NRI industrialist Lord Swraj Paul announced the construction of a super campus at the University of Wolverhampton, a United Kingdom university he heads as Chancellor.
The university said it is investing around 100 million pounds in transforming a derelict 12-acre site in Wolverhampton in the West Midlands region of England into Europe’s largest specialist construction and built environment campus.
“I am very proud of the impressive development at the university, which will have a long-lasting impact on society. It encapsulates our ambition of keeping students at the heart of our vision,” Lord Paul said at an event in the House of Lords to mark the launch of the super campus.
The site for the campus used to be the Springfield Brewery and the project has brought together businesses and the education sector with the aim of creating jobs and providing technical and professional experts. The transformed site is currently the home of the newly- opened West Midlands Construction University Technical College, with plans in place to start work on the University’s School of Architecture and Built Environment.
Professor Geoff Layer, Vice-Chancellor at the University of Wolverhampton, said: “The House of Lords celebration event recognises the efforts and commitment of partners who have invested time and money in the first phase of this ambitious project whilst at the same time highlighting that there are opportunities for developers, investors and partners to work with us on phase two of the project.”
The Springfield site was originally purchased in 1873 by William Butler to house his growing brewing business, with the Springfield Brewery opening in 1874 under the William Butler and Company name.
The brewery closed in 1991 and a fire destroyed much of the historic structure in 2004. The University purchased the site in 2014.