Through a collaborative and partnered approach with Wintec, a detailed design that met Wintec’s functional brief was achieved. The Hub building represents a gateway to the campus; a welcoming community space not only for students and staff, but for all visitors and industry partners. The overall attention to detail required a seamless blend of the old with the new. The extensive finishing work and expected high quality finish were all to completed to the high Hawkins standard.
Continued collaboration between the design consultants, Hawkins and Wintec was required throughout the project to ensure the client’s expectations were being achieved and any buildability issues were resolved quickly. An excellent working relationship with Wintec’s project team ensured that the last minute design changes could be worked into the programme without affecting overall delivery.
To facilitate communication and enable staff and students to stay engaged with progress, a weekly bulletin was compiled and given to Wintec for publication and distribution. This was well received amongst the stakeholder community.
The most challenging aspect of the project was ensuring the continued operation of the building which remained open and in use for the student population. To achieve this, the project was split into two refurbishment stages in which the support services were relocated so they could continue to operate.
A strong focus on health and safety was maintained throughout the project. Whilst it was possible to hoard off areas where the building was being extended, it was not possible to do this in the main student access areas. These included the café, library, toilet facilities and study areas which were required to be operational the entire time. The project team achieved an outstanding 100% in a Site Safe Audit, noting very effective site leadership and an extremely well managed and maintained site.
The Hub building provides an iconic gateway that meets Wintec’s desire outcomes; a memorable and engaging flexible learning space to achieve a holistic student experience.