FEBRUARY 10, 2021

13-20 Settles Street, London.

Project Summary:

Location: Whitechapel, London
Sector: Office
Client: Undisclosed
Architect: Thirdway Architecture
Contract: Thirdway Contract
Electrical Contractor: Paul Earl
Consultant: Environmental Engineering Partnership
Consultant: 3D Consulting Engineers
Value: £100K
Duration: 12 months
Size: 25,000 sq. ft
Photography: Peter Ghobrial

The recent CAT A refurbishment and extension of the 13-20 Settles Street in Whitechapel offers approximately 25,000 sq ft of contemporary commercial office space flooded with daylight and stunning architecture. The development boasts a great location with a quick connection to the City of London. The ambitious scheme was designed by Thirdway Architecture and brought to life by Thirdway Contracts. Featuring lighting for vaulted ceilings, the project recognises the rich heritage of the building whilst creating a forward-thinking workspace with a stunning street presence.

Office and architectural lighting for an office development with exposed ceilings at 13-20 Settles Street, London.

Originally built in the 1930’s as a Victorian Labour Exchange and located within Myrdle Conservation area in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, 19-23 Settles Street is a 2 storey Neo classical building. The host building consists of 3 parts, the main building and two adjoining arms, creating an eye catching curve.

The new development features a complete refurbishment of the original building and a new five-storey fully glazed rear extension providing additional workspace and a maximum connectivity between all parts. The building was last occupied by JobCentre Plus and the last fit out was obscuring the original fabric of the building. 

Office and architectural lighting for an office development with exposed ceilings at 13-20 Settles Street, London.

Following our successful string of projects with Paul Earl, we have been approached by their project team with the request for lighting design in October 2018. Our team worked closely with the Thirdway Contracts team and the two consultants involved on the project. 

The 299 team attended several site meetings with the design team, provided product samples and technical support for the project. 

60 hours of lighting design in total were used to secure and support this project. 

THE DESIGN BRIEF.

Connectivity between old and new as well as improving the use of the space were the main objectives of the design brief for this ambitious development. With the project aiming to achieve the BREEAM accreditation, the new lighting had to meet high efficiency criteria. 

Introducing a new electrical infrastructure and exposed services for the entire scheme and bringing quality office and architectural lighting was only part of the story. The attention to detail was an absolute paramount for this development scheme. 

Office and architectural lighting for an office development with exposed ceilings at 13-20 Settles Street, London.

Ground floor.

The ground floor level features the main entrance with a centrally positioned reception desk and break out space. Four rows of Nile Suspended have been installed horizontally, adding a trendy visual interest to the space. The two archways are exit routes to the staircase, with the middle archway giving a first glimpse of the exciting feature pendant also using Nile Suspended.

Office and architectural lighting for an office development with exposed ceilings at 13-20 Settles Street, London.

The cluster consists of 14 vertically suspended Niles with 360 degree light distribution in several standard sizes. Suspended at different levels, the opal diffuser distributes soft light and creates a cascading effect. The pendant brings the staircase space to live and can be admired from all levels. The staircase is also lit with the circular Talla Wall mounted luminaires. The 500 mm diameter is a neat size, substantial enough to make a visual impact.

vertical-suspended-tube-lighting
bright-hallway-circular-lighting
wooden-arch-way-suspended-vertical-lighting

In the circulation spaces across the building, the Bellart Surface was used to carry on with the tubular look and feel of the lighting,- providing a consistent yet minimal addition to the lighting scheme. 

The ground floor office space features almost 1,200 sq. ft of curved floor plate with the original pitched roof. The removal of the suspended ceilings and services on the ground and first floor revealed the original structure and exposed the impressive 7.2 m ceiling height. The initial design proposal was using suspended architectural disk lighting Talla which was later changed into a scheme using linear lighting.

Office and architectural lighting for an office development with exposed ceilings at 13-20 Settles Street, London.
Office and architectural lighting for an office development with exposed ceilings at 13-20 Settles Street, London.
Office and architectural lighting for an office development with exposed ceilings at 13-20 Settles Street, London.

