McLaughlin & Harvey has officially completed the construction of the University of Edinburgh's new Engineering Forum. The facility, which is now open to staff and students, serves as the new home for the School of Engineering's Institute for Energy Systems (IES).

Delivered via the SCAPE Scotland Framework, the 6,500m² steel-framed building spans five levels. It has been designed as a "living lab," featuring integrated technology that allows researchers to monitor energy use in real-time via microsensors. This data will support active research into power systems, electronics, and emerging renewable energy technologies.

The building provides a variety of flexible spaces tailored to both academic study and professional research, including:

• A sub-divisible 120-person conference room and two 50-seat classrooms.

• Specialised Power Teaching and computer laboratories.

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• A dedicated student innovation teaching space.

• New offices for the Engineering Teaching Organisation.

• A ground-floor café and an outdoor terrace for socialising.

Sustainability is at the heart of the design, highlighted by a rooftop photovoltaic array that generates renewable power for the facility. The building also offers expanded research labs and meeting rooms specifically for the IES to continue its work in low-carbon energy policy and technology.

The Engineering Forum is the seventh project McLaughlin & Harvey has completed for the University. It follows the successful delivery of the Nucleus Building (2022), the Usher Institute (2024), and the Roslin Innovation Centre (2017) as part of the ongoing transformation of the King's Buildings Campus.

Dougie McCusker, Construction Director at McLaughlin & Harvey, said: "Working within a live campus environment can present its challenges, however, close collaboration with the university and our design partners has resulted in a cutting-edge learning space for future students."

Professor Guangzhao Mao, Head of the School of Engineering, added: "The Engineering Forum provides an outstanding environment for both teaching and research. As a focal point for engineering excellence, it reinforces the University's standing as a global leader in research and innovation, while enhancing the student experience and contributing to Scotland's reputation as a centre for technological advancement."

Gary Meechan, Framework Director at SCAPE Scotland, noted that the project's success was measured not only by the quality of the build but by the "volume of social value and community benefits provided as part of the overall project."