ISG has been awarded a £61 million contract to deliver a state-of-the-art fit-out project for the new home of Imperial College London’s world renowned Department of Chemistry. The project sees ISG return to the College’s new White City Campus after kick-starting the regeneration of the 25 acre West London site in 2012 with the delivery of the £40 million Wood Lane Studios postgraduate student accommodation scheme.
The Department of Chemistry will occupy the campus’ new Molecular Sciences Research Hub, a 10-storey, circa 275,000 sq ft structure that is currently under construction by Laing O’Rourke.
Working with the College’s project managers, Turner & Townsend, ISG has been developing the design and complex programme schedule for the hub’s highly technical fit-out over a 12-month pre-construction period, with work scheduled to commence on site in August. A continuation of the College’s commitment to sustainable development, the new facility will achieve a BREEAM Excellent environmental performance rating.
The fit-out sees ISG deliver measuring, modelling and making laboratories across floors one to six, requiring the installation of 337 fume cupboards. The building’s two basement levels will house specialist laboratory space and a high-specification 250-seat lecture theatre. Significant structural reinforcement will be required at basement level to enable ISG to install an advanced Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) suite. A suite of laser and low electric noise laboratories will also be installed within the basement.
Professor Alan Armstrong, Head of the Department of Chemistry, Imperial College London said: “The Molecular Sciences Research Hub will be a truly world-class facility that will allow us to make a profound contribution to both academia and society in molecular sciences research relevant to healthcare, energy and the environment.
“Our move to the White City Campus will see us drive a new approach to science. By bringing together a vibrant community of chemists as well as other experts in the fields of medicine, engineering and other molecular sciences, we will create a new networked research environment that will encourage collaboration and innovation.”
Danny Blakeston, managing director of ISG’s Engineering Services business, said: “Our early engagement reflects Imperial’s forward thinking approach on this highly-complex and large-scale project, enabling us to collaborate closely and develop an innovative fit out solution that delivers world-class teaching and research facilities.”
