At the University of South Wales (USW), an ambitious and exciting structure has emerged in the heart of its Treforest campus. It’s been a year since the groundbreaking ceremony of the £60m Calon building project, and after almost 950 tonnes of reinforced steel, along with the input from 140 people working on the project, the building has reached its full height of 23 metres.
“It will look really striking when it’s all finished,” Miranda Thomas, head of strategic projects and the lead on the project, says. “It’s going to bring a new energy to the campus.”
Calon, which means “heart” in Welsh, will be the new home of the Faculty of Computing, Engineering and Science (FCES) at the university, training the next generation of engineers, built environment professionals, and computer and data scientists. The 11,500 sq metre space will include more than 40 state-of-the-art teaching, learning and research spaces, robotics, electronics and hydraulics labs, VR facilities, and a flight simulator. Thomas says the team is on track to make the planned opening date of autumn 2026.
It will provide FCES academics an opportunity to take new approaches to support student learning, combined with new collaborative teaching rooms, says Shane Galvin, head of pedagogical transformation for FCES.
“In Calon, the focus will be on practical, interdisciplinary working where students can converge to tackle real-world challenges, developing employability skills and driving innovative breakthroughs utilising next generation research spaces,” he says. “Each subject discipline has its own neighbourhood, which includes learning commons, student project rooms and staff workspaces, fostering a sense of community, with the design ensuring every activity is visible and accessible to all.”
He adds: “This is a huge investment for the university and it’s going to transform how we teach. We’ve moved away from talking at students, towards a more collaborative learning experience.”
To support this cultural change, the university is pioneering changes in its curriculum that give students more opportunities to develop their real-world skills, he says. “Staff can design new coursework, new ways of assessing and new ways of teaching because the building is not restricting them in ways they were before.”
Central to this is an innovation hub, complete with equipment such as 3D printers. “This is a building of doing and the hub is somewhere for students to do stuff, whether it’s part of their curriculum or not,” says Galvin.
As with any substantial building project, juggling everyone’s priorities can be a challenge, says Thomas. As well as faculty requirements, Calon also needed to incorporate cutting-edge green technology to align with USW’s target of achieving net zero by 2040. Low-carbon concrete and recycled materials have been used throughout construction, and the building will be powered by air source heat pumps and solar panels on the roof. It will also include smart energy systems for light and heating, and incorporate a biodiverse living wall.
“The building has been designed to ensure this can offer modern cutting-edge facilities on the Treforest campus,” Thomas says. “And we wanted to make sure the building was future-proofed so it can grow with us and evolve.”
USW was also keen to include the input of students, wherever possible. So far, interior design students have competed for the chance to design a key exhibition area of the Calon building, and illustration students are developing the graphics to signpost the various neighbourhoods. There have also been multiple apprentice and learning opportunities available for the duration of the build.
Aaron Ali is a second-year quantity surveying and commercial management student at USW. He’s been able to see the building evolve and meet the quantity surveyors working on the Calon project on site.
“It’s really exciting to see. [The lead contractor] BAM and the university have agreed that students are able to head out on to the site as part of their modules,” he says. “We’re using it as a real-life example.”
Ali is also an ambassador for USW and says prospective students and their parents are surprised and delighted at the plans for the new building. “Calon really highlights how key the computer and engineering departments are to the university.”
Seven student alumni were part of the construction work too. Cody Murray recently graduated from USW with a construction project management degree and is now using that knowledge working as a site manager with BAM Construction. His father, Chris, and older brother, Callum – both of whom also went to USW – are on the project team too. “I’m really enjoying it day to day,” says Cody. “I’ve been very involved in constructing the building’s frame, in terms of quality checks and coordinating subcontractors. It’s really good seeing everything come together.
“It’s an unbelievable building. I’m grateful and happy to be involved in it.”
With less than a year left until Calon welcomes its first students inside, thoughts are also turning to how the university can widen its impact on Stem excellence throughout the region more broadly, says Thomas. The building will have an outreach room at its centre, with plans to coordinate visits with local schools and the wider community.
“When we bring these young pupils in through the different spaces, we want them to be able to see everything in action, to really showcase active computing and engineering practice,” he says. “We want to inspire younger people to think these are careers they might want to go into.”
It’s also hoped the facilities will encourage strong partnerships with industry and facilitate the advancement of cutting edge research and knowledge sharing for the future, adds Galvin.
“We’re giving people the right environment in which to conduct research, the right facilities, the right equipment. It’s really going to help people live and breathe their disciplines – the opportunities it’s going to give our students and staff are fantastic.”
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