We asked our senior lighting designer, Megan Tranter: What was the most challenging aspect of the project?

“ The curved ground floor space was definitely the most challenging part. The project brief initially suggested circular fittings Talla for this area and then adapted to a linear layout using Rio fitting. Getting a balance between compliance and symmetry proved tricky. Also modelling this space with limited functions in our lighting design software proved difficult - creating a curved apex roof with exposed structural elements all had an effect on the light distribution of the fittings so it was required to be modelled. Never having worked on a project of this shape, I am really pleased to see the final results. It proved to live up to the beautiful renders Thirdway Architecture created for the original proposal. "

We asked our senior lighting designer, Megan Tranter: What was the most challenging aspect of the project?

“ The curved ground floor space was definitely the most challenging part. The project brief initially suggested circular fittings Talla for this area and then adapted to a linear layout using Rio fitting. Getting a balance between compliance and symmetry proved tricky. Also modelling this space with limited functions in our lighting design software proved difficult - creating a curved apex roof with exposed structural elements all had an effect on the light distribution of the fittings so it was required to be modelled. Never having worked on a project of this shape, I am really pleased to see the final results. It proved to live up to the beautiful renders Thirdway Architecture created for the original proposal. "

Office and architectural lighting for an office development with exposed ceilings at 13-20 Settles Street, London.

First floor office

By removing all non-load bearing walls a new open plan office space was created on the first floor. Design-wise, it replicates the space on the ground floor. 

The new build office space

The new build floors have been designed with a flexibility in mind, catering for a wide range of tenants. The contemporary glazing combined with steel beams and exposed ceilings and services is perfectly accomplished with the suspended linear lighting Rio. All framed by the black metal staircase, the space offers a perfect industrial style blank canvas for future tenants.

Office and architectural lighting for an office development with exposed ceilings at 13-20 Settles Street, London.
Office and architectural lighting for an office development with exposed ceilings at 13-20 Settles Street, London.
Office and architectural lighting for an office development with exposed ceilings at 13-20 Settles Street, London.
Office and architectural lighting for an office development with exposed ceilings at 13-20 Settles Street, London.

Lower ground floor

The area of the lower ground floor is designed as an affordable workspace totalling 110 sq m, with an open plan office and a meeting room. The floor plan also includes washrooms, bike storage and service rooms. Fixed to the walls, the Nile Surface 360 degree was used to light the stair core areas and Rio Suspended was used in the officespace as general office lighting. 

In the bicycle storage and washrooms, we supplied Cinca Circular downlights, Bellart Surface and Talla Wall to keep a continuous design. Anti-corrosive luminaires were supplied for the back-of-house plant areas.

With the aim of making the building as efficient as possible, all lighting had to comply with the efficiency requirements using advanced occupancy detection and daylight sensors. 

All office lighting was supplied in a contemporary matte black finish. Integrated emergency lighting was supplied for the main office areas and full standalone emergency package (self contained downlights, IP65 for wet areas and exit signage) on all other areas.

Office and architectural lighting for an office development with exposed ceilings at 13-20 Settles Street, London.

The result is a stunning contemporary CAT A scheme with BREEAM Very good rating, designed with attention to every detail. The new extension sets a bold contrast to the host building and creates an impressive street presence.

It’s a welcoming space with high functionality, comfortable LG7 compliant office lighting and convenient location to the City of London. The 299 team are proud to have been involved with such an ambitious project. 

Settles Street was a challenging project from the outset due to the unique nature of the building. 299 worked with us from design stage to ensure the light fittings complimented the building perfectly. They helped us on every step of the way which resulted in a great looking project.

LEE MATTHEWS - PRE-CONSTRUCTION DIRECTOR AT PAUL EARL

Project in figures:

4 Revisions

Our lighting design team had to create 4 revisions in order to achieve perfection.

60 Design hours

60 design hours were allocated to the interior lighting design for this project

12 Months

From initial project brief through to delivery.

Products used in this project:

Similar projects:

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