ISG has secured its first ever project with Cardiff University, appointed to the £13.5 million new Business School development at its Cathays Park campus. Designed as a signature building within the University’s property portfolio, the facilities at the striking new building will play an important role in continuing to attract students from across the world to study in Cardiff.
Centralising Cardiff Business School’s excellent postgraduate business resources within a purpose-built, state-of-the-art building, the facility will feature a 250-seat lecture theatre and impressive environmental credentials. Comprising over 54,300 sq ft of accommodation, the business school incorporates an elliptical four-storey structure with distinctive terracotta rainscreen cladding to its façade and an attached two-storey teaching wing with extensive curtain walling.
Providing the university with maximum flexibility, the impressive elliptical lecture theatre has been designed with bi-fold walls and folding partitions, so the building can also be used as a high-specification conferencing venue. The new structure also contains a range of modular offices, flexible teaching spaces, two postgraduate common rooms and a large central core and break out area.
Targeting a BREEAM Excellent environmental performance rating, the new Business School will be constructed using high specification building materials, incorporate a roof mounted photo voltaic installation to generate carbon free electricity, and also features a rainwater harvesting and re-use system to flush toilets within the building. The project will also help to enhance the biodiversity of the campus through the addition of bird and bat boxes, the creation of log pile habitats and an attractive hard and soft landscaping scheme. The project is scheduled for completion in summer 2014, ahead of the new academic year.
John Rawlinson, ISG’s Western regional managing director, commented:
“We have worked extremely hard to bring this important regional project to site, carefully balancing the requirements to deliver an outstanding landmark building within tight budgetary restraints and no margin for error. ISG has a well-deserved track record in value engineering projects to minimise costs without diminishing the form and function of a building, and the Business School is an excellent example of what can be achieved through close collaboration and innovative thinking.”
“As Cardiff University seeks to further expand its reputation for excellence across the globe, this striking new building reinforces its commitment to providing the very finest facilities for study and academic research.”