World leading science facility in St Andrews relaunches after devastating fire

The 2019 blaze destroyed labs and research facilities, and led to a £21 million investment project to refurbish and modernise the building.

In the months which followed, a dedicated project team undertook the careful removal of 500 crates of personal possessions; 12,000 separate chemical compounds, biohazards and radioactive sources; and 2500 items of scientific equipment with a total value of approximately £7million.

Work started just before the pandemic and was completed in the summer of 2022. The new design of the BMS building centres on efficient spaces that facilitate collaborative working within modern research and teaching laboratories.

In the interim, 40 percent of BMS functions moved into existing university spaces, while 60 percent required purpose-built emergency laboratories and ancillary spaces. Within eight months of the fire, installation of the Willie Russell Laboratories, a pop-up laboratory facility built to help staff and students affected by the fire, was completed. The temporary facility offering state-of-the-art teaching and research facilities was commissioned by the University to allow valuable research to re-start, although this momentum was challenged by the pandemic.

Reflecting on the fire and the efforts of staff, students, and the St Andrews community to restore the facilities, Professor Dame Sally Mapstone, principal and vice-chancellor of the University, said: “The re-opening of our world-class BMS building is an occasion for celebration and for looking forward to the future. However, I do wish to acknowledge the difficulties that had to be overcome for us to arrive at today’s event, because it is only against this background that we can truly appreciate the hard work and dedication that so many members of our community have demonstrated over the past four years.”

Sir Mike Ferguson, Regius Professor of Life Sciences at the University of Dundee. added: “The biomedical sciences building is like a phoenix rising from the ashes. The new building is even better than the old one and I am delighted to see the amazing interdisciplinary work being carried out here by the world-leading scientists and students who call St Andrews home.”

Professor Mapstone added: “It is a source of great happiness and relief to have the BMS buliding returned to us, particularly in its new and improved condition, as the reconfiguration of the labs, offices, and write-up areas has yielded approximately ten percent extra usable space. Such a huge project and its efficient delivery would not have been possible without the support of staff and students from across our community to whom we are extremely grateful and thankful for their unwavering dedication to ensuring world-leading research continued, developed, and thrived.”