Press Releases
Fuelling A Sustainable Workplace
Thursday 16th August 2007
Office transformation specialist Morgan Lovell has completed a sustainable office design and fit out at the headquarters of low-carbon power company Hydrogen Energy.
Representing a joint venture between BP and Rio Tinto, Hydrogen Energy is developing new technologies to dramatically reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
Riverside offices in Weybridge, Surrey, house the new venture, which needed to embrace the corporate philosophy and send out a clear signal to staff and visitors alike of the brand, vision and values.
Within 18 weeks of seeing the initial brief for the new office, the 11,000 square feet area was transformed from a concrete shell into an inspirational workplace, through a carbon neutral fit out.
As a pioneer in sustainable office transformation, Morgan Lovell brought together a ‘one-stop shop solution’ to the design and build of this ‘green’ office environment.
Features include dimming units that automatically adjust to the natural lighting conditions for individual zones, as well as movement sensors to target lighting to those areas where people are present.
Adrian Norman, a designer at Morgan Lovell’s Thames Valley office, based in Wokingham, oversaw the transformation. He said: “All products have exceptional sustainability credentials and were mainly sourced within the UK, to cut down on long-haul transportation.
“These have included long-life expectancy furniture, recyclable and replaceable desk-tops and natural fabrics including wool and leather.
“Air travel is a major issue in terms of the environment and Morgan Lovell developed a complete system to enable effective two-way communication to cut-down on such journeys, including a giant 103 inch, high definition plasma screen – one of the largest currently installed in a UK office.”
Summing up the new office experience, Lewis Gillies, chief executive of Hydrogen Energy, said: “The objective was to make the best use of space in the office and to introduce the character of the area we are in, capturing the feel of the leafy countryside.
“Environmental factors played a major part in the creation of the new office. Our business is about climate change mitigation and the sustainability of the planet.
“We wanted to take a CO2 and sustainability lens to the project. All CO2 emitted from the fit out has been offset by Morgan Lovell, and we have not sacrificed quality. We have quality products from sustainable sources.
“The business is a new joint venture and the brand is new, and we wanted to make the office a lever of the new brand. We also really wanted to make good use of technology, because that is what we are about.”
“After appointing Morgan Lovell, within 18 weeks we were in the office, with very happy staff enjoying the new working environment. It’s very functional and it works very well.
“In my experience, I have never moved into a new office involving such a pleasant transaction.”
ENDS
Notes to Editors
Located in London, Birmingham and the Thames Valley, Morgan Lovell is the UK’s leading office interior design, fit out and refurbishment specialist. With its own teams of designers, surveyors and project managers, the company can design and deliver entire projects, with the benefit of just one point of contact. www.morganlovell.com
It is a member of Morgan Sindall plc, the construction and regeneration group which operates through five specialist divisions of affordable housing, construction, development, fit out and infrastructure services.
Morgan Lovell is a licensed BREEAM Offices Assessment Organisation. This means it is now licensed to measure the sustainability score of an office in order to identify ways companies can reduce high energy usage and waste, whilst increasing comfort and satisfaction for users of the building.