A £35 million state-of-the-art teaching and research facility, which engages directly with industry and provides students with real-world experience on live, engineering-related projects officially launched at the University of Central Lancashire’s Preston campus.
The new Engineering Innovation Centre (EIC) will act as one of the driving forces behind the Lancashire Industrial Strategy as well as national industrial strategy, addressing the need for innovation and producing the next generation of world-class engineers.
Haseef Ehsan, a third-year Civil Engineering student, who chose UCLan due to the investment in enhanced facilities combined with the level of practical support said, “I chose to study at UCLan as it offered small class sizes. The lecturers get to know you as an individual rather than just a number, offering advice and assistance with any ongoing work. What attracted me to the course was that it has a good balance of practical and theory work with the addition of field trips.”
UCLan believes in giving students genuine hands-on experience using the latest equipment combined with increased exposure to industry contacts, including opportunities for industry placements like those undertaken by Haseef.
He added, “The projects you get involved in are useful and certainly helped lay the foundations for my placement as an assistant site engineer with Eric Wright Civil Engineering. On my placement I have also been able to apply the knowledge I learned working on the Pooley Bridge reconstruction project in North Lakes. The project involves the construction of a £5 million single span composite stainless vehicular/pedestrian bridge which will replace the original bridge that collapsed during Storm Desmond in 2015. My role involves quality inspection and testing plans, cost management, surveying and setting out. I have also implemented health and safety talks around toolboxes, emergency plans, site inductions and positive interventions.”
