Supporting Manchester’s new innovation district
Sister - Manchester’s new £1.7bn Innovation District taking shape on the former UMIST campus - has reached another major milestone with the approval of plans for Plot C of the masterplan.
The plans will see 585,000 sq ft of cutting-edge workspace, leisure, and community facilities over two buildings up to 20-storeys, which will form the largest office development in the city once completed.
We’re incredibly proud to be providing civil and structural engineering, transport & movement and geoconsultancy services to help bring this transformational scheme forward.
Positioned between London Road and Altrincham Street in the heart of the city centre, Plot C will also unlock new retail and leisure opportunities, breathing life back into Altrincham Street’s iconic railway viaduct arches and creating a new public square.
We’re working alongside a great team of collaborators, including Deloitte, Allies and Morrison, SLA and Arcadis on the scheme, delivered by a joint venture between Bruntwood SciTech and The University of Manchester.
How we’re involved:
Structural and civil engineering, transport and movement
Our structural team is playing a major role in Plot C’s delivery. This includes full structural design for the two new buildings, a lean, low-carbon structural approach that reduces embodied carbon, and the use of post-tensioned concrete slabs.
A significant part of our work is the engineering of a new service tunnel that passes beneath both buildings, ensuring the scheme integrates seamlessly with surrounding transport infrastructure without compromising ground floor active use. We’re also managing the sensitive integration of the Grade II-listed Holloway Wall as a feature within the development.
Our civil engineering team is developing drainage solutions for the site, addressing localised surface-water flooding by designing a series of Sustainable Urban Drainage systems (SuDS) into the landscape. These will include rain gardens and wider upgrades to the drainage network to manage excess surface water and improve long-term resilience.
Geoconsultancy
Our geotechnical team is delivering specialist consultancy, including ground investigations, soil health assessments and the strategy for sustainable management of movements across the site.
James Bruce, director of our north studio, said:
“Our approach to this incredibly complex site was to develop structural solutions that do several jobs at once – reduce embodied carbon, integrate essential infrastructure like the new service tunnel, and carefully incorporate the listed Holloway Wall. This is a landmark scheme and significant moment for Manchester, which we’re very excited to be a part of and the wider ambition for Sister.”
Julian Broster, managing director, said:
“This ambitious project is a great example of how Civic’s system thinking approach across the design disciplines can positively impact the project. The plans for Sister will create a globally-recognised innovation hub here in Manchester, and we’re proud to be working for the Sister team, with fantastic collaborators to enhance connectivity, revitalise heritage assets, and create vibrant new spaces for people to work, collaborate and spend time in.”
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