The Shard Fit Out
Southwark, London
In 2009 our practice was appointed by Sellar Property Group to develop the Category A design for floors 3 to 28 of the Shard.
This commission stemmed from our work on the Transport for London fit out of floors 4 to 10 at the Palestra Building in Southwark: building on our knowledge of new working practices and previous experience of commercial office user requirements, our approach for the Shard was to produce a combined lighting, ceiling and raised floor configuration that responded to the shifting geometry of the building’s ‘shards’ and ‘fractures’, creating a flexible design that met the needs of commercial tenants whilst seamlessly blending with the construction principles and image of this architectural landmark.
In parallel, we designed the first marketing suite on floor 14, which opened in the summer of 2010. As part of a phased rollout of the Category A fit-out we have now completed the design and construction of all 25 floors across nearly 600,000 sq.ft. We have also won additional commissions from tenants and the building’s management organisation to complete several Category B and C fit outs on floors 28, 22, 19, 14, 10, 7, 4, and 3, and carried out Category B enabling works on behalf of the building leasing and management team to prepare floors for further tenants.
Following up from the success of the works on the Shard, in 2012 the client appointed us to work with architects Renzo Piano Building Workshop to develop, prior to its completion, the Category A fit-out proposals for the adjacent building The Place, and to inform some of the shell and core provisions.
We developed Category A proposals for both fan coil unit and chilled beam cooling strategies, comprising innovative LED lighting solutions, integrated sprinkler and smoke detection units, and a chilled ceiling panel system for the large winter garden to the western end of the floor plate. These proposals established the benchmark and formed the basis for the fit out that News Corporation adopted when they took the head lease for the building.
Consultants
Executive Architect: Adamson Associates
Structural Engineering: WSP
Building Services Engineering: Troup Bywaters & Anders
Project Management: Real Estate Management (REM, client)
Cost Management, Contract Administration: Gardiner & Theobald