ÎÞÂ붯»­

As part of ongoing campus developments at Harper Adams, January 2015 saw the opening of the Jean Jackson Entomology Building, which was developed to support the University's expanding portfolio of entomology teaching and research.

The entomology laboratories were formed by converting an existing sustainable building, a project kick-started by a generous donation of £200,000 from the Jean Jackson Charitable Trust.

The building provides Controlled Temperature and Lighting rooms (CTL) in addition to general laboratory facilities. CTL rooms allow students and staff to replicate environments that support the growth of beneficial insects, pests and predators throughout the year.

The building uses a blend of traditional and contemporary timber products to construct a simple functional building. All the timber used complies with Forest Stewardship Council requirements for sustainable sourcing and the green (unseasoned) larch and douglas fir used to clad the building all comes from the nearby Uppington Estate woodlands on the side of The Wrekin, one of Shropshire's key landmarks.

Lime-rendered straw bale construction has been used to provide excellent insulation for the tutorial room and the building is aligned to ensure optimum solar gain. The roof structure has been designed and built to carry a green, living layer of plants to provide insulation and biodiversity value as part of a joint initiative with the Harper Adams Crops Department who are researching the technical properties of different green roof substrates.