Air Building, Solihull

work.place.create. were commissioned by the client Urbana Partners to undertake the office design and refurbishment of the existing commercial premises at 35 Homer Road, Solihull in Birmingham. The original building was constructed in 2003 for occupation by the National Grid, who remained the only tenant for over 20 years. The glass and steel pavilion style building extends over three key floors, with additional accommodation and car parking located in an undercroft on the lower ground floor.

Following the global pandemic, there has been a significant shift in the nature of workplace design and the type of space that modern, corporate businesses wish to occupy. With the departure of the previous long standing tenant, there was significant opportunity for Homer Road Limited to achieve a quick letting to either single or multiple tenants by completing a full refurbishment of 35 Homer Road, to offer a contemporary building that has kerb appeal and the capability of leading the local market.

The building is set back from the road giving excellent visibility of the glass frontage, but the appearance of the building was compromised by the presence of a large granite wall to the entrance. There was significant potential to improve the legibility of the entrance by removing this feature and providing an alternative architectural feature to demonstrate the entry point to the building. work.place.create. have created a striking triple height canopy feature over an enhanced accessible entrance route. Internally, the reception space has been increased and linked to the atrium, providing a new social hub to the building with refreshment facilities, and places for informal work or meetings. The 3 office floors were refurbished to CAT A level with all new toilet cores to comply with modern Building Regulation requirements. The previously open atrium was enclosed on each floor with new glazed partitions to enable the flexibility to let each floor or part floor to separate tenants. A new extension to the building was created on the previously unused roof terrace to add an additional office space for tenants with access to a private terrace and great views to the South. A larger roof terrace was also created with a green wall feature to add yet more shared amenity space to the building. New end of trip facilities, with secure cycle parking, drying room showers, lockers and a gym were provided by creating a new enclosed area within in the current undercroft car park. The car park received a refresh, with EV car charging ports added for both staff and visitors.

The building also aimed to achieve BREEAM excellent, with the replacement of outdated mechanical plant and the addition of new solar panels on the roof.

Click here to compare the final photography to the original renders.

For more information on the Air Building, visit: www.airsolihull.co.uk