BALFOUR Beatty has landed a £70 million contract to deliver the Edinburgh Futures Institute, a refurbishment and extension initiative on behalf of the University of Edinburgh.
The contractor will be tasked with restoring and connecting six wards, unlocking the building’s corridors to create “free-flowing areas” in the University’s Old Royal Infirmary hospital building. Building Information Modelling (BIM) and augmented and virtual reality technologies will be used to enhance the restoration process.
Once complete, Balfour Beatty said the development, which is being part-funded by Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal, will provide multiple teaching and learning facilities, function areas, and work spaces for staff, students and the general public.
Hector Macaulay, Balfour Beatty’s managing director of Scotland and Ireland said, “We have a long history of restoring listed buildings, including the National Museum of Scotland and the Assembly Rooms in Edinburgh. Combining the latest construction techniques and technologies, we look forward to sympathetically restoring Edinburgh’s Old Royal Infirmary hospital for the wider benefit of the community.”
Works are due to start in spring this year, with an overall completion expected ahead of the start of the academic year in 2021. Balfour Beatty added that at construction peak, the project will employ a workforce of 170 and a range of local supply chain partners.
