National Graphene Institute

The RIBA award-winning National Graphene Institute is a world-leading research and incubator centre dedicated to the development of graphene. Located in Manchester, it is an essential component in the UK's bid to remain at the forefront of the commercialisation of this pioneering and revolutionary material.

Jestico + Whiles was appointed a lead architect for the new National Graphene Institute at the University of Manchester in 2012, working closely with Sir Kostya Novoselov – who, along with Sir Andre Geim, first isolated graphene at The University of Manchester in 2004. The two were jointly awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2010.

Located in the University Campus' Science Quarter, the institute is housed in a compact 7,600m² five-storey building, with the main cleanroom located in the basement to achieve best vibration performance. The ceiling of the cleanroom is cleverly angled around its perimeter so that the scientists are visible to the public above from the pavement outside.

The building also includes a second cleanroom in addition to the laser, optical, metrology and chemical laboratories, offices and ancillary accommodation such as a seminar room that opens out on to a roof terrace with a bio-diverse roof garden.

Offices and labs are intermixed on all floors to offer individual research teams the facilities needed to operate coherently in one area. These teams are expected to include industry partners that will collaborate on research with the University.

The building is enclosed by an economic inner skin comprising a composite cladding panel system that provides weather tightness and thermal insulation and accommodates flush windows and other openings as required.

Fixed to the outside of this inner skin is a separate, stainless steel 'veil' which wraps around the volumes of the disparate elements of the building continuously to provide a unifying texture and coherent, fluid shape.

The 'veil' is made of hundreds of black mirror stainless steel panels, each one containing thousands of perforations that make up the equations used in graphene research.

Jestico + Whiles
Lead architect: Julian Dickens
Team: Jennifer de Vere-Hopkins and Heinz Richardson