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Plans to construct a new innovation centre and campus hub at the University of Edinburgh have been approved.
The plans, designed by Atkins, will see a new £32m facility built at the University's Easter Bush Campus. It will provide veterinary students and staff with specialist research facilities, as well as teaching labs, offices and an exhibition space.
Comprising two distinct elements that embrace a full height atrium space, the centre and hub will act as a gateway to Easter Bush Campus, which is home to The Roslin Institute, a world leading animal sciences research institute.
The Innovation and Campus Hub at Easter Bush will include:
• Incubator space for Animal Bioscience (labs and offices)
• Specialist Facilities for research
• Further campus facilities, such as a shop, public outreach centre and multi-faith room.
It will also accommodate:
• The Centre of Comparative Pathology
• International Centre for Livestock Improvement
• Midlothian Science Centre.
Work is expected to commence on site in February 2015, with completion scheduled for 2016.
Welcoming the news, Philip Watson, Atkins' UK design director, said: "Universities around the UK are working harder than ever to attract students, staff and wider investment.
"Good design has a key role to play in meeting these strategic goals which is why we've grown our education studio over the past couple of years."
He continued: "Our work at the University of Edinburgh adds to a higher education portfolio which continues to mature in terms of geographical reach, diversity of projects and significance."
Val White, Easter Bush Campus Operating Officer, added: "The Innovation Centre will be an exciting addition to the Easter Bush infrastructure and will act as a focal point for the campus as well as providing outstanding accommodation for bioscience companies at varying stages of maturity."
In addition to the above, Atkins is also designing a £12m Energy Centre which will provide the energy requirements of the University's entire Easter Bush Campus and its Advanced Computing Facility.
(JP/IT)
