Zoonotic diseases present a growing threat globally, with close to two-thirds of infectious diseases in humans being transmitted by animals. The National Biosecurity Centre forms a vital part of the UK’s defence against this. 

Our team has been appointed as the technical partner on this major project. We’ll be leveraging our multi-disciplinary expertise to transform the Animal and Plant Health Agency’s (APHA) laboratories at Weybridge into a state-of-the-art research and biocontainment facility, safeguarding future generations against plant and animal diseases.
Defra’s National Biosecurity Centre programme will ensure the UK continues to have the capability required to maintain biosecurity and to prevent, detect and respond to the threats posed by animal diseases. WSP as our Technical Partner have given us invaluable support, to develop a design in partnership with end users and help ensure we’re meeting the complex science requirements alongside safety and quality standards for the site.

Client

  • Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra)

Project Status

  • Expected completion: 2036

Altering design to meet modern needs

Since its beginnings in 1917, the Weybridge-based research facility has grown in response to short-term needs, resulting in an array of buildings and infrastructure. The architectural vision aims to revitalise the site by consolidating its numerous smaller structures into two large science hubs, supporting the site’s long-term viability. 

The site transformation has been underpinned by a clear vision and robust programme-level business case, which leveraged economic and strategic insights from our experts. Alongside this, our engineers conducted various assessments and surveys to identify and mitigate current and future risks, covering ecology, arboriculture and ground penetrating radar (GPR), among other things. These data insights were incorporated into the site’s masterplan, informing a future-proofed facility design.

Uncovering opportunities with digital solutions

With many components feeding into the project design, our team saw an opportunity to improve derisking and simplify complex information with first-of-a-kind, immersive visualisations. These digital solutions played an integral role in streamlining the construction programme as well as securing approval of the planning application and broader stakeholder support.

Our Visualisation Lead, Benjamin O’Connor says: “Given how big and complex this project is, we used 3D visualisations and VR models to create immersive walkthroughs of both the current and future site. This helped various stakeholders to clearly understand its transformation into a world-class biosecurity facility. We also used interactive 4D models to spot potential risks early on, making sure they were addressed in the design ahead of construction to avoid any costly issues.”

Additionally, digital systems have been proposed to capture and monitor live data on building usage, optimising building operations, energy consumption and occupant comfort. This includes a facility-wide analytics platform that can manage demand-based controls and feedback sensors. We’re also looking at integrating other systems, such as computer-aided facilities management, vertical transport and lighting system management to further enhance building efficiencies.

Building biosecurity resilience

Animal disease outbreaks pose a significant threat to the UK. To ensure APHA is well-placed to continue its vital work protecting the UK against rising threats from animal diseases, it needs to upgrade its existing facilities. This includes the construction of two modern high containment laboratories, along with improved infrastructure and a new energy centre to replace out-of-date facilities. 

The new buildings will feature advanced biocontainment solutions, smart systems, and building alarms and monitoring systems. These enhancements will ensure the facility is equipped with the necessary measures to enable APHA to safely and securely respond to a full spectrum of zoonotic outbreaks.

Carefully mapping out construction

As the UK’s main research and laboratory testing hub for animal diseases, it’s crucial that construction is carried out without impacting the facility’s operations. Using insights from our 4D model, our experts uncovered that a phased construction strategy would be the most optimal approach, allowing the construction programme to be divided into manageable sequences and transitions. This will incorporate a streamlined demolition plan and the use of temporary facilities to ensure the research facility remains operational throughout construction.

Dale Sinclair, our Head of Digital Innovation explained: “We’re looking to implement modern methods of construction across various components of the project, from low containment areas to facades, to reduce on-site waste and streamline the construction programme.”

Designing with the planet in mind

Research facilities are key to accelerating medical and technical innovations but often have a significant carbon footprint. The National Biosecurity Centre aims to change this by harnessing a holistic, future-focused sustainability strategy. 

Built around current environmental best practices and guidance for the built environment, the strategy creates a careful balance between sustainable outcomes and resilient operational functionality, safety and performance. The site will be transformed to be almost entirely electric, using a mix of heat recovery systems, large-scale baseload and local air-source heat pumps, along with solar photovoltaic (PV) solutions to meet most of the facility’s energy needs.  

The National Biosecurity Centre marks a new era for the Animal and Plant Health Agency’s laboratories at Weybridge. With future resilience and reliability at its core, the design uses cutting-edge digital and technical solutions to bring clarity to this 100-year-old site, paving the way for pioneering advancements in biosecurity.

Other challenges that we have overcome