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Refurbishing rather than rebuilding to reduce embodied carbon

Location
London, United Kingdom
Offices
Client
  • City of London
  • Homes England
Architect
Hawkins Brown
Image Credit
Hawkins Brown

Layden House, London

Layden House was an aging office owned by the Local Government Association occupying a prominent site opposite Farringdon Station. The client wanted to update and extend the building—the goal was to increase the floor area by 20%.

The refurbishment included the redesign of all mechanical and electrical (M&E) services, total replacement of the front façade and upgrading of other areas, internal fit out, and conversion of ground floor office space to commercial units. We were appointed to provide in-house structural, M&E, ecology, and acoustics services to achieve a low-energy refurbishment. Our team undertook several façade analyses to determine a balance between the use of passive systems while maintaining adequate internal daylight. As a result, energy efficient mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP) systems, combined with retention of the existing structure, delivered a high-quality office at a low carbon cost. We recently undertook a Whole Life Carbon Assessment of the project and found that two thirds of the embodied carbon it would have taken to rebuild was saved by refurbishing.  

The result was an economic transformation from an inefficient office to a new space perfectly suited to the modern, flexible workspace. Stantec has since made the building its own base of operations in London. 

Location
London, United Kingdom
Offices
Client
  • City of London
  • Homes England
Architect
Hawkins Brown
Image Credit
Hawkins Brown

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