Making the science work

An essential component of Overbury's Perfect Delivery™ process is the agreement of a client cornerstone. This is a requirement that our client gives us to ensure the project we are delivering for them meets their exact needs. For the refurbishment of the Roberts Building, for University College London, the condition was unequivocal: "the science must work".

Project partners

  • Arcadis
  • Wilson Mason LLP
  • Elementa Consulting Ltd
  • Pick Everard

Key features

  • ISO Grade 6 clean rooms
  • ISO Grade 7 change rooms
  • Medical gases
  • Temperature control
  • Air tightness
  • DOP testing
  • HEPA filters
  • Installation of Liquid Nitrogen

Project description

This project was not simply a refurbishment, but the construction of laboratories which had strict requirements to create optimal environments for conducting experiments. Each lab was designed to meet the needs of the exacting experiments performed in them, so the end results are as accurate as they can be.

Intricate service installations were necessary to supply the lab equipment; from the 32 fume cupboards that remove the vapours of the hazardous gasses used in the experiments to a Faraday cage to shield equipment from electric fields. The medical gasses that supplied the fume cupboards required stainless steel pipe to maintain the required purity level.

Logistical challenges

The central London location and layout of the building provided unique logistical challenges which included lifting an 8.5 tonne air handling unit onto the roof. Works were conducted while the building was in occupation, meaning academics continued to conduct sensitive research as we created their new work environment around them. Our team nurtured good working relationships with the academic staff to ensure construction was carried out without disruption.

The client comes first

The project distilled everything Overbury excel at into a single project; precise logistics in busy locations, sensitive working arrangements in occupied environments, productive working relationships with stakeholders, maintaining live services to critical areas, providing innovative solutions to the challenges of unique projects, and ultimately, delivering exactly what our client wanted.

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