The £35m South Lanarkshire College Campus has been officially opened by HRH The Princess Royal.

The new college is located at Scottish Enterprise Technology Park in East Kilbride and brings together three campuses into one single site, purpose-built facility equipped with state of the art learning facilities.

Designed by Archial Architects, one of the largest architecture practices in Scotland and the UK, the brief called for a building to accommodate a diverse range of disciplines including construction, hair and beauty and teaching kitchens as well as a range of IT and general teaching facilities.

The accesses and site circulation presented design challenges which have been resolved to create a building which includes a high proportion of workshop space in a sympathetic manner.

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Graham Montgomery, Director at Archial Architects, said: "The L-shaped layout gives the opportunity to separate noisy workshop areas in a split level single storey block. This allows the main four storey teaching building a prominent position over a major route into the town and maximises the area available for parking.

"All parts of the building are linked to a main atrium 'hub' created by two strong vertical planes which break the simple lines of the building and align with the newly formed entrance avenue along which students and visitors arrive."

Mr Montgomery said "dramatic arrival" is created as you approach the large volume of the hub as the area between the vertical 'fins' is fully glazed, allowing you to see the activity inside.

All main facilities are contained within the hub, including a refectory, coffee bar, student services, library and internet drop in area, providing a central communal space which becomes the heart of the building.

The articulation of the elevations is simple with a dark grey frame wrapped around a simple white volume broken by horizontal ribbons of glazing.

The Strathaven Road elevation introduces areas of full height glazing which 'pop-out' to give passers-by a snapshot of the variety of activities going on within the building.

The project has been funded with assistance from the European Regional Development Fund and the Scottish Funding Council. The Archial Group Plc employs around 200 staff in Scotland, operating from offices in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Dundee and Inverness.

(GK/JM)