Comprising six levels of office space topped by two storeys of residential demise, 106-110 Kentish Town Road was in need of a transformation. The communal layout was very dated and a security risk with three entrances at different corners of the building.
Refurbishing the office space over the lower ground and ground floors would give the opportunity to rejuvenate the building’s access and security while allowing the design team to pay homage to its historical past as Dunn’s Hat Factory.
The refurbishment provides office space, along with the ground floor being granted A1 retail use. High-level exposed services were designed to give an industrial warehouse feel. The offices are heated and cooled by independent variable refrigerant flow (VRF) air source heat pump systems and illuminated by suspended linear LED fittings.
Dedicated office reception and lower ground break-out space have all been finished to high specification with feature LED lighting throughout. Services are exposed with electrical conduit finished in yellow to provide a splash of colour against the industrial style finishes. New shower and toilet facilities have been provided and the existing duplex lift installations have been refurbished.
The project involved the refurbishment and extension of the existing building to deliver over 260,000sq ft of office space, achieving BREEAM ‘Outstanding’.
The speculative office space is fitted out to a Category A standard and will be British Council of Offices (BCO) Guide to Specification 2019 compliant. The refurbishment has adjusted the temperature control zones to pull them better in line with the BCO recommendations than currently provided.
Watkins Payne is proud to have been an integral part of the MEPH services, Vertical Transportation and sustainability BREEAM consultancy for the CAT A fit-out project at Pembroke Building, overseen by Cogent BC LLP.
Watkins Payne carried out the Independent Design Review role for Red Lion Court, a mixed use commercial office development, located in central London.
We are looking forward to our continued involvement in the project, pending positive planning feedback.