Engineering students build a five-metre 'mini' Old Joe in five days

Civil engineering students at the University of Birmingham have built a five-metre-tall scale model of Old Joe, the campus clock tower that dominates the skyline in Edgbaston.

The Big Brum Build took place during the university's Welcome Week, with 15 students constructing the structure from scratch over five days.

Real engineering, from the ground up

The students recreated the tower using a large-scale stainless steel system finished with a brick-slip facade, thin slices of brick fixed to an underlying panel, a technique used on real building sites. The build took place in the National Buried Infrastructure Facility, a research space normally used for large-scale experiments on underground infrastructure.

The model was designed by academics from the university and engineers from AtkinsRéalis, including Birmingham graduates. Its modular design means it can be taken apart, stored and rebuilt by future teams of students.

Skills employers look for

The university says the project gives students the chance to put theory into practice on a large build, working in a multi-disciplinary team to plan, manage and deliver a project on time, using real tools and equipment.

It is one of several initiatives between the university and AtkinsRéalis designed to give students real workplace experience during their studies and improve their employment prospects.

"We see the Big Brum Build as the launch of an exciting opportunity that can grow in future years and become a distinctive part of the University's Civil Engineering student experience," said Professor Asaad Faramarzi, Head of the Department of Civil Engineering.

The real Old Joe, formally the Joseph Chamberlain Memorial Clock Tower, stands at the heart of the Edgbaston campus and is one of the tallest free-standing clock towers in the world.