The Whittle Laboratory

Housing the National Centre for Propulsion and Power, the state-of-the-art facility will provide 4,000m² of workshop, laboratory, research and office space, including a 5MW wind tunnel and a flexible high-pressure experimentation chamber. The building will continue the University of Cambridge Engineering Department's move to form a new West Cambridge site.

As part of our role, we are ensuring the MEP and environmental design follows the principles defined within the West Cambridge masterplan. The new Whittle Laboratory building will adopt a cost-effective approach to achieving a low-energy, comfortable, and upgradeable building. We have undertaken comprehensive modelling and studies to ensure that the office ventilation strategy and the provision of heating and cooling are in line with these aims, while also optimising space provision, the façade, and the atrium design.

We have been addressing the implications of the considerable additional electrical capacity that will be required and how best to deal with the large heat load produced during experimentation. Options include making productive use of the waste heat via a variety of mechanical and natural ventilation approaches.

The associated acoustic impact on both the external environment, and on different types of internal working environments, is also a significant consideration for the building's design.