Napier University pushes button on £3m R&D facility in Edinburgh
● New centre at 7Hills will focus on wood science and construction
Edinburgh Napier University has selected a site on the western edge of the capital for a new £3 million research and development centre.
The university is taking almost 18,000 square feet at the 7Hills business park, a joint venture between Peveril Securities and Leeds-based property development and asset management company Citivale.
The venture bought the site, which is located on Bankhead Crossway South, close to the city by-pass, earlier this year. It already comprises some 40,000 sq ft of modern industrial and mixed-use space, but its owners plan to build a further 82,000 sq ft of multi-let industrial units on the park.
The university is paying £8 per sq ft for its research centre on a ten-year lease. It is due to open in April and will focus on construction innovation, wood science and off-site construction. The investment builds on the recent Queen’s Anniversary Prize for the university’s applied research into sustainable construction and timber technologies.
Professor Andrea Nolan, vice-chancellor of Edinburgh Napier, said: “This new research facility demonstrates our commitment to the forestry and construction sectors and will build on our excellent 0 The 7Hills Business Park in the west of Edinburgh is owned by a joint venture between Citivale, the Leeds-based property development and asset management company, and developer Peveril Securities industry linkages and international research partnerships.”
James Appleton-metcalfe, managing director of Citivale, said: “Named after the seven hills that surround Edinburgh, 7Hills is a superbly well-located business park with huge potential.
“The decision by Edinburgh Napier to locate its pioneering £3m low carbon construction R&D facility here is a resounding endorsement of 7Hills and confirms the demand in the Edinburgh city region for top quality business space.”
Citivale already has a presence in Scotland following its acquisition of the Dixon Blazes Industrial Estate from CBRE Global Investors.
Chris Kirkland of Peveril Securities added: “This is our third investment in Edinburgh. We have completed St Andrew Square in a joint venture with Standard Life and we have planning approval for a hotel and student accommodation development at King’s Stables Road.”