30 St Mary Axe

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COLLOQUIALLY KNOWN AS THE GHERKIN, LONDONS MOST DISTINCTIVE OFFICE BLOCK EXCITES INTEREST FROM ALL ANGLES. MIKE SAWYER WENT TO THE TOP TO SEE WHATS INSIDE
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30 ST MARY AXE

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Aspire

30 St Mary Axe

Londons first ecological tall building and an instantly recognisable addition to the citys skyline, 30 St Mary Axe, is rooted in a radical approach - technically, architecturally, socially and spatially. Commissioned by Swiss Re, one of the worlds leading reinsurance companies, it rises forty-one storeys and provides 76,400 square metres of accommodation, including offices and a shopping arcade accessed from a newly created public plaza. The construction of 30 St Mary Axe generated great excitement. Designed by Foster and Partners, the now famous building won the RIBA Stirling Prize 2004. To complement this award-winning design, a building such as 30 St Mary Axe needs interior facilities consistent with its magnificent exterior. The 39th floor 70 seat restaurant, the highest in London, offers the most impressive benefit to the tenants of 30 St Mary Axe. With a fine dining menu created by executive chef Richard Corrigan, and served daily by head chef Brian Hughson of Searcys, tenants and their guests can enjoy their meal in the restaurant or in one of the five private dining rooms situated in the 38th floor. The creation of a restaurant, private dining facility and kitchen created some major design challenges, which was why Swiss Re called in FCSI consultancy Tricon Food Service Consultants to develop and implement a food service strategy for the building. Mike Coldicott FCSI, of Tricon, had worked with Foster and Partners before on many projects including the British Museum Great Court project. Tricon were appointed at the initial stages of the project - once the base build design had been agreed, its advice covered the entire spectrum of foodservice consultancy from business and financial modelling and the design of the catering facilities, to the selection of the catering operator. First on the FCSI consultancy agenda was the foodservice strategy which concluded that the building did not need a staff feeding capability there being sufficient capacity in the area surrounding Swiss Re. Instead Tricon advised on a private dining facility including the restaurant and private dining rooms available for building tenants. Swiss Re occupies the majority of the floors, but the rest of this highly desirable office space is commercially let to a variety of tenant businesses. The foodservice strategy by Tricon also provided a business and financial model for how the dining facilities would operate. During the daytime, the facilities are for the exclusive use of tenants, but in the evenings, they would be available for hire through the catering operator creating a stream of revenue. KITCHEN DESIGN The buildings unique shape meant the entire design process had to be translated into three dimensions from the outset. Even the sourcing of the kitchen equipment had to be considered in this way from an early stage. For example, a piece of equipment such as a cooking range will need overhead ventilation. In a conventional square or rectangular building this simply comes from direct overhead. But at the top of 30 St Mary Axe, the walls slope inwards and the FCSI solution to the issue was to ventilate out of the side of the building. And in order to prevent staining of the glass exterior, an ultra violet air filter was specified for the extract, so only clean, warm air is pumped out.

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30 St Mary Axe

Aspire

Due to the size of the kitchen, and to boost the buildings already impressive environmental sustainability rating, it was decided that traditional gas cooking would not be appropriate. Tricon used the Michelin-starred Anton Mosimanns celebrated Private Dining Club as a benchmark and created an induction cooking, or cold heat, solution that allows for minimum transference of heat into the work area but keeps the buildings extraction levels low. This approach assured both Swiss Re and the chefs that the finest quality dishes could still be produced. And owing to the high level kitchen, Tricon also had to size the facilities to be able to cope in the event of problems with the lifts. The last step in FCSI involvement was to appoint a restaurateur capable of delivering a fine dining experience on a par with Londons top public dining establishments. Tricon managed the process of tendering the contract for the operation of the whole client hospitality suite which culminated in a cook off from which Swiss Re awarded it to Searcys. The only thing more magnificent than the food is the stunning view a sentiment which the chefs would agree to. Hospitality kitchens for buildings similar in size to Swiss Re are most usually found in basements. But the main 37th floor kitchen itself has windows looking out on Londons stunning scenery. THE BUILDING Generated by a radial plan, with a circular perimeter, the building widens in profile as it rises and tapers towards its apex. This distinctive form responds to the constraints of the site: the building appears more slender than a rectangular block of equivalent size; reflections are reduced and transparency is improved; and the slimming of its profile towards the base maximises the public realm at ground level. Environmentally, its profile reduces the amount of wind deflected to the ground compared with a rectilinear tower of similar size, helping to maintain pedestrian comfort at street level, and creates external pressure differentials that are exploited to drive a unique system of natural ventilation. The towers diagonally braced structural envelope allows column-free floor space and a fully glazed facade, which opens up the building to light and views. Atria between the radiating fingers of each floor link together vertically to form a series of informal break-out spaces that spiral up the building. These spaces are a natural social focus places for refreshment points and meeting areas - and function as the buildings lungs, distributing fresh air drawn in through opening panels in the faade. This system reduces the towers reliance on air conditioning and together with other sustainable measures, means that the building is expected to use up to half the energy consumed by air-conditioned office towers. Visit www.tricon.co.uk

Facts and figures 55km of steel parts 360 connections or nodes Maximum loading per diagonal column: 1500 tonnes 27m average depth of pile foundations 179.8m high with 40 floors

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