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Peter Grant Associates were appointed to undertake the workplace consultancy and the full Interior Design of new offices at Northampton 900. We also undertook design support during the construction of the fit out. Our appointment also included the furniture and lighting specifications. This is an 8500 square metre Building procured by Reed Global in January 2019, the building consists of two existing tenants occupying 2500 sq. m of space, 2500 sq. m of lettable space, 2400 sq. m of space allocated for RSR and a ground floor franchised café together with reception lobby and core space all of which has been fully refurbished. The clients brief for their own space on first floor was to create an open dynamic agile workspace for a number of central service teams to the business plus specialist recruitment teams and space for key global directors. The accommodation has 270 fixed work positions but based on an occupancy level of circa 80% and a selection of other agile workspaces the space could accommodate over 400 persons working out of the building, giving an occupancy level of 6 sq. m per person. We spent an intense period of time with occupier groups to establish the detail brief, working strategies together the facilities and spaces that suited how they wished to occupy their building.
The floor is split down the centre with core facilities and two atriums allowing plenty of extra natural light into the floor, either side of the central core we have designed two 100 metre long streets with galley kitchens and street café seating. Exposed building services within the streets, cafes and reception areas with high performance acoustic ceiling tiles in the working spaces. The main meet and greet zone are designed within the conference facilities which contains various size flexible rooms together with back of house rooms. The space around the working areas and the six person benches is generous with plenty of space of expansion in the future. There are drop in quiet work rooms, meeting and workshop pods spread throughout the work space which also break up the workspace into neighbourhoods. There are two large social spaces/cafes at each of the building core together with a large touch down space and a quiet seating zone. The use of ceiling bulkheads, ceiling rafts, lighting and floor finishes define the spaces, walkways and pods. In the main workspace indirect/direct linear lighting was specified. There is a repeated pallet of colours used throughout the project with fabrics and carpets from Kvadrat and Interface contributing to the selection vibrant colours within a neutral background of subtle greys. The use of products and surfaces from sustainable sources was paramount during the specification stage for example the use of recycled coffee cups in the Durat solid surfaces specified. The working practices clearly have changed since we commenced work on the project, however from the start it was always envisaged the space could be adapted and changed to suit the business needs.
Rhys Williams
Project manager CS2