The detail
Opened in May 2017 to coincide with UoB’s 25th anniversary, the AEC has strengthened the University’s “international reputation for producing innovative, future-facing research”. The complex project has provided teaching facilities, a dedicated combustion engine research area, and cutting-edge research laboratories, as well as modernised engineering workshops to help postgraduate and undergraduate automotive, civil, electronic and mechanical engineering learning.
Construction entailed the casting of pad foundations, suspended ground slab and reinforced concrete trusses to support the cantilever while the external steel cladding system was installed on the in-situ concrete frame. Giving the building its aesthetically pleasing appearance, the façade was meticulously designed around long stripped windows, with all connections evenly defined. The £14m scheme also included the technically challenging fit-out of the whole building, which included the installation of plant, finishes and specialist engineering infrastructure.
