In autumn 1999, the University moved 2,400 students to the Royal Albert Dock, once the world's longest dock, in a classic exercise of brownfield urban regeneration to begin to unlock the Thames Gateway redevelopment. The campus is designed with a high performance, low energy fresh air delivery system, allowing windows to be shut to keep out the noise from the City Airport opposite. This highly flexible campus is focused on a pedestrian square facing south onto the Dock. Its 384 student rooms are gathered in brightly painted paired drums along the dockside in front of the main academic buildings. Its iconic forms have been successful in promoting both the University and regeneration for the whole area. The project was completed in 1999.