Two New Ludgate, 26 Old Bailey, London EC4M 7HW
Two New Ludgate Headline Facts:
1,230 GRC panels covering 5,000 square meters.
Contractor : Skanska / Gartner
Architect : Sauerbruch Hutton
Project Category: Commercial
One New Ludgate, 60 Ludgate Hill, London EC4M 7AW
One New Ludgate Headline Facts:
1,850 reconstructed stone panels covering 5,900 square meters.
Contractor : Skanska / Scheldebouw
Architect : Fletcher Priest
The Finer Details :
1 New Ludgate, is a retail and commercial development located two blocks east of St. Paul’s Cathedral in London and was named the City of London Building of the Year 2016. The system was designed to be installed without the necessity of external access. The vertical fins were supported by a bespoke unitised curtain walling system and they were installed on-site with the glazing. The horizontal ledges are supported on the concrete fins, acting as the horizontal restraint for the cladding as a whole and without interfacing with the glass cladding weather line.
The ground level columns and upper face of the spandrels are polished, which allows for better weathering and lower maintenance. The vertical fins and bottom face of the spandrels are grit blasted for a homogeneous street view. The mix has been specifically designed using Spanish dolomite aggregates and pigments, to achieve this unique impact in the City of London. Awards for this project include RICS London Award 2016, ‘Best Commercial Building’ and ‘City of London Building of the Year’ 2016.
Regent’s Place, 338 Euston Rd, London NW1 3BT
Regent’s Place Headline Facts :
580 stone faced and reconstructed stone panels covering 6,100 square meters.
Contractor : Lendlease
Architect : Terry Farrell Architects
Plough PLace, Holborn, London
Plough Place Headline Facts :
150 brick faced panels covering 1,500 square meters.
Contractor : Mowlem
Architect : Hamilton Associates
Paternoster Square, London
Paternoster Square Headline Facts:
630 natural stone faced and reconstructed stone panels, covering 6,100 square meters.
Contractor : Bovis Lendlease
Architect : McCormack Jamieson Prichard
Merrill Lynch, 2 King Edward St, Farringdon, London EC1A 1HQ
Merrill Lynch Headline Facts:
1,050 natural stone facing, brick facing and terracotta facing panels, covering 8,650 square meters.
Contractor : Mace
Architect : Swanke Hayden Connell
Ludgate West, London
Ludgate West Headline Facts:
250 natural stone faced panels covering 2,700 square meters.
Contractor: Sir Robert McAlpine
Architect : Skidmore Owings and Merrill
2 Pancras Square, Kings Cross, London N1C 4AG
2 Pancras Square Headline Facts:
427 reconstructed stone panels, covering 5,907 units.
Contractor : BAM
Architect : Allies & Morrison
The Finer Details :
This 11 storey, 130,000 sq ft office building was designed by Allies & Morrison. The design of the architectural precast cladding gives it an interesting rhythm. As the building rises, the precast mullion sections reduce in width but deepen in depth. This was achieved by specially designed adaptable moulds. The curtain walling / glazing was prefixed to the frame, above level 2, in advance of the cladding. A delicate installation operation ensued and the fixing system had to be adjusted to the depth of the reveals. In order to increase the speed of erection, reduce cost and improve general efficiency, some of the panels were 2 storey high “F” panels. This allowed for a rapid rate of enclosure to be achieved.
The immediate impression of this building is of mullions and spandrels but a keen eye can see upon closer inspection that the mullions actually decrease in width towards the top of the building and the windows at these levels are set back further to create deeper reveals and create greater solar shading. The key to the manufacture of this was mould adaptability. To ensure minimal staining from rainwater on the face of the building, the spandrels were designed to guide the water towards a vertical drainage system in the mullions, which keeps the water off the face of the building.
The concrete mix contains some Spanish Dolomite aggregate which adds a sparkle to the façade. The uppermost level has an unusual feature of a winter garden. This comprises of 3 storey high colonnades with free standing cantilever structures. This is a very uncommon feature and structural modelling was utilised in the design process. Due to the size of the panels, some challenges were encountered during the installation process. Prior to installation these panels (10m in length) had to be rotated with the use of the tower crane and then hoisted into position.
1 Pancras Square, Kings Cross, London N1C 4AG
1 Pancras Square, Kings Cross Headline Facts:
1,065 reconstructed stone and cast iron column panels covering 3,586 square meters.
Contractor : BAM
Architect : David Chipperfield
The Finer Details :
Techrete were engaged in 2012 to supply and erect the external façade of this 55,000 sq m office building. In addition to supplying the precast cladding panels, balconies and GRC soffits, Techrete were also engaged to design, coordinate and erect the cast iron columns, due to the proximity and interface with the cladding. These were manufactured by Hargreaves at their facility in Halifax, West Yorkshire and were then transported on specially adapted trailer frames and were subsequently painted and erected by Techrete.
The precast cladding and other features were to be erected outboard of the completed curtain wall cladding and this presented handling challenges and also required a bespoke fixing system. Due to its proximity to the rail lines, Techrete had to contend with a downgrading of all craneage by 25%. The windows were pre-installed and external access for this installation was via MEWPs. Above level 6 mast climbers were used.
The GRC soffits were up to 2.8m wide and specially adapted trailers, frames and lifting equipment were used to assist site handling of the panels in under-slung areas which were not accessible by the tower crane. Trial lifts were carried out at the factory, prior to delivery to site. A tower crane was used for the majority of the installation with the exception of the balconies which, due to their weight, were hoisted by a mobile crane. To ensure the uniformity of finish Techrete undertook to construct the paving and steps beneath the colonnade.
The reconstituted stone mix chosen was to complement the adjacent building B4 (Two Pancras Square) and a warm acid etched finish was used to achieve this intent.
Juxon House, 100 St. Paul’s Churchyard, London EC4M 8BU
Juxon House Headline facts:
900 natural stone faced panels, covering 6,000 square meters.
Contractor : Lend Lease
Architect : Siddell Gibson Partner
1 Bread Street, London, EC4M 9BE
Bow Bells House Headline Facts:
120 natural stone faced panels, covering 1,280 square meters.
Contractor: Bovis Lend Lease
Architect : David Walker & Associates and HOK International
8-10 Moorgate, London EC2R 6DA
8-10 Moorgate Headline Facts :
42 Portland stone, brick faced, granite and reconstructed stone panels, covering 590 square meters.
Contractor : Allies & Morrison Architects
Architect : MACE