Outline plans to invest £350m to create a new engineering campus have been put forward by the University of Manchester…
A new ambitious engineering campus is set to be undertaken by the University of Manchester. The Manchester Engineering Campus Development (MECD) will see all four of the university’s engineering schools move from Sackville Street to join the rest of the university’s departments on the Oxford Road campus. These will be joined by two research institutes from the Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences.
The facility is set to open during 2020 and will take the form of a single structure, rather than a cluster of separate buildings. The site will be enclosed by a cage-like structure and will span the width of a traditional urban block.
The campus will be designed and built by Dutch firm Mecanoo. It will comprise of 78,000 sq m of floor space and will be built opposite the National Graphene Institute. It will include state-of-the-art teaching spaces, as well as cutting edge technologies to provide the best possible space for students.
A statement from the firm read: “The MECD will be one of the largest, single construction projects ever undertaken by a higher education institution in the United Kingdom and will transform the way in which the university educates future engineers in response to the needs of the fast-changing global economy.
“The campus will help demonstrate how UK engineering is one of the most creative industries in the world.”
Mecanoo also worked with the university to develop the centre for contemporary art, film, and theatre, which opened earlier this year. Other notable works include Birmingham’s public library.
It is expected around 6,750 students will move to the new campus, alongside 1,300 academics, researchers, and support staff.
Professor Martin Schröder, Vice-President and Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Physical Science, said: “This outstanding new campus development will build upon our proud heritage of innovation and discovery across engineering and science that began with the establishment of the Manchester Mechanics’ Institute in 1824.
“MECD will inspire engineers to continue our pioneering spirit and to apply their knowledge and help modern industry overcome global challenges, such as climate change, finite natural resources and changing world markets.”