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| 30 April 2012
GSK and the University collaborate to create Centre of Excellence for sustainable chemistryGlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and The University of Nottingham have formalised a collaboration to establish a new laboratory to accommodate a Centre of Excellence for sustainable chemistry and to construct an innovative carbon neutral sustainable chemistry laboratory.
 
The GlaxoSmithKline Carbon Neutral Laboratory for Sustainable Chemistry, will be based on the University’s Jubilee Campus and its construction is being supported by a £12m grant from GSK – the largest corporate gift in the University’s history and in the top tier of all corporate gifts to higher education institutions in the UK.
GSK’s donation is a key contribution to the University’s fundraising campaign, a five-year drive to raise £150m, launched in October 2011. ‘Impact: The Nottingham Campaign’ focuses around the five themes of Sustainable Futures, Health & Wellbeing, Ingenuity, Nurturing Talent and the Nottingham Experience. The announcement, which was made at a special presentation attended by alumni, donors to the University, staff and the local business community, takes the University’s total raised to date to almost half way towards its Campaign goal of £150m by 2016.
The laboratory will accommodate a Centre of Excellence for sustainable chemistry and will focus on research that is of particular relevance to the pharmaceutical industry, and which complements established expertise at The University of Nottingham. It will also deliver advanced undergraduate teaching and outreach to the wider scientific community to embed sustainable chemistry principles in the next generation of scientists.
The Centre of Excellence will serve as a global hub to catalyse new collaborations with other institutions and industry partners and will bring together leading UK academics, postgraduate and postdoctoral researchers and GSK chemists, developing expertise in sustainable chemical synthesis.
Nottingham alumnus Sir Andrew Witty (Economics/Agricultural Economics 1985, Hon LLD 2010), CEO of GSK said: “The carbon neutral laboratory will help affirm the UK as a global hub for the future of the life-sciences industry. Scientific space is very energy hungry and R&D facilities are among GSK’s highest energy users. Our vision is that the science researched within the laboratory will be as iconic as the building itself. This is an opportunity to invest further in science in the UK, re-think how we approach the drug discovery process and play a role in contributing to environmental stewardship.”
Professor David Greenaway, Vice-Chancellor of The University of Nottingham, said: “This development will be transformational in several dimensions: the built form will break new ground in sustainable construction; the Centre of Excellence will shape the future of drug discovery; and innovation in training and development will accelerate the translation of discovery to application. This is all tremendously exciting and will underpin a unique partnership between GSK and the University of Nottingham.”
Sir Andrew signed a gift agreement on his visit to the University in April before going on to meet students on the GSK Medicinal Chemistry modules. He also formally opened the University’s new Engineering and Science Learning Centre on campus before giving a public lecture on The Future of Drug Discovery – new partnerships, collaborations and approaches.
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