Restored sign
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Springfield Campus will enable us to have a leading international presence in construction and built environment innovation, expertise and delivery. It will allow us to strengthen the region through our role as the University of Opportunity: giving employers the opportunity to help to develop and expand their operations; giving young people unique opportunities for a bright future; and providing researchers the opportunity to work in a pioneering environment and facilitate inventive and ground-breaking ideas. Professor Geoff Layer Vice-Chancellor, University of Wolverhampton
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SPRINGFIELD CAMPUS: OUR VISION The new Springfield Campus is the culmination of the most ambitious aspect of the University of Wolverhampton’s Our Vision, Your Opportunity programme. The site of the former Springfield brewery has been transformed into Europe’s largest specialist construction and built environment campus, bringing together businesses and the education sector to maximise impact on the economy. Since its purchase in 2014, the derelict site has been rejuvenated into a centre of excellence for construction and the built environment, delivering an unbeatable skills pathway for construction education and training from the age of 14 to senior professionals. As the home of the West Midlands Construction University Technical College, the University’s School of Architecture and Built Environment, and the Elite Centre for Manufacturing Skills, it’s central to our vision of enhancing the student experience and supporting business growth. The £100 million development is acting as the catalyst for economic and social regeneration, tailored to creating jobs and delivering the technical and professional experts required by the industry.
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Serving the needs of the area. Serving the needs of the construction industry. And making a major step-change for the city and the area. Professor Geoff Layer Vice-Chancellor, University of Wolverhampton
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Design feature
It’s a real centre of construction excellence – catering for all abilities and ages – the like of which doesn’t exist in the UK. Principal, West Midlands Construction University Technical College
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Clock tower Gradient
WORKING IN PARTNERSHIP Entrance
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Glass windows
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The scale of the 12 acre site has provided new and productive partnerships, not just during its transformation into a construction super-campus – with the collaboration of architectural firms, education providers, local government, Original businesses and NGOs – brickwork but also in on-going relationships to provide services tailored to delivering construction excellence both now and for future generations.
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DRIVING EXCELLENCE IN EDUCATION: 14-19 Education is built into the very foundations of Springfield Campus, ready to deliver excellence at every stage for future generations. West Midlands Construction UTC Opening to new students in 2016, the West Midlands Construction UTC provides education for up to 600 14-19 year olds, preparing students for technical and professional careers in the construction and built environment industry. The building itself garnered the prestigious ‘Education or Healthcare Structures Award’ at the Midlands Regional Awards, run by the Institute of Structural Engineers. The UTC’s specialism of Construction and the Application of IT in the Built Environment gives students a distinct advantage in seeking professional and technical careers within these industries. Combining employer mentors, extensive work experience, an employer-led project-based curriculum, specialist facilities and a professional work environment provides an outstanding education for learners. The specialist UTC is co-sponsored by the Construction Industry Training Board. As the sector skills council and industrial
training board for the construction industry, CITB is utilising in-depth knowledge of skills development in the construction industry to ensure that West Midlands Construction UTC students will be well equipped to pursue successful careers in the sector. The UTC is also proud to work with some of the biggest names in construction, such as: • Barratt Developments PLC • Carillion • Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) • Hewden • Lovell Partnerships Ltd. • Morgan Sindall • Pasquill • Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) • Redrow • Willmott Dixon Visit: westmidlandsconstructionutc.co.uk
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DRIVING EXCELLENCE IN EDUCATION: 18+ School of Architecture and Built Environment With Springfield, we are proud to be at the heart of the University’s most ambitious project to date – offering 8,000m² dedicated to educating and training the next generation of talent in the built environment With innovation at the core of our programmes we are excited by the opportunities the School will bring for further research and development in the sector. Our courses in the disciplines of architecture, built environment, civil engineering, construction and infrastructure, environmental health and geography have been developed in close consultation with industry practitioners so we can provide up-to-date technical knowledge and design flair to work in today’s ever changing industry.
Accreditation Our degrees are accredited through multiple accreditors including: the Chartered Institute of Architectural Technologists (CIAT), Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), and the Chartered Institute of Builders (CIOB). Officially launched in September 2017, the University is proud to offer the UK’s first ever degree course for demolition. Developed following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with the Institute for Demolition Engineers, the new Bachelor or Master of Science Demolition and Restoration Management in the Built Environment degrees include modules ranging from asbestos removal and façade retention to working with explosives and health and safety.
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HERITAGE School of Architecture & Built Environment Site Photographs
The site was originally purchased in 1873 by William Butler to house his growing brewing business, with the Springfield Brewery opening in 1874 under the William Butler and Company name.
