Designed for the University of the Western Cape in Cape Town, the Life Sciences building is a cutting-edge institutional research laboratory. The University commissioned us to design a building that would place the institution on the world map as a centre of teaching excellence in Africa. The design intent was to create a facility that would embody social and environmental scientific research and promote inter-departmental and inter-disciplinary research.

Completed in 2010, the project brought together several science departments and research institutes formerly located in several old, separate buildings. These were incorporated into a single development including two floors of instruction, anatomy and specialised laboratories, and four floors of research and development labs, including a Bioinformatics Institute, the Dean’s office and faculty teaching facilities.

The design comprises two distinctly different buildings joined by a multi-volume glazed entry lobby. The lobby leads into a gathering space that is shaded by trees and over-sailed by a dynamic shading canopy supported on tree-like columns. The laboratory building is constructed from conventional reinforced concrete which contrasts against the curved plan and irregular column grid of the learning centre. An innovative system of shading structures was designed for the north-east and east façades.

The UWC Life Sciences Building was presented with an award at the 2011/12 Corobrik-SAIA Awards of Merit and Awards for Excellence. The judges noted that “the building successfully showcases a commitment to sustainable building practice and resource efficiency in the way that it responds to the environment and demonstrates cost-effective strategies, placing this building at the forefront of responsible architecture in the country”.