AstraZeneca has unveiled the designs for its new global R&D centre and corporate headquarters in Cambridge, UK.
The new £330m facility has been designed by architects Herzog & de Meuron and will be located on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus (CBC).
AstraZeneca says the high technology labs on the site will be separated from other work spaces by glass walls to promote ‘visible science’ and feature a number of open spaces and thoroughfares to encourage collaboration 'not only within AstraZeneca, but also with the wider scientific community within the CBC and beyond'.
The unique characteristics of Cambridge’s historic centre have influenced the shape of the buildings, which will be low rise and include a central courtyard reflecting the colleges of Cambridge University.
AstraZeneca is seeking Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Methodology (BREAAM) Excellent status for the site, which will feature labs that represent best practice in low energy design and the largest ground source heat pump in Europe.
Mene Pangalos, Executive Vice President, Innovative Medicines & Early Development at AstraZeneca, said: 'Our aim is to create an open, welcoming and vibrant centre that will inspire our teams and partners to push the boundaries of scientific innovation.'
Our aim is to create an open, welcoming and vibrant centre that will inspire our teams and partners
The new site will bring together AstraZeneca’s small molecule and biologics research and development activity, opening up opportunities to exploit the promise of biologics and small molecule combinations.
The CBC will be the new UK home for biologics research and protein engineering carried out by MedImmune, AstraZeneca’s biologics arm. MedImmune already employs around 500 people at Granta Park, to the south east of the city.
'With our combined AstraZeneca and MedImmune portfolios we are already uniquely positioned to explore the promise of combination therapies in transforming the way patients are treated,' said Bahija Jallal, Executive Vice President, MedImmune. 'Our new Global Research Centre in Cambridge will see AstraZeneca and MedImmune scientists working side by side to advance science in our core therapeutic areas.'
In advance of the new site coming online in late 2016, around 70 AstraZeneca staff have already relocated to interim facilities in Cambridge, at the Melbourn Science Park, Cambridge Science Park and Granta Park.
By the end of this year, 300–400 AstraZeneca staff will have relocated to the city.
The company expects to start the build of the new site early next year.