School of Architecture & Built Environment Site Photographs
1873 At its peak, the Springfield Brewery was producing 1,500 barrels of beer a week and employing 900 people.
In 1960 the company was taken over by Mitchells and Butlers, with a gradual decline in production at the site, until brewing ceased in 1990, followed by its closure in 1991.
The iconic clock tower was built in 1922.
1922 The business continued under the family name with William’s sons – first Edwin, then Samuel took the reins.
1960-1991
1950 The Butler family connection ended when Samuel Butler left the School of Architecture & Built Environment board of directors in 1950. Site Photographs
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Foundations were laid, but plans to build 300 homes were abandoned amid economic troubles following the recession in 2008.
2008 2004 A ferocious blaze ravaged the site in 2004, destroying much of the historic structure.
The University of Wolverhampton purchased the site in 2014 – the start of ambitious plans to create a construction and built environment super-campus.
Planning permission granted for the new School of Architecture and Built Environment. Work begins on the ECMS.
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2017...
2011
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Broughs Brewery – a micro-brewery, began producing Springfield Ale on the site in 2011.
November 2016 – the West Midlands Construction University Technical College opens its doors to pupils on the site for the first time.
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SUPPORTING BUSINESS GROWTH Cementing relationships between business and education is a primary principle of Springfield Campus – acting as a catalyst for economic and social regeneration in the region, and becoming the dynamic heart of the Midlands Engine to drive construction and built environment expertise nationally and internationally. By housing the Elite Manufacturing Centre, providing and developing apprenticeships, and creating a pathway for education that meets the needs of industry, the campus will contribute to vital skills growth in the sector. Forging the future of our proud industrial heritage The Elite Centre for Manufacturing Skills (ECMS) is a new employer-led training facility for the Black Country, designed to enhance productivity in the region’s high value manufacturing sector. Building on the region’s renowned industrial heritage and £7.6 million funding from the The Black Country Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), the Elite Centre will drive economic growth in the Black Country – and beyond – by providing specialist training to upskill the current and future workforce, delivering skills training through short courses and apprenticeships, and helping to close skills gaps identified by employers.
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The ECMS is a collaboration between: • The Black Country Local Enterprise Partnership • Dudley College • Cast Metals Federation • Confederation of British Metalforming • Institute of Cast Metals Engineers • University of Wolverhampton Visit: theecms.co.uk
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Architect
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The next idea Team / Collective thinking
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Architect
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The next idea Team / Collective thinking
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Project Manager
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I’m really excited about the new scheme at Springfield. It’s a great scheme, putting money into the local economy, helping us to regenerate the local economy, and giving local people the skills they need to get local jobs.
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Brief
Cllr John Reynolds Cabinet Member for City Economy, City of Wolverhampton Council
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Our facilities include state-of-the-art laboratories, innovative technologies, studios, and lecture theatres designed not just for traditional learning, but also for team-based learning. The School’s move to the Springfield Campus facilitates students from built environment, architecture and civil engineering to work together, as they would do in the workplace. Professor Nazira Karodia Dean of the Faculty of Science and Engineering
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LEADING INNOVATION THROUGH RESEARCH
The educational pathway for the next generation of construction professionals is being established at Springfield in an exciting vision that will cater for their education from school-age, through further university study, and into the workplace. Continuing research is vital to the lifeblood of any industry, and to cater for the needs of the construction industry both today and when the first cohort of UTC students graduate, Springfield Campus will provide an environment to facilitate the very latest research from the brightest minds, working on solutions to obstacles in the 21st century and beyond. The School of Architecture and Built Environment is well respected for its work on smart sustainable infrastructure and healthy cities. In particular the most recent Research Exercise Framework (REF) in 2014 acknowledged the world-class research being carried out in: contract management and dispute resolution; improving workplace practices in ICT exploitation; and health and safety and time management.
Going forward, the School’s research expertise includes the following areas: • • • • • • • • •
Accessible environments Brownfield remediation Cradle to cradle Environmental management Low carbon sustainability management Quality and knowledge management Risk management and health and safety Soil conservation Stress and psychological factors affecting built environment practitioners
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BROWNFIELD RESEARCH INSTITUTE The Brownfield Research and Innovation Centre (BRIC) has been established to coordinate research into brownfield land regeneration, helping to develop new technologies on the appropriate use of brownfield land. The former Springfield Brewery site is itself a brownfield site, and its redevelopment into the home of the new multi-million pound campus highlights how land management strategies can make use of brownfield land, helping to conserve green field land for present and future generations.
Springfield will be a new technology construction hub and bring economic prosperity. It’s got the skills base and the commercial backing to become the UK’s number one destination for construction development. Stewart Towe Chairman, Black Country Local Enterprise Partnership
BE PART OF OUR PLANS FOR PHASE 2. Find out more: wlv.ac.uk/springfield
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