Multistory is the bringing together of two separate buildings (formerly 2 Colmore Square and Cannon House) to create one exceptional workspace featuring Birmingham’s largest amenity space that ties together communal areas for inhabitation on a work and social basis.
The key improvements that have been made as part of this project include, 2 new receptions for a best-in-class arrival experience, the introduction of a 100-person Auditorium, new lifts with destination control, a bar/coffee lounge, an outdoor terrace, communal bookable meeting rooms, generous co-working areas, new car EV charging points, best in class cycle storage and outstanding showers and changing facilities. Multistory is setting the new benchwork for Sustainability, achieving WiredScore Platinum, Fitwel 2 star and Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) of ‘B’.
Air soured heat pumps provide the heating and cooling to the amenity areas with heat recovery air handling unit providing fresh air. White box retail units are provided at ground floor level with larger retail units within the lower ground level. The two levels are linked with a grand staircase.
A Grade II Listed Building in the St James’s conservation area, 8 Waterloo Place has been refurbished to offer 22,500ft² of high quality office accommodation and 8,700ft² of restaurant shell unit, for which Watkins Payne supplied building services engineering, BREEAM duties and energy consultancy to achieve BREEAM ‘Excellent’ and an EPC B rating.
The completed site now comprises four detached industrial warehouse units ranging from 14,000sq ft to 36,000sq ft, all with naturally ventilated and heated offices. The two larger units each have an 8 person MRL passenger lift, while the smaller units have been provided with platform lifts. The warehouse area was designed as a shell for future fit-out with capped off utility services.
The New Zealand House comprises over 200,000ft² of space over two basement levels, ground to level 18
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.
The Practice was responsible for the design and site monitoring of the related mechanical, electrical and public health services installation.
The project also involved the refurbishment of the reception space and improvement of the cycle store entrance and wayfinding at basement level.