Location
Former Dock Manager’s Office, Canada Water, London
Size
6,500 sq ft
Services:
Interior and technical design, mechanical and electrical co-ordination and delivery on site
The work.place.create. team supported Mace Interiors with the technical design and delivery of a new marketing and project hub in the old Dock Office, for the major UK developer British Land in Canada Water. The Former Dock Manager’s Office building, complete with clocktower, was constructed in 1892 and holds special architectural and historic interest reflected in its listing at Grade II. However, having been subject to much internal intervention, the special interest of the building is primarily external. A few original features survive inside, including some door frames, altered panelled doors and a staircase with a cast iron balustrade and timber handrail.
After being used as an educational facility, the building will be used as the “Project Hub” for the Canada Water Masterplan. It is intended to be a flexible space for British Land to present the ethos and aspirations of the masterplan. The Hub will be used for presentations, events and / or exhibitions and will also house workspace for British Land staff working in the area. This is a flagship project for work.place.create. at the gateway to a significant development and given the high-level of project finish and the complexity of bringing an established, but aging, real estate asset back to life.
work.place.create. worked closely with Mace Interiors to ensure the commerciality of the build in the Dock Office, support the technical design and delivery, and of course guarantee the client’s design aesthetic was maintained. There were a number of complex architectural issues to be solved through the partial demolition and construction phase, uncovering elements of the historic fabric and installing new. The hub focused around a central double height space, with the walls striped back to the bare brick of the original building. At ground level, there was a refreshments space, visitors toilets, small cinema room, and changing rooms for PPE storage. Upstairs, there were a series of meeting rooms and an open plan office space for staff with associated T-point. The whole space was meant to feel welcoming to visitors with a warm, slightly domestic hospitality feel whilst celebrating the original merits of the building.
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