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Behind the scenes at 22 Bishopsgate

Image: Dreamstime
The London Hub is hosting a webinar this month looking at the development and construction of the iconic 22 Bishopsgate in the heart of London

22 Bishopsgate, in the City of London, is only second in height in the UK to the Shard, and is a development that has used cutting–edge technology to ensure a state-of-the-art building for users and the local community. 

The 62-storey tower, also known as Twentytwo, will be the first of its kind to house a fresh food market, innovation hub, gym, wellbeing retreat and spa, curated ‘art walk’, business club, cycle hub and destination restaurant – as well as London’s highest free public viewing gallery. 

Twentytwo is designed to increase wellness, engagement and productivity. It is the first UK core-and-shell building to apply for the International WELL Building Institute WELL Building Standard (WELL).It will also be the first UK tower to contain in excess of 100,000 sq ft of integrated amenity and social spaces, creating an inspiring, healthy and energising workplace for a business workforce of 12,000 people.

The main superstructure comprises a steel-framed tower with a central supporting concrete jump-form core. The floor slabs are composite cellular beams, providing a diaphragm action restraint to the perimeter columns. There are three column positions on either side of the core to act as outrigger stability structures, connected to the core through storey-deep trusses at two positions up the building. 

The basement is three levels deep with a network of supporting columns and transfer structures taking loads down to piled foundations. 

The facade is a closed-cavity glazed curtain wall system which circulates air within the cavity and allows very clear glazing while meeting environmental performance.

Due to access constraints, and the large amount of materials needed, it was decided to use an offsite consolidation centre to reduce traffic and deliveries. Materials were distributed at night to avoid traffic and to allow workers arriving on site to start work immediately. 

This system was designed for the construction phase and also for the life cycle of the building, reducing delivery vehicles at peak hours and lowering cycling incidents and pollution in the long term.

The webinar will take place on 10 February with package manager Alan Williamson FCIOB and project manager Jon Pepper MCIOB, both from Multiplex.

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