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03 December 2009
New building for University English Language Teaching Centre
Source: Sheffield Star, 30 November 2009
Opal 3, a new accommodation and office block which will include the University of Sheffield English Language Teaching Centre, has been completed.
A new £46 million complex that will be home to almost 1,000 students has opened on the site of a historic steel works and foundry close to Sheffield city centre.
Opal 3 Sheffield has been built to preserve parts of the Titanic Works on Hoyle Street, Shalesmoor, which is the home of an early 19th century Grade II-listed drop forge.
The complex will be used by both universities and is the third to be completed by Ocon Construction, which has now built 2,500 new student rooms in the city.
Apart from the student accommodation, the site also contains a management suite, retail space and offices which will be occupied by Sheffield University's English Language Teaching Centre.
The site's industrial past is symbolised by a 4.5 metre high cast iron sculpture by artist Jennie Gill, which was inspired by original engineers' drawings from the Titanic Works.
The restoration element of the project saw the contractor part-demolish the foundry and rebuild around 40 per cent of the structure using original bricks, timbers and slates reclaimed from the old structure.
The foundry, though partly restored, had previously been unused for the last 20 years.
The works will now be used as a recreation area for students, and original furnace holes can still be seen beneath the new management suite.
Eco-friendly features in the student areas include bio-mass boilers, a sedum roof and rainwater collection.
Project manager Bert Mensinga said: "This development is a combination of new build student accommodation, office and teaching space and retail space, alongside restoration of the 19th century foundry, crucible furnaces and works courtyard.
"We have rebuilt the Grade II listed foundry building using original materials wherever possible but much of the restoration work is below ground where it will not usually be visible.
"Meanwhile, the new sculpture provides a visible reminder of the site's role in building Sheffield's dominance of the European steel industry in the 19th century, giving it a permanent link with the past."
An archaeological survey of the site was completed before the start of construction work to ensure the restoration mirrored any features of architectural importance and that any artefacts were identified and preserved within the building.
Ocon also worked closely with English Heritage on the restoration.
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