HRH The Princess Royal opened an important new building in Robert Gordon University (RGU) containing state of the art teaching and research facilities when she visited the university last week (Thursday, July 2).
The Princess Royal toured the new £120 million Garthdee campus development and named it the Sir Ian Wood Building at a ceremony which was attended by a large number of distinguished guests.
The Sir Ian Wood Building provides an outstanding educational environment for students with first class formal and informal learning spaces, and houses the university’s School of Engineering, School of Computing Science and Digital Media, School of Pharmacy and Life Sciences, as well as its new library and research institutes.
The new facility complements the university's existing buildings at the east end of the campus in its innovative design and style, and retains the campus’s park-like ambience which provides a recreational setting for the benefit of staff, students and the local community.
Professor Ferdinand von Prondzynski, Principal and Vice Chancellor of the university, said: “We are extremely grateful for the important role which Sir Ian Wood has played in the development of the university over many years, for his leadership in the oil and gas industry, and for his role in building a sustainable future for the North-East of Scotland.
“Naming the building in his honour is a lasting legacy of the major contribution which Sir Ian has made to the university in terms of his time, advice and investment, and of his leadership in the region.”
The university has invested millions of pounds in its Garthdee campus masterplan development and now boasts some of the best teaching and research facilities for professionals in pharmacy, engineering, computing, business and health.
Professor von Prondzynski continued: “The opening of the new building by HRH The Princess Royal is a major boost to RGU, reinforcing its status as a rapidly developing university with an international reach, now operating from an ultra-modern campus.”
Sir Ian Wood is the current Chancellor of RGU and was appointed to the position in 2004.