The library will be four storeys tall, like most buildings on the university鈥檚 campus, and will provide more than a thousand study spaces.
It was nearly 18 months ago, back in July 2014, that Osborne was awarded the construction contract but only this week finally broke ground.
Creagh Concrete has a 拢5m subcontract to construct an architecturally exposed concrete frame with brick-faced precast panel fa莽ade.
Osborne is also building a new 拢14m student accommodation block at the university鈥檚 Digby Stuart College, due to be completed later this year.
Osborne senior project manager Chris Hickman said: 鈥淏reaking ground is always an exciting moment for us. After many months in the design and planning stages, it鈥檚 fantastic to be making those first physical steps towards delivering, what will become, a library that will benefit so many in the years to come.鈥�
The university鈥檚 estates director, Ghazwa Alwani-Starr, said: 鈥淲e鈥檙e pleased to see work getting under way on the site and working with Osborne we鈥檙e looking forward to watching it rise up in the centre of our campus during the next 18 months. Our current first year students will be the first to use the new library when it opens in autumn 2017, which is particularly pleasing.鈥�
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