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Scottish Centre for Regenerative Medicine officially unveiled

May 28 2012

Scottish Centre for Regenerative Medicine officially unveiled
The University of Edinburgh’s £54m Scottish Centre for Regenerative Medicine has been officially unveiled by HRH The Princess Royal.

Designed by Sheppard Robson it is intended to deliver commercial outcomes from the medical research being undertaken there.

Buro Happold and Miller Construction also helped deliver the 8,700sq/m building, which integrates external spaces of the wider BioQuarter medical science park.

This sees a cantilevered laboratory clad in aluminium fins reach out to the landscape to provide maximise impact and views out whilst minimising solar gain.

Luke Thurman, associate at Sheppard Robson, said: “The building’s internal form mimics a ‘pebble in a pond’ effect with smaller, darker spaces, such as the cell culture rooms, positioned in the centre of the building while laboratory spaces are positioned in the middle and write-up spaces are located next to the outer walls, allowing for natural ventilation and lighting.

“As well as the integrated approach to sustainability and the reduction of embodied energy, the placement of the plant on the mezzanine floor within the middle of the building has reduced service runs and simplified connections of the complex service requirements of the lab building.”
Scottish Centre for Regenerative Medicine officially unveiled
Scottish Centre for Regenerative Medicine officially unveiled

Scottish Centre for Regenerative Medicine officially unveiled
Scottish Centre for Regenerative Medicine officially unveiled

Scottish Centre for Regenerative Medicine officially unveiled
Scottish Centre for Regenerative Medicine officially unveiled

Scottish Centre for Regenerative Medicine officially unveiled
Scottish Centre for Regenerative Medicine officially unveiled

Photography by Andrew Lee
Photography by Andrew Lee

18 Comments

Bring Back BMJ
#1 Posted by Bring Back BMJ on 28 May 2012 at 18:20 PM
What are those fins about and the blood red soffit, makes ye sick looking at them.
dirige
#2 Posted by dirige on 28 May 2012 at 21:48 PM
Interesting comment from BMJ. Was it supposed to be ironic?
Boab
#3 Posted by Boab on 29 May 2012 at 06:37 AM
I think its quite cool
"Bitching" about other peoples projects does our image within the industry no favours
David
#4 Posted by David on 29 May 2012 at 11:04 AM
I think it looks fantastic...more photos please Urban Realm.
urbanrealm
#5 Posted by urbanrealm on 29 May 2012 at 13:02 PM
Hi David - I've added additional pics, all taken by Andrew Lee.
Bob
#6 Posted by Bob on 29 May 2012 at 13:28 PM
Spectacular !
David
#7 Posted by David on 29 May 2012 at 13:30 PM
Brilliant, thanks very much UR
Bottom Feeders
#8 Posted by Bottom Feeders on 29 May 2012 at 13:53 PM
Out of this world!!!!
D to the L
#9 Posted by D to the L on 29 May 2012 at 13:55 PM
Another success for Buro Happold. Brilliant
NC
#10 Posted by NC on 29 May 2012 at 14:33 PM
Great looking building, at £6200/m2, I would expect nothing less either.
BMPaterson
#11 Posted by BMPaterson on 29 May 2012 at 15:19 PM
a MUST for the Stirling Prize!
Desperate Kahn
#12 Posted by Desperate Kahn on 29 May 2012 at 22:09 PM
Sterile, impersonal, clinical, hard, humourless, cold, inhumane lifeless..... perfect for a medical research facility. I think this maybe the best matched building in Scotland
Andrew Lee
#13 Posted by Andrew Lee on 29 May 2012 at 22:40 PM
I really enjoyed working on this project for Sheppard Robson, and congratulations to Luke Thurman and his team for a fine building. I should point out, however, that the last photo is not mine. I did a similar shot, but it showed the whole of the curved aperture, not just a cropped section.

Incidentally, if anyone from Buro Happold or Miller Construction is reading, this series of photos is still available to purchase...!
ruby tuesday
#14 Posted by ruby tuesday on 30 May 2012 at 11:09 AM
What a sad lot us architects are that we cannot accept others success, especially in tough times. For anyone who saw this building reviewed on Newsnight on Monday, this building is the most advanced biomedical facility in the world. Well done to Luke Thurman, his team at Sheppard Robson and the wider team - a worthwhile project and a good example of the first class facilities (and investment opportunities) that Scotland has to offer. Those who mock; I don't think stem cell research will veer into curing the those with 'sour grapes', so get to the back of the queue or be a little more gracious.
David
#15 Posted by David on 30 May 2012 at 17:38 PM
@ Desperate Khan,

Your over the top style critisicm smacks of either jealousy or bitterness. Everyone is starting to get a bit tired of unjustified slashing of other peoples work on these sites.

If you're going to critique then do it properly and provide good reason.
Desperate Khan
#16 Posted by Desperate Khan on 31 May 2012 at 09:15 AM
Ok, better than any BMJ efforts. How's that?
Andrew Lee
#17 Posted by Andrew Lee on 31 May 2012 at 11:53 AM
Clearly, I'm not an architect, but I do know many of the architects featured on Urban Realm very well, having worked with them for the last 15 years. I also photographed a high proportion of the projects featured on this site, so I have experienced the buildings first-hand.

I have to say that the level of debate in general on UR, not only in this thread, is surprisingly poor, and at times, frankly embarrassing. I am assuming that the majority of those who post on this site are professionals: degree, post-graduate qualifications, professional exams, years of practice. Yet, the reaction to any news story often struggles to rise above beyond one-liner cynicism. And hardly anyone even has the courage to use their own name!

You don't often hear academics, actors, sports men and women, musicians, artists etc. trashing their peers in public. And when they do, they tend to sound ridiculous. What anyone thinks in private is up to them, but if you are going to criticise a fellow architect or engineer in a public forum, then the reasons for that criticism should perhaps be articulated in at least the same constructive language as you used in a fourth-year crit rather than the casual and uninformed banter of the student union in freshers week!
Lee Ivett
#18 Posted by Lee Ivett on 6 Jun 2012 at 14:42 PM
There are a lot of buildings being delivered in Scotland that deserve plenty of criticism; that suffer from a lack of creative thinking, endeavor and rigour. This clearly isn't one of them and for me this project is a first class example of just what we can achieve when an inspired and ambitious client is able to collaborate with a talented architect. For all of you who are looking for something to slag off then please take a pop at all the developer led spec offices and monotonous housing that continues to blight our towns and cities.

Great comment from Andrew Lee above

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