International House

Client: Blackstone

International House is a largescale office building, retrofit by JRA for client Blackstone. The warehouse style development is situated within St Katherine’s Dock, a lively collection of mixed use buildings set on the marina and situated immediately east of the grade listed Tower of London, opposite to Tower Bridge.

Spanning 9,000m2, the comprehensive refurbishment saw updates to the cladding, glazing, and lighting, in keeping with the heritage of its conservation area setting. Internally, JRA has implemented a creative warehouse aesthetic across the office floors by reintroducing the original brickwork, exposing the overhead services, and utilising a palette of complimentary, industrial materials such as stripped timber and copper. At the same time as these updates, JRA increased the lettable space in the building and provided new amenity areas. At ground level, International House offers both a restaurant and a business lounge for collaborative working, beneath which JRA has installed extensive cycle facilities. In addition, occupants have exclusive access to a spacious terrace offering breath-taking views across London.

A number of strategies ensured that the project minimised environmental impact. These included high efficiency thermal glazing, which increased internal light and will reduce heat loss in use, and material choices like the extensive use of timber that dramatically reduced the carbon footprint of the designs compared to conventional fit out materials.