Cardiff University opens newly refurbished Bute Building

Cardiff University will officially open the doors today to its newly refurbished Bute Building. An opening event will mark the culmination of a £9.7m project that has completely modernised the facilities with the addition of brand-new studios, offices, workshops and a state-of-the-art Exhibition Hall. The building, originally designed by Sir Percy Thomas, has been home to the Welsh School of Architecture (WSA) for more than 100 years, and will now bring the entirety of the WSA's activities back under one roof. The project has formed part of Cardiff University's biggest campus upgrade in a generation, which has seen more than £600m invested in research and teaching facilities. The refurbishment has been designed alongside a new offering of postgraduate taught and undergraduate programmes, and to provide an enhanced studio culture within the WSA. It has included extensive renovation of the building's interiors, such as the creation of larger, lighter and more flexible studio spaces, and the repair and upgrade to the roof. The WSA's workshop facilities have also been relocated and significantly expanded with an enlarged wood and metal workshop, digital fabrication facilities to produce models using the latest laser cutting, 3D printing and CNC (Computer Numeric Control) technologies, and an enhanced space for the WSA's robotic arm.