The University of Oxford’s Life and Mind Building (LaMB) has been selected as one of two finalists in the 2026 SEFA Lab of the Year® competition, alongside the Roche Diagnostics Innovation Center in Penzberg, Germany.
The SEFA Lab of the Year® is a global competition recognising innovation in laboratory design and excellence in execution, with projects assessed across areas including architectural and laboratory design, sustainability and human health, collaboration, science and safety, and the overall human experience.
This year attracted a strong field of projects from universities, research institutions and scientific organisations. SEFA highlighted the difficult task faced by the judging panel in selecting just two projects to progress to the final.
Designed by NBBJ and delivered by main contractor Wates, the Life and Mind Building brings together the University of Oxford’s departments of Biology and Experimental Psychology within a major new research and teaching facility. The project has been designed to support collaboration between the two departments while providing highly specialised laboratory, research and teaching environments.
SB Laboratories manufactured and supplied the laboratory furniture for the Life and Mind Building, including Exemplaire C-frame laboratory benching, mobile cupboards, heavy-duty mobile benches and safety stations. The furniture was manufactured at SB Labs’ UK facility in Manchester as part of the wider delivery of the building’s laboratory environments.
The architecture and laboratory design teams behind the two finalist projects will be invited to present at the SEFA Annual Conference on 12 November, ahead of the announcement of the 2026 SEFA Lab of the Year®.
Reaching the final two adds to the recognition already received by the Life and Mind Building and reflects the work of the extensive team involved in its design and delivery.
Read the full Life and Mind Building case study to find out more about the project and SB Laboratories’ laboratory furniture package.
