Aurora, Colorado – June 26, 2009 – Merrick & Company www.merrick.com, has expanded its life sciences facilities commissioning services with the addition of Glenn Dal Collo as commissioning field coordinator. His first assignment will be coordinating all day-to-day commissioning activities for the $500 million U.S. Army Medical Research Institute for Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) replacement project to be located at Fort Detrick, Frederick, Maryland, under a contract with Manhattan/Torcon, the construction manager on the project.

USAMRIID is the lead medical research laboratory for the U.S. Biological Defense Research Program. Its mission is to conduct basic and applied research on biological threats resulting in medical solutions to protect military service members. It is the only laboratory in the U.S. Department of Defense’s system that is equipped to safely study highly hazardous infectious agents requiring maximum containment at biosafety level (BSL) 4.

Merrick is internationally recognized for its work in BSL-3 and BSL-4 biocontainment laboratories, with projects including facilities commissioning at the University of Pittsburgh and the University of Missouri. The firm is also part of the planning and design team for the National Bio & Agro Defense Facility (NBAF), a $550 million project that will replace the existing research facility currently located at Plum Island, New York. In addition, the firm designed a $72 million BSL-3Ag large animal facility, which is one of the initial elements of the $460 million modernization of the largest Federal animal disease center, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s research and diagnostic facilities, located in Ames, Iowa. More information about Merrick & Company’s Life Sciences Program is located at Merrick Life Sciences.