Ceremony marks start of work on key research building

The Vice-Chancellor, Professor Sir Leszek Borysiewicz (pictured right), was guest of honour at a start-on-site ceremony attended by representatives of the design and construction team, benefactors and senior University academics and staff.

They were welcomed by Chris Tredget (pictured second left), Managing Director of Willmott Dixon, the main contractor, which has worked on a number of significant University projects including the nearby Hauser Forum and Centre for the Physics of Medicine.

The Department of Materials Science and Metallurgy is committed to making significant advances in the synthesis, processing and patterning of materials to deliver enhanced performance, and addressing issues of sustainability and the scarcity of resources.

It is currently spread across five separate buildings in the historic city centre, some dating back to the 1870s, which are unsuitable for modern scientific research. There have been plans to move to purpose-built accommodation at West Cambridge for many years but funding for the new building, which derives from a number of sources, has only recently been confirmed from a number of sources.

Designed by the international Architectural Practice firm NBBJ, the building meets the challenge of accommodating the broad range of research fields the Department covers, from large scale processing of metals through to nanotechnology, chemistry and the development of medical materials.

The new facility will contain a mix of laboratories, support facilities, offices and social space with a total gross floor area of ten thousand two hundred square metres.

It will include an electron microscope facility built on a two-metre deep concrete slab to eliminate vibration and electro-magnetic interference from external sources. It is set to be one of the best-adapted places for electron microscopy in the world. Indeed the whole building has been designed around the nature of the instruments needed for this type of research, and with a view to being adaptable for future technological developments and research needs.

Lead architect Rebecca Mortimore said: “The design of the building has been guided by primary goals identified during the briefing stage. It will be a welcoming, legible building, allowing the legacy of the department and identity of the individual research groups to be expressed. The building will facilitate collaboration between happy occupants and integrate teaching with research.
It will balance performance and flexibility, allowing room to grow and adapt whilst enabling science and research.”

Professor Lindsay Greer, Head of the Department (pictured second right), said: “The project team have done a great job in meeting our requirements and we are very excited at the prospect of seeing our new home rise out of the ground.”

Michael Bienias, Director of Estate Management for the University (pictured left), praised the collaborative work of the Project Team in reaching this stage in this complex project.

In addition to research, the building will incorporate teaching of undergraduate years 3 and 4, masters and doctorates.

Uniting the Department together in one building will enable the development of a highly integrated research facility, promoting better communication and reaction.

The relocation to the University’s growing Science and Technology site at West Cambridge will enable a valuable increase in cross-disciplinary work with neighbours in the Institute for Manufacturing, Centre for Nanoscience, the Cavendish Laboratory, the Computer Laboratory, Electrical Engineering, the Whittle Laboratory, Cambridge Enterprise and the Vet School.

In addition to major underwriting by the University, the building has received generous funding from the Wolfson Foundation, The Ann D Foundation, the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths and the Worshipful Company of Armourers and Brasiers.

Construction is scheduled for completion in early Autumn 2012.

Project Team
Project Management: University of Cambridge Estate Management
Architect: NBBJ
Contractor: Willmott Dixon
Contract Administrator: Davis Langdon
Cost Manager: Turner and Townsend
Services Engineer: Hoare Lea
Structural Engineer: Ramboll
CDM Coordinator: Gardiner & Theobald