Bloomberg’s new European HQ, which is located in the heart of the City of London, has been rated the world’s most sustainable office building. Designed by Foster + Partners, the office complex has been awarded an Outstanding BREEAM rating, attaining a 98.5% score – the highest design-stage score ever achieved by any major office development.
Achieving this rating has been at the core of the project's design process. Alongside innovative power, lighting, water and ventilation systems—which contribute the most to the the building's environmental score—advanced applications of combined heat and power (CHP) generation "supplies heat and power in a single, efficient system with reduced carbon emissions." According to Lord Foster:
The deep plan interior spaces are naturally ventilated through a ‘breathing’ façade while a top lit atrium edged with a spiralling ramp at the heart of the building ensures a connected, healthy and creative environment.
According to Bloomberg, important technical aspects of the project include:
- Integrated Ceiling Panels: bespoke integrated ceiling panels combine heating, cooling, lighting and acoustic functions in an innovative petal-leaf design. The system, which incorporates 500,000 LED lights, uses 40% less energy than a typical fluorescent office lighting system.
- Water Conservation: rainwater from the roof, cooling tower blow-off water, and grey water sources, like basins and showers, is captured, treated and recycled to serve vacuum flush toilets. These use net zero mains water for flushing. Overall, water conservation systems will save 25 million litres of water each year, enough to fill ten Olympic swimming pools.
- Natural Ventilation: when ambient weather conditions are temperate, the building’s distinctive bronze blades can open and close, allowing the building to operate in a “breathable” natural ventilation mode. Reducing dependency on mechanical ventilation and cooling equipment significantly reduces energy consumption.
- Smart Airflow: smart CO2 sensing controls allow air to be distributed according to the approximate number of people occupying each zone of the building at any given time. The ability to dynamically adjust airflow in response to occupancy hours and patterns is expected to save 600-750 MWhr of power per annum, reducing CO2 emissions by approximately 300 metric tonnes each year.
Foster + Partners' New London HQ for Bloomberg Uses Ancient Roman Site Features to Inspire Interaction
Foster + Partners has revealed new renderings of their designs for Bloomberg's new London headquarters as the project races toward anticipated completion this autumn. The first building worldwide to be wholly owned and constructed by Bloomberg, the design of the London HQ has been guided by principles of collaboration, innovation and productivity, resulting in a structure that enhance both the workplace environment and the public realm.
