Timber Square

At Timber Square in London’s Bankside, we set out to address the challenge of reducing both construction and operational carbon within a single redevelopment. Developers, Landsec asked us to create a workplace that meets science-based commitments on net zero, but also puts people and public space at the heart of its design. Working closely with the client and wider team, we developed a hybrid timber structure on a scale not yet seen in the UK.

The project has been able to reuse much of the existing mid-century printworks. We retained around 80% of the Print Building’s original structure, adding hybrid steel and cross-laminated timber to extend it upwards. This preserved its industrial character while creating flexible new workspaces and terraces that could open the workplace up to light and views. Next to it, the new Ink Building uses the same hybrid timber approach. Here, steel and timber work together in what will be one of the country’s most ambitious mass timber office buildings. We integrated roof gardens and terraces across most levels, as a break from work and to offer alternative space for meetings and events.

By reusing what we could and building with timber where possible, we’ve made  significant reductions in embodied carbon.  Timber Square is targeting the highest industry benchmarks, but more importantly, it shows how reuse, wellbeing and sustainability can successfully coexist in forward-looking workplace design.