- The new building, called the Prairie Biologics Accelerator, is planned to bring together scientists and engineers to advance vaccine discovery and biomanufacturing process development. The building will include open-concept laboratories that will be shared by the Faculties of Science and Engineering and a pilot clean-room manufacturing suite equipped to produce pre-clinical vaccine material.
- The building will be five floors, as well as a basement and a mechanical penthouse for a total of 59,698 square feet. The building will be linked to the UM tunnel system on the east side through Parker and on the west side through St John’s.
PRAIRIE Biologics Accelerator
The PRAIRIE Biologics Accelerator is a state-of-the-art research facility that is poised to position Manitoba as a leader in vaccine development, biomanufacturing and regional innovation in western Canada. This five-story, 59,698 sq ft facility will provide dedicated lab space to foster interdisciplinary collaboration across microbiology, immunology and engineering.
Why this matters
The PRAIRIE Biologics Accelerator (PBA) Facility project aims to achieve three key goals:
- Facilitate the construction of a new building at UM Fort Garry Campus, enhancing Canada’s capacity to produce vaccines and to respond to future pandemic threats.
- Power Manitoba’s biomanufacturing industry to grow the economy and increase jobs.
- Link Manitoba’s global leadership in infectious disease research with state-of -the-art Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) ready training to grow the Manitoba biotech sector.
Explore what's ahead
-
-
-
-
- The project is designed to achieve LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) Silver certification and to meet the Canadian Biosafety Standards (CL2) as well as incorporate accessibility standards and all required building, safety and energy codes.
- The CL2 research facility will occupy the 4th and 5th floors of the building with open-concept labs, including tissue culture rooms, cold storage, autoclave area, wash-up areas and chemical storge. The design also includes a biomanufacturing pilot suite housed in a clean-room environment.
-
- Floors 1 to 3 are for the undergraduate student teaching labs. Due to the growth in Faculty of Science enrollment, additional lab spaces for Anatomy & Physiology, which will be located on the 1st and 2nd floors, are needed, as more lab sections will be needed to accommodate more students requiring these courses as prerequisites to apply to Undergraduate Medical Education.
- The existing Biochemistry lab spaces in the Parker building are outdated, and the building also has an air pressurization issue due to the number of fume hoods. Relocating Biochemistry to the 3rd floor of the new PBA building will address the air pressure issue in Parker and also enhance the student experience.
-
Project milestones
Construction started on January 22, 2026, with an expected ready-for-takeover timeline of October 2028.
January 2026 to August 2026
- Work performed on site to date included excavation, precast piling, shoring, lagging, pile cap forming and installation of pile cap concrete reinforcing.
- July Work planned on site included excavation, completion of soldier piles for shoring, lagging, cast-in-place concrete foundation work, tower crane piles and foundation.
Progress at a glance
