Teesside University’s £36.9m “cutting-edge” new facility celebrates milestone

Staff, students and contractors gathered for a special event to celebrate a key point in the development of Teesside University’s new “cutting-edge” science, health and medical facility.

A steel signing ceremony was held to mark the final steel beam being put in place on the £36.9m BIOS project. Attendees were given an update and overview of the development and were then asked to sign their names on the final steel beam, providing a permanent memento before the project is completed next year.

BIOS will further “transform” the learning experience for students at Teesside University, with “cutting-edge” new laboratories for the sciences and clinical subjects at the heart of the Middlesbrough campus.

Supporting the University’s School of Health & Life Sciences, BIOS will house four floors of lab space for subjects including anatomy, imaging, microbiology, chemistry, allied health and food sciences.

For BIOS, the University is continuing its partnership with Wates Construction, which successfully delivered recent projects including the award-winning Cornell Quarter student accommodation and the National Horizons Centre, based at the University’s Darlington campus.

The Steel for BIOS was sourced locally from a firm in Newton Aycliffe, reaffirming both the University’s and Wates’ commitment to supporting the regional economy.

Professor Tim Thompson, Dean of Teesside University’s School of Health & Life Sciences, commented: “We are delighted to see such swift progress on our BIOS development and were pleased to be able to welcome some of our health and science students to join our steel signing ceremony.

“BIOS will be transformational in terms of revolutionising the learning experience on our health and life science courses – so it is fitting to welcome some of our current students to be involved in this landmark development.

“We are really excited about what BIOS has to offer and the facility will enable us to grow and enhance our provision across key areas, aligning with the skills needs of the region and the country.”

David Wingfield, regional director for the North East at Wates Construction, added: “This is our third project with Teesside University and our largest and most complex yet.

“BIOS will support Teesside’s health and medical students for years to come and will be a cornerstone to grow the region’s economy in life sciences. We’re proud to partner with the University once more to deliver it.”

By Matthew Neville – Correspondent, Bdaily

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