BAM Construction has broken ground with Plymouth University to commence work on the £8.5million development of its first on-campus combined student and medical staff accommodation at the Knowledge Spa, Royal Cornwall Hospital. [Please see release by Plymouth University for details.] The facility will benefit Cornwall’s future doctors, dentists and other frontline health professionals at the county’s premier health education hub which is a partnership between Plymouth University, Peninsula College of Medicine and Dentistry and the Royal Cornwall Hospitals Trust. The £8.5 million bespoke accommodation development will house RCHT medical staff together with Plymouth University and PCMD students studying at the Truro base. Plymouth University Vice-Chancellor, Wendy Purcell commented:
‘As the leading higher education provider in the county, we are committed to furthering research, enterprise and innovation opportunities in Cornwall. Development of medical, dental and health education is critical to addressing health inequalities in the county and this starts with offering a first class and complete student experience.’ With Plymouth’s nationally acclaimed and award winning reputation for sustainability, it chose like-minded contractor BAM Construction to lead the project.
Steve Tapson, Regional Director at BAM said ‘BAM is renewing a partnership with Plymouth University that saw us deliver the highly acclaimed Roland Levinsky Building in the last few years. BAM is listed in Britain’s Greenest Companies so we are very pleased to be working again with one of the top ‘green’ universities in the UK.’ He added, ‘BAM is renewing a partnership with Plymouth University that saw us deliver its flagship Roland Levinsky Building. BAM is listed in Britain’s Greenest Companies so we are very pleased to be working once again with one of the top ‘green’ universities in the UK. It’s also great for us to be renewing our relationship with PCMD for whom we built not only John Bull House, its headquarters in Plymouth, but also the Exeter facility.’ The new development aims to achieve BREEAM ‘Excellent’ status. It will feature a timber frame, terracotta cladding and curtain walling, and a zinc roof ranged over four storeys. It will house 230 bedrooms with modern facilities to replace the current 1960s accommodation, but will retain a ‘domestic’ feel in keeping with the surrounding neighborhood. BAM is on site in Truro delivering another scheme, the £13m Health and Wellbeing Innovation Centre for Cornwall Council. This has brought the benefits of supply chain crossover and established relationships. The project manager will be Tony Richards, who has previously worked on this site, who is Cornish, and whose daughter was born in the hospital here.
