Historic Laboratory Building set for new lease of life as part of £1bn regeneration drive
MAJOR progress has been made in the restoration of one of Swansea’s most important industrial heritage buildings.
The Grade II-listed Laboratory Building at the historic Hafod Morfa Copperworks site is being painstakingly reconstructed by John Weaver Contractors in a project led by Swansea Council.
Once complete, the striking two- and three-storey structure could become a restaurant capable of seating more than 100 diners. The building, which stands next to Landore’s Penderyn Whisky base, will also be suitable for a range of alternative leisure or commercial uses.
The scheme forms part of the council’s ongoing regeneration of the Lower Swansea Valley and is being supported by funding from the UK Government’s Local Regeneration Fund.
Council leader Rob Stewart said: “We’re saving the Laboratory Building and bringing it back into use.”
Joint deputy leader David Hopkins added: “The copperworks site is a key part of Swansea’s heritage and we see it becoming a major leisure destination.”
Cabinet member Elliott King said the wider regeneration was gathering pace.
“Penderyn are there, we’ve saved two historic engine houses and we’ve installed a boating pontoon on the river. Further progress on our Lower Swansea Valley Project will be made this year and next,” he said.
Careful restoration work
Initial works on the Laboratory Building — believed to date from the second half of the 1800s — saw hundreds of red bricks and masonry pieces carefully removed from an unsafe 12-metre-high chimney stack. The materials are being cleaned and stored for reuse as part of the restoration.
Swansea-based contractors have stabilised the structure, carried out sensitive stonework repairs and rebuilt a large chimney breast. Preparations are well underway to make the building watertight, including the installation of a new Welsh slate roof.
Historic archways are being strengthened and refitted with new and reclaimed stone, decorative cornices are being repaired by specialist stonemasons, and steelwork is being installed to reinforce the structure. Original stone, brick and tiles are being reused wherever possible.
New external doors and windows will be fitted, along with the creation of a terrace and level access to ensure the building is fully accessible.
John Weaver Contractors began work on site around 16 months ago, with completion expected later in 2026. The building will then be ready for an internal fit-out by a tenant, with the council set to begin its search for an end user shortly.
At the heart of copper history
In its industrial heyday, copper ore from across the globe was smelted in Swansea, placing the city at the centre of a vast international trading network.
The Laboratory Building is believed to have been used to test the quality of copper ore arriving at the works — which helped put Swansea firmly on the world’s industrial map.
Architecturally, it is regarded as the most ornate surviving structure on the site, boasting classical features, decorative windows and an impressive stone doorcase. However, in recent decades it became derelict and unsafe, losing much of its roof.
The building stands close to the historic Morfa Gates, once a principal entrance to the copperworks complex.
Partners involved in the project include GWP Architecture and Coreus Group.
The scheme forms part of Swansea Council’s wider £1bn regeneration programme, which also includes the revival of the Palace Theatre and the Albert Hall, alongside a range of Lower Swansea Valley improvements such as new River Tawe pontoons, the reinstallation of Morfa’s historic bascule bridge, restoration of the Vivian and Musgrave Engine Houses and the transformation of the V&S No.1 Locomotive Shed.
