Work has started on a new building for the LMB, to replace the present one which, after nearly 50 years, is in need of substantial refurbishment. To view progress, see the webcam.
Planning for the new building has been going on for several years. Designed by RMJM architects, it is being built by BAM Construction. Preliminary works began in the summer of 2008, and the main contract commenced in April 2009. Completion is due in 2012. The entire project will cost in excess of £200 million, paid for in part from the royalties derived from antibody-related work at the LMB.
The building is located on the edge of the current hospital site, on the expanding Cambridge Biomedical Campus and adjacent to the London-Cambridge railway line. In overall shape it consists of two kinked laboratory blocks joined by a central atrium, in a shape reminiscent of a chromosome (albeit a strange dicentric one). The total usable area will be approximately 27,000m2 of fully air-conditioned space, on three main floors.
There are several notable features of the design. All heavy plant servicing the building is housed either in a separate energy centre, or in the four stainless steel-clad towers linked to the building. This removes weight and sources of vibration from the laboratory itself, allowing a more lightweight construction. Between the floors are full height Interstitial Service Voids (ISVs), which house all the ductwork, pipes and services. These ISVs can be accessed directly for maintenance and modifications without entering the laboratory spaces themselves. This allows changes to be made rapidly and with minimal disruption, giving flexibility to meet the needs of the future and ensuring a long life for the building. The minor disadvantage is that the laboratory floors are spaced further apart than normal, so stairs are longer.
The main laboratories are in 1000m2 modules, each housing 40 benchworkers together with write-up spaces, group leader offices and local equipment rooms. Benches are double length (4m for two people), in 3.3m wide bays. The plan is semi-open, with walls separating pairs of bays from adjacent single-bay equipment areas. Write-up desks are separated from benches by a clean corridor, and are intermingled with group leader offices. Equipment rooms are separated from the laboratories by a main corridor, ensuring accessibility to all and promoting interactions between scientists.
The building is designed to house 440 scientists. Of these 40 will be in a module occupied by the University of Cambridge, which will be populated with groups whose interests complement those of the LMB. Another module will be reserved for temporary initiatives, in particular to support translational work. The remaining 360 represent about a 10% increase over current LMB numbers.
A significant proportion of the building will be devoted to central facilities, including amongst other things a containment suite, computing, media preparation, chemistry labs, X-ray facilities, EM and optical microscopy, mass spectrometry, fermentation, stores, maintenance and lab management, and mechanical, electrical and computing workshops, together with space reserved for future equipment and facilities.
A building of this size can be intimidating, but it is designed to encourage interaction and easy navigation. There are many windows onto the atrium, which can be crossed at four points on each level allowing easy access and appreciation of the layout of the building. Glass-fronted lifts at either end give an overview of the entire 20m high space. Within the atrium, Divisional offices and seminar rooms are positioned at the two central crossing points, where staircases also connect the floors and provide access to informal coffee areas at the interstitial level. In the main laboratory modules, windows into the labs make it easy to locate people from the corridor and create an open, airy environment. The airflow is balanced to allow doors to remain always open.
The ends of the atrium house a lecture theatre above the entrance, and at the opposite end the western stack comprising library, administrative offices and visual aids department. Since offices do not require ISVs, they are located both on the main lab floors and on the interstitial levels.
To complete the accommodation, there is a spacious restaurant on the south-west corner at roof level, complete with an external terrace to provide spectacular views out over the Gog-Magog hills and towards Trumpington.
The building will be glass-clad. Heat build-up is reduced by automatic venetian blinds, between the standard double glazing and an outer glass skin. Other energy-saving features include heat recovery wheels which exchange energy between outgoing and incoming air, a ground source heat pump to exchange heat with the ground, and automatic control of lights to reduce intensity when daylight is available.
