London City Hall
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Nigel Young Download Original
Sustainable office on the south bank of the Thames to house the assembly chamber for elected members of the London Assembly, offices of the mayor and Greater London Authority staff
The building has no front or back in conventional terms, its shape is derived from a geometrically modified sphere. This shape achieves optimum energy performance by minimising the surface area exposed to direct sunlight. Analysis of sunlight patterns throughout the year produced a thermal map of the building’s surface, which is expressed in its cladding.
To the south the building leans back so that its floor-plates step inwards to provide shading for the naturally ventilated offices.
The building’s cooling systems utilise ground water pumped up via boreholes from the water table. These energy-saving techniques mean that chillers are not always required and that for most of the year the building can function with no additional heating. Overall, it has the capacity to use only a quarter of the energy consumed by a typical air-conditioned office building.
At its base, opening on to a limestone piazza is a cafe overlooking the river. From the entrance foyer, gentle ramps allow visitors to move up through the building. A flexible public space on the top floor can be used for exhibitions or functions, while its riverside terrace allows visitors to enjoy unparalleled views out across the city.
Data
- Begun: May 2000
- Completed: May 2002
- Floor area: 19,814m2
- Sectors: Civic, Education, Office, Public realm
- Total cost: £50M
- Tender date: Sep 2000
- Procurement: Construction management/bespoke contract
- Address: Greater London Authority, City Hall , The Queen's Walk , London Borough of Southwark, SE1 2AA, United Kingdom
Professional Team
- Architect: Foster + Partners
- Project architects: Alice Asafu-Adjaye, Andy Bow, Attilio Lavezzari, Bruce Curtain, David Kong, Graham Longman, Ken Hogg, Ken Shuttleworth, lodie Fleury, Lord Foster, Louise Blackler, Mario Pilla, Niall Monaghan, Richard Hyams, Sam Harvey, Sean Affleck, Stefan Behling, Tomer Kleinhause
- Client: CIT Group, More London Development Ltd.
- Quantity surveyor: Davis Langdon & Everest
- Quantity surveyor: Mott Green and Wall
- Landscape architect: Townshend Landscape Architects
- Lighting consultant: Claude Engle
- Structural engineer: Arup
- Acoustic engineer: Arup
- Fire engineer: Arup
- Facade engineer: Arup
- M&E engineer: Arup
Suppliers
- External cladding: Schmidlin (UK)
- Steel frame: Wescol
- Concrete substructure: Geoffrey Osborne
- Lifts: Thyssen Lifts & Escalators
- Electrical: Pheonix Electrical
- Atrium cladding: Selle
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