University College Birmingham, James Cond

Project Summary

MGAC has been delivering project management and cost management services to University College Birmingham (UCB) for numerous years, aiding in the development of their central city campus. Our involvement extends to significant projects like Moss House and the Cambrian Student Residences. Due to our consistent track record of exceptional service, UCB recently sought our expertise for transforming a segment of Camden House, an open-plan commercial office block, into a Sixth Form Centre.

Our efforts also included the transformation of the historic James Cond print works, located near the Jewellery Quarter Conservation Area, into an innovative engineering and sustainable construction centre. This project, along with the developments at Moss and McIntyre House, is integral to the heart of the city center campus estate.

The James Cond centre offers state-of-the-art courses and facilities specifically designed to train and up-skill learners with skills that support employers and their supply chains. The refurbishment of the historic art deco building in the Jewellery Quarter’s Conservation Area honours the area’s heritage while providing the city with future skills, employment, and training opportunities.

The design utilises the existing structure to provide a large open central space suitable for construction training and flexible, practical teaching spaces suitable for teaching construction technology, including mechanical, electrical, and plumbing engineering, carpentry and joinery, and site construction (i.e., plastering, bricklaying, painting, and decorating).