Project Brief

A new £37m re-inforced concrete, 5 storey, 120,000m2 science and health building for Coventry University.

Located in the City Centre incorporating a new energy centre and a multi-disciplinary building housing. World class teaching and simulation facilities.

With state of the art equipment and laboratory’s.

Feature

The site was on the ruins of a Roman settlement which had been excavated. Some features were retained such as old doorways with some lintels and old wells.

We filled these areas carefully assuring preservation of the features, even though buried.

The site involved trench excavation for a vast amount of new services including gas, waste, electric, data and 300mm heating pipes to feed the new energy centre.

A myriad of existing services were present as the site was surrounded on three sides by existing buildings.

Hand dig, suction excavation and micro plant was used to reduce the risk of service strikes. The excavation for foundations was particularly challenging due to the amount of hard obstructions in the ground – even an old petrol tank. Heavy plant was used to remove these.

2 large reinforced cores at each end of the building were used – 30m x 15m x 4m high to the ground floor.