University Council approves new world-class engineering facilities

Plans for a new Engineering Graduate School have been approved by the University’s Council, leading the way for a £21m expansion of facilities in the Engineering Faculty.

Work is planned to begin later this year at the site on the corner of Broad Lane and Newcastle Street if the city council’s planning committee approves the University’s planning application.

The Engineering Graduate School will house collaborative and interdisciplinary research groups and has been planned to enable the growth of the faculty’s PGR and PGT learning activities. The building would enable the faculty to improve the student experience while encouraging more postgraduate students to come to the University. The Engineering Graduate School is expected to be completed in time for the 2013 academic year.

The approval of the Engineering Graduate School by the University Council marks the first step in an extensive remodelling and refurbishment plan for the faculty’s estate. These plans will see much needed improvements made to buildings for research and teaching facilities in the Faculty of Engineering and the creation of more teaching space for the University as a whole.

In addition to new, purpose built buildings, the University would gain additional state-of-the-art lecture theatres, teaching labs and flexible teaching spaces. These will be designed to provide students with the best possible facilities while improving their student experience. The new building plans support the University’s commitment to providing top-quality education to students beyond 2012.

The need for improvements to the faculty’s estate was highlighted in the recent Estates Strategy 2010-2015. The strategy found that just 28 per cent of the faculty’s estate was in a good or excellent condition, and was therefore in need of attention. The graduate school is planned to be the first of a number of capital projects set to accommodate growth in the University’s world-class research and teaching activities over the next five to 15 years and beyond.

The Engineering Faculty is one of the biggest and most widely recognised in the UK, with a global reputation for excellence. It has a long tradition of working with industry including Rolls-Royce, Network Rail and Siemens. Its industrial successes are exemplified by the award-winning Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) and the new £25 million Nuclear Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (NAMRC).

Recently the AMRC announced the creation of the Advanced Manufacturing Institute (AMI) in response to the continued success and recent rapid changes in the scale of operations arising from further significant investment and development in and around the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre. Professor Keith Ridgway OBE, who has been a director of the AMRC since it was launched in 2001, has been named as Executive Dean and Director of the AMI.

Embracing the AMRC, Nuclear AMRC, Composite Centre and Knowledge Transfer Centres, the AMI is a self standing centre for research, knowledge exchange and location for teaching and learning within the academic structure of the University.

The Faculty of Engineering also recently announced it will be recruiting more than 20 new academic positions in the coming months. The new appointments will complement the expansion of the Engineering faculty, ensuring that students have the best possible experience we can offer them at all times. These new positions demonstrate the faculty’s faith in its future and how it is working to give students the best support by improving the quality of teaching they receive and the environment in which they learn.

Professor Mike Hounslow, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Engineering said: "The City and University of Sheffield have a world-wide reputation for quality in engineering. I am delighted that we can make these investments now to build on that reputation, offer even better facilities and teaching to our students and make an impact on the UK and regional economy."