The case for Centres of Excellence in sustainable building design

them with the Academy’s ongoing programme to promote radical improvements
in the design of buildings by the application of building engineering physics. The
Royal Academy of Engineering could then provide the forum for coordination of
the work between the centres, and would convene and host the overview panel.
However, a label alone will not endow the centres with the credibility they need
in order to become a trusted partner to the construction industry, the media
or policymakers. The leadership of the centres needs to be heavily influenced
by construction industry professionals, and ideally the centre directors will
have substantial experience in design practice. A major goal of the centres of
Excellence is to provide much more rapid translation of the impacts of research
into the construction industry. This will only happen if the centres are led by
people experienced in the demands and constraints of the industry itself.
Operating costs
To achieve the objectives of the Centres of Excellence it is inevitable that
additional funding will be required, above and beyond the normal research
funding and student fees. This funding will allow the staff sufficient time to
develop and deliver the new teaching modes required, to engage with industry
in scoping future research needs and to be available to advise policymakers.
The additional cost of establishing a Centre of Excellence will vary from university
to university, depending upon the research, teaching and support staff already in
place. Therefore only a general indication can be given of the expected funding
required, which becomes more complicated if the additional attraction of a
Centre of Excellence leads to an increase in student numbers and hence greater
direct income.
In order to obtain such an indicative cost, an assessment has been made on the
basis of funding for additional staff to establish such a centre. The additional
staff would comprise a professor, two senior lecturers, a teaching fellow and five
research fellows who would be needed to carry out the core research work and
contribute to the teaching. Additional allowance has been made for technical
and administrative support, marketing and public relations and bought-in
design tutoring.
This assessment indicates an overall cost per Centre of about £9 million for five
years of start-up support. It would be expected that the university would be
see some increase in teaching income over this period, and considering other
benefits to the university of hosting a Centre, and the likely range of existing
provision, it would be reasonable to aim for an average figure of £7.5 million per
Centre. This results in a total cost for four Centres over five years of £30 million.
Over the five years during which this start-up funding is necessary, a successful
Centre of Excellence will have progressively increasing student numbers and
research income, ensuring long-term viability.
References
Hauser, H., 2010 The Current and Future Role of Technology and Innovation Centres in the UK.
Department for Business Innovation & Skills.
HESA, 2011 Students by subject of study, first year indicator, mode of study and level of
study 2009/10. Higher Education Statistics Agency. www.hesa.ac.uk
48 The Royal Academy of Engineering