GERI Moves and the ERDF Project An Update

Roadmap The Background. The New Build. The Concept. The Project. A Rethink. The Shape of ‘GERI to Come’. The Financial Picture. Timescales.

The Background. GERI is an International Centre of Excellence in its field. National top quartile ranking in every RAE since 1996. Despite this neither our accommodation nor our locations are exactly “flattering”. The Faculty and the University want to see GERI expand.

New Build The University’s initial proposal was to build us a new accommodation unit. This would bring all of us into one office suite with meeting facilities etc. But it doesn’t address the lab requirement.

The Concept Concentrate all our laboratories in the annex. Use the University’s funding for the New Build as “matched funding” in an ERDF bid in order to raise the necessary money to refurbish the annex laboratories. The ERDF project would assist GERI to expand...

The Project To “earn” the ERDF grant we have to achieve certain deliverables We carry on we our core business – research. But build in industrial partners from the North West. We are expected to introduce them to how to get grants, deliver new technology for them and solve problems. Over the course of the project we will contract to create new jobs in these local companies.

A Rethink. Problem: Once we started costing the refurbishment of the annex it became quickly apparent that the cost was going to be very high indeed. The limit on the size of the project is the amount of matched funding we can raise. The cost of the new build is £1m – so the maximum available for refurbishment will be another £1m. Its not possible to refurbish the annex for this!

A Rethink For a short time it looked like the project might be dead. But enthusiasm both in NWDA and the University encouraged us to look for an alternative. The Dean to the rescue!...

The Shape of ‘GERI to Come’. We still have the New Build. We get ALL of the Basement – both sides of the corridor. This area will be refurbished to a high standard. We get new laboratory accommodation on the ground floor immediately above the basement area. The Dean’s office to the post room! Again this will be extensively refitted out. New entrances will be constructed – opposite the new building & in the main foyer.

The Financial Picture. Project Item Source Value Design, construction and fitting out of the New Building. JMU 1,000,000 Fitting out and refurbishment of the basement and first floor laboratories ERDF Provision of a “Business Manager” for GERI and office support £205,000 Research “Pump Priming” via Innovation Vouchers. £30,000 Staff Time £235,000 TOTAL £2,470,000

The Timescales. December 2010 – Final Submission of the grant application. February 2011 – Grant Announcement. March 2011 – Contract signed Project official start date. Clock starts on deliverables April 2011 – AMT staff vacate office area in annex. Demolition of annex office area. May 2011 – Construction of the new building commences. B4 Robotics and Manufacturing Lab vacated. Refurbishment of basement area commences. July 2011 – AMT Laboratory moves into basement. 1st Floor offices vacated – staff move to new building. Refurbishment of 1st Floor Offices commences. Rest of GERI move office accommodation to new building. August 2011 – Dean’s staff occupy 1st floor offices. - Conversion and refitting of ground floor laboratories. September 2011 – Formal opening of GERI’s new facilities.