Technique is 74,000 sq ft of landmark new office space set across six storeys of high-ceilings and generous open volumes conjured and crafted from two historic buildings in the heart of Clerkenwell.

Technique is the adaptive reuse and retrofit of a former gin distillery and printworks to create 74,000-sq-ft of best-in-class workspace over six storeys, with 5,000-sq-ft dedicated to SMEs.

Demolition of the existing structures was considered as part of the design process, however carbon analysis identified that 1,709 tonnes of CO2 could be saved by adapting the building fabric. The decision to retain the existing structure also prevented 2,560 tonnes of waste ending up in a landfill, with further waste avoided through the retention of the existing brickwork facades at ground, and first floor level.

A retrofit of the existing fabric, including internal wall insulation and new, high-performance glazing, helps reduce the operational energy use.

The project team made a commitment to re-use as much of the existing building fabric as possible and where new materials were required, specified natural and/or low-carbon products: the external walls of the extension are constructed from StoneCycling waste-based bricks, manufactured from at least 60% construction waste. At Technique, 21 tonnes of waste were diverted from landfill by using waste-based bricks alone.

At roof level we added a three-storey extension, with a structure of cross-laminated timber slabs and glulam beams and columns, sourced from sustainably managed forests. The structural elements of the mass-timber extensions were pre-fabricated off site and assembled on site, cutting site traffic by 70%.

The timber surfaces to the new floors, and pre-cast concrete soffits and columns to the existing floors have been left exposed across the office floors, celebrating the character of the structures, and avoiding unnecessary material use, by eliminating the suspended ceiling system. Track lights that can be easily adapted by future tenants are installed.

The embodied carbon emissions of the project were calculated by BGY after Stage 5 and are estimated as: 374 kg CO2e/m2 (Modules A1-A4, B4-B5, C1-C4).

“The built environment contributes over a third of global carbon emissions. The essence of technique has always been about making a statement - creating a new benchmark for our industry and showcasing a new way of sustainable building. Our ambition was to fuse nature, design, art, technology and sustainability into a single architectural form – aiming to create the most sustainable adaptive re- use building in London.
We had three guiding principles we committed to at the outset:
RE-SET - to re-set the expectations and the norms of how buildings can be repurposed and how sustainability can be approached. And ultimately to prove that sustainably can also be a form of art.
RE-USE - a commitment to reusing and recycling as much of the existing building as possible. Everything from the concrete frame to the construction waste has been repurposed and salvaged into a core part of the new building - this is circular building.
RE-INVENT - finding ways of taking basic, ordinary building materials such as timber, concrete, plastic waste, rocks and reinventing these materials into the new building blocks of the building - but delivered in delicate, crafted and refined ways.”
JACOB LOFTUS, FOUNDER & CEO, GENERAL PROJECTS