Skip to main contentCambridge University Reporter

No 6331

Wednesday 18 December 2013

Vol cxliv No 14

pp. 237–248

Reports

Second-stage Report of the Council on the construction of the Maxwell Centre on the West Cambridge site

The Council begs leave to report to the University as follows:

1. In this Report the Council is seeking approval to proceed with the construction of the Maxwell Centre.

2. A First-stage Report to the University on the construction of the Maxwell Centre, dated 6 May 2013, was approved by Grace 1 of 5 June 2013 (Reporter, 2012–13; 6306, p. 507; 6311, p. 617).

3. As stated in the First-stage Report, the site for the proposed Maxwell Centre is located to the north end of the existing Physics of Medicine (PoM) building, adjacent to the William Gates Computer Sciences building. The proposed building will be approximately 4,900m2 of laboratory, office, collaboration, and ancillary space. Also proposed is a 400m2 refurbishment of the north end of the PoM building, converting temporary facilities into usable laboratory space. It is proposed to connect the PoM building and the Maxwell Centre via an internal link at both ground- and first-floor levels.

4. The construction of the Maxwell Centre will provide a centrepiece for industrial partnership with the physical sciences. The scale of industrial involvement is already substantial, but the target is to double this through a combination of activities in the new building, in the collaborating departments, and in the commercial space on the West Cambridge site.

5. A Full Case for the building, under the Capital Projects process was approved by the Planning and Resources Committee on 3 July 2013. The current cost estimate for the project is £25.6m. A grant for £21m has been received from the HEFCE UK Research Partnership Infrastructure Fund 2013–15, with the balance contributed from the Capital Fund.

6. A planning application was submitted to the Cambridge City Council in June 2013 and approval was granted through a Reserved Matters application on 25 September 2013. The project should be largely complete by the end of March 2015, as the project is subject to a spending profile determined by HEFCE, although the project may extend by a few months.

7. A contractor, SDC, has now been appointed to work with the design team on the pre-construction process and has been asked to tender for the construction works.

8. Drawings of the proposed scheme are displayed for the information of the University in the Schools Arcade.

9. The Council recommends:

I. That approval is confirmed for the construction of the Maxwell Centre as proposed in this Report.

II. That the Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Planning and Resources) be authorized to accept a tender for the works, within the available funding, in due course.

16 December 2013

L. K. Borysiewicz, Vice-Chancellor

Andy Hopper

Susan Oosthuizen

Jeremy Caddick

Richard Jones

Flick Osborn

Stephen J. Cowley

Fiona Karet

Rachael Padman

Athene Donald

Mark Lewisohn

Shirley Pearce

I. M. Le M. Du Quesnay

Rebecca Lingwood

John Shakeshaft

Nicholas Gay

Mavis Mcdonald

I. H. White

David Good

Rosalyn Old

A. D. Yates