Construction work has started on the first phase of a major new life sciences campus in Birmingham.
The building, known as No.1 Birmingham Health Innovation Campus, is being constructed on land next to Battery Retail Park in Selly Oak by a partnership between University of Birmingham and property group Bruntwood SciTech.
It is the first of several buildings planned for the vacant land as part of a ten-year masterplan to create a brand new life sciences campus.
This first building, which secured planning consent in April, is due to complete in two years' time and will have 133,000 sq ft of specialist office and lab space for life science and digital healthcare companies.
It will also house the University of Birmingham's Precision Health Technologies Accelerator and Birmingham Precision Medicine Centre, providing access to a range of amenities including event space, a café, car parking and electric vehicle charging facilities.
When complete, the overall Birmingham Health Innovation Campus will have up to 657,000 sq ft of new commercial lab and office space and is expected to support the creation of up to 10,000 new jobs and contribute £400 million gross value added to the region's economy.
John Sisk and Son has been appointed as the main contractor for No.1 Birmingham Health Innovation Campus.
Kath Mackay, director of life sciences with Bruntwood SciTech, said: "The West Midlands is already home to more than 17,000 jobs in the life sciences sector, supporting 600 companies.
"What draws these businesses in is the ability to leverage an end-to-end supply chain on their doorstep.
"This goes right from clinical trials, with the largest healthcare market outside of London alongside a leading cluster of clinical and academic institutions, to the manufacture and logistics of treatments, equipment and technology.
"Add to this an annual cohort of 11,000 medical sciences graduates and the busiest start-up scene outside of the capital, and the potential future growth the Birmingham Health and Innovation Campus can help to unlock is significant."
Professor Tim Jones, vice-principal of the University of Birmingham, added: "One of our core missions is to deliver research that matters - achieving outcomes that can achieve lasting, transformative impact.
"By developing the health campus and establishing our Precision Health Technologies Accelerator, we will enable talented researchers and forward-thinking industry partners to be even more productive and successful, translating their ideas for new drugs, devices and diagnostics into validated innovations which can quickly be adopted in clinic.
"By creating a state-of-the-art environment for researchers and entrepreneurs to flourish, with a strong emphasis on knowledge sharing and collaboration, we will deliver life-changing benefits to patients and sustainable growth to our region and beyond."
