limited funding required “very strategic innovations or interventions” in the existing nine-story building, including air conditioning for lab support areas to ensure “repeatable results from some of their experiments.”
Integrated teamwork and construction challenges
2025 Lab Design Conference speaker—Tim VanAntwerp, vice president, Granger Construction
The H-STEM project’s success relied on a deeply integrated architect-engineer approach. VanAntwerp emphasized that MTU’s commitment to “designs their teams to work in a very highly functional way” allowed HED and Granger to collaboratively address challenges from the project’s conceptual phase onward.
Remote location posed a significant hurdle. MTU is located in Houghton, “eight to nine hours from every really major city in southern Michigan,” making it difficult to attract skilled trades. Despite this, more than $30 million of the $42 million construction cost went to local contractors, a quarter from the immediate area.
COVID-19 caused a one-year delay, but the “really strong agile team” simply “picked up, literally where we left off.” While pandemic-era Zoom collaboration enabled closer drawing reviews, Lloyd emphasized to the Lab Design Conference audience that the fundamental design remained unchanged, with only the specific user groups adapting.
The project also explored mass timber for the structure—a first for a lab facility in Michigan. Although cost and vibration concerns made it unsuitable for this project, the study “provided that catalyst to drive mass timber into other work” and demonstrated the team’s research-driven, integrated approach.
A future-ready home for health research
The H-STEM facility stands as a testament to the value of strategic design thinking, adaptability, and integrated project delivery. By embracing the Divergent Lab platform, Michigan Tech has not only redefined its research identity but also created a home for the Health Research Institute that is flexible, collaborative, and future-ready.
The 2026 Lab Design Conference in Orlando, FL, will feature sessions on academic lab design, case studies, designing with neurodiversity in mind, and much more. Explore the agenda, networking events, workshops, and lab tours at https://www.labdesignconference.com/.
