Thomas-McBrien Architects and New Wave London have added a timber-framed roof extension over of a light industrial building for New Wave London’s specialist construction company
2025 RIBA London Award
Thomas-McBrien Architects and New Wave London for New Wave London
Contract value: Confidential
GIA: 495 2
The project involved the construction of a new timber-framed roof extension atop an existing two-storey, light industrial building in north London.
New Wave London is a specialist construction company that has gained a reputation for delivering bespoke crafted projects for some of London’s most celebrated architects. In 2010, it acquired the former Emerald House and extensively reconfigured and extended it to accommodate its head office, a large joinery workshop, spraying booths, a metal fabrication workshop, and general storage for materials and building supplies.
The latest vertical extension not only provides it with a large, flexible office space, additional units for small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and a generous roof terrace, but also completes a comprehensive retrofit and environmental upgrade. The design exploits the capacity of the existing building to accommodate an additional storey, and harnesses the client’s ability to expertly self-build the project.
Stock-length Douglas fir glulam beams were ordered to the site, where they were lifted on a reinforced existing roof deck to be fabricated and erected. This simple but elegantly proportioned structure, left visible both internally and externally, gives the scheme its gravitas. Large, fixed double-glazed units are directly fitted between these members. Solid timber opening vents, fabricated in the workshop at ground floor, provide natural ventilation.
Bespoke internal joinery was similarly veneered and fabricated on site. The use of thrifty construction, enabled by simple detailing, allowed not even the smallest offcut to be wasted, and surpluses from other projects to be inconspicuously incorporated.
As well as putting a well-insulated roof over the entire building, external insulation and high-performance replacement glazing was added to the lower levels. This completed the transformation of the entire envelope and lowered overall energy consumption. The roof also offers the opportunity for the future installation of a large photovoltaic array, which in turn will support the transition to air-source heat pumps. The new space created gives the client a quality of workspace commensurate with the work it is delivering for others, and has enhanced facilities for its staff.
The project is a template for the intensification of London’s brownfield industrial land through reuse of a low-quality building fabric, which is often demolished to facilitate new build. It also impressed the jury as a model for delivering low-energy, low-embodied-carbon workspace for London’s vital SMEs. The lead client, New Wave London founder Ziomek Wiertelak, merits commendation for driving such a successful project.
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