Set within a conservation area, access to Lloyd's Register is through a landscaped churchyard. The site is largely surrounded by existing buildings, including 71 Fenchurch St, constructed for Lloyd's Register in 1901. This Grade II listed building has been incorporated into the new headquarters and extensively restored. The floor plates of the new building, comprised of fourteen stories of office space and two basements, taper in response to the awkward geometry of the site to create a fan-shaped grid composed of vaults formed around two dramatic atria. This design allows daylight penetration and provides thermal buffers between the offices and the external environment.
The service cores are expressed as towers - two primary circulation cores face the churchyard, while secondary cores to the rear house toilets, good lifts and staircases, as well as main services risers. Highly transparent glazing offers instant legibility - people using the fully glazed wall-climber lifts and stairs animate the building's exterior.
The glazed façade is designed to maximise daylight while limiting solar heat gains in summer and heat losses in winter. In addition to double glazing, the east and west facades feature panels of motorised louvres which automatically control solar energy ingress. Working in conjunction with the louvred facades, chilled beams incorporating sprinklers, lighting and a PA system cool the air in the offices. The building's energy efficiency means a reduction of carbon dioxide emissions by 33 percent and of costs by 40 percent when compared with those of a conventionally air-conditioned building.
