Lewis & Hickey were appointed in 2005 as Architects and Lead Consultant for the £36 million refurbishment of the University of Edinburgh's Main Library building in George Square, Edinburgh.

This A-listed building, designed by Sir Basil Spence, Glover & Ferguson has been highlighted as a good example of Modernist design. Whilst it has retained the majority of its original design features it now requires complete up-grading to meet the requirements of a modern research and learning environment.

The library refurbishment is the largest of a range of projects that Lewis & Hickey are carrying out for Edinburgh University and will be phased over a 7 year period to ensure service continuity throughout the works. Infrastructure and Enabling works were completed in 2006. Phase 1 of the refurbishment main contract commenced in May 2007. The final phase of construction is due to be completed in the summer of 2011.

The extensive works will include repairs to the fabric of the building, renovation of finishes and the complete renewal of all building services. A new Special Collections, Archive and Research Centre area is being formed on the top two floors and future phases will include the remodelling of the entrance area, formation of a 220 seat cafe with internet facilities and the insertion of a mezzanine gallery and exhibition space.

A degree of flexibility has been designed into the floor layouts and services installations to allow for possible internal reconfigurations to suit future changes in use patterns.

Launch Case Study for UoE Main Library (PDF)