Gleeds wins Prague laser research facility contract

Consultant Gleeds has won a contract to provide project and cost management, health and safety co-ordination, technical supervision and planning services for the construction of a new facility in Dolni Brezany, near Prague.

The Extreme Light Infrastructure project (ELI) forms part of the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructure’s plans to develop Europe’s next generation of large research centres which will comprise suites of integrated laser facilities located in the Czech Republic, Hungary and Romania. 

The project involves the construction of a 32,000m2 state of art ELI Beamlines Centre which will house the complex series of laser, optical, vacuum and electronic sub systems in a three storey hall.

This facility will be supported by a network of laboratories, offices and conference halls, all carefully designed to provide clean room, temperature controlled environments and ensure the mechanical stability of the structure.

A fourth site, dedicated to dealing with the specialist ultra-high peak power component of the programme, will be confirmed in 2012.

The Prague scheme will act as a pilot for the framework and will focus on providing an entirely new generation of secondary resources produced by ultra-intensive lasers.

Vladimir Bily, director of Gleeds Czech Republic, said: “We are delighted that our involvement in this remarkable research project has been extended beyond the project management support services we have been providing to the Institute of Physics since 2009; it is recognition of the breadth of expertise that the Gleeds team can offer throughout the project development cycle in this niche market.”