The project provided the Creativity Zone / Making Studio, and associated back-of-house office space, to allow educational groups to ‘be creators rather than consumers, developing their own solutions to a practical challenge’. The studios are nestled into the existing exhibition space and connect with existing infrastructure. Skelly & Couch carried out full M&E duties, including:

•Installing new water and drainage services to connect to existing systems

•Extending the existing sprinkler system

•Providing heating/cooling and ventilation to the space using a single heat pump system

•Providing flexible electrical power

•Providing an inspirational light scheme

•Providing communications systems – fire, access control, security, CCTV and structured cabling.

Since the studios are within the existing exhibition hall, one of the main challenges has been to ensure they are thermally and acoustically isolated from the surrounding spaces. The use of natural light has been optimised with sawtooth roof lights leading out to the existing ETFE foil roof.

The project is part of a major funding boost of £2.6 million from the Inspiring Science Fund, a partnership between the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and Wellcome, one of the largest biomedical charities in the world.