The latest stage of construction at the Aberystwyth Innovation and Enterprise Campus has been marked with a special ceremony.

Founders, university staff, community stakeholders and industry representatives gathered for a steel-signing ceremony at Aberystwyth University’s Gogerddan campus.

The event marked the completion of the steel frame for the new campus’s Seed Biobank.

Guests were invited to sign a steel beam, which was then lifted into place by a crane to become a permanent part of the structure of the building.

Prof Elizabeth Treasure, vice-chancellor of Aberystwyth University, said: “Even before completion, the campus is very much open for business, acting as a magnet for business and university collaboration and co-location.

"The steel-signing ceremony marks an exciting milestone in the timeline of our campus build, and provides an opportunity for everyone to see the fantastic progress that has already been made on site.

"The development will provide a superb home for new businesses and partnerships, building on some well-established industrial collaborations and attracting new ones to Wales.”

There has been rapid progress over the last few months, with the preparation of the site’s foundations for the Seed Biobank and Biorefining Centre now complete.

The principal contractor, Willmott Dixon, has also been busy diverting services and erecting the steel structure of the initial campus buildings.

The £40.5m development will foster collaboration between business and academia, providing world-leading facilities and expertise for the food and drink, biotechnology and agri-tech sectors, with funding from the European Regional Development Fund through the Welsh Government, the BBSRC – part of UK Research and Innovation - and Aberystwyth University.

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