Formerly home to Manchester Metropolitan Students’ Union, the site has been transformed into a state-of-the-art Institute of Sport by Eric Wright Construction
The building was designed by BDP but the wider project team included Deloitte, Curtins, Gardiner and Theobald and Hoare Lea.
‘Manchester Met has ambitions to be one of the best universities in the UK for sport’
Andrew Fallon, director of estates, facilities, and capital development at Manchester Met, commented:
“Manchester Met has ambitions to be one of the best universities in the UK for sport.
“This new facility will help us towards reaching that ambition, giving academics, students and athletes access to state-of-the-art facilities with the best technology and equipment.
“With the handover now complete, staff have already moved in, and the facility will open for teaching in January 2022.”
Fallon added:
“This was a challenging project to completely rejuvenate an existing building and we have been impressed with the way that Eric Wright Construction and the professional team has performed, working the new design around an existing structure on an extremely tight site.
“The Manchester Metropolitan University Institute of Sport is a great example of what can be achieved when older buildings are repurposed, and we are delighted with the result.”
‘We are proud to have taken a 1960s structure into the 21st century’
Speaking about the project, director of Eric Wright Construction, James Eager, said:
“We are proud to have taken a 1960s structure into the 21st century and created a world class building that will provide fantastic facilities for Manchester Met and its students for many years to come.
“Not only have we delivered the project during the height of a global pandemic to exacting specifications on time and on budget, but we have also seen the carbon reduction benefits of re-using an existing structure.
“This has been a magnificent achievement and shows the positive benefits of two-stage tendering and early contractor engagement.”
‘A great example of what can be achieved by working in a close, collaborative partnership’
Jeremy Hartley, group managing director at Eric Wright Group, added:
“The Manchester Metropolitan University Institute of Sport is a great example of what can be achieved by working in a close, collaborative partnership.
“The whole team is incredibly proud of this superb building, and we are grateful to the University for selecting Eric Wright as its main contractor on this landmark project for Manchester.”
