White Collar Factory at Old Street Yard

As a naturally-ventilated spec-office with a focus on smart servicing, flexibility and adaptation to future uses and likely future climate, the White Collar Factory (WCF) at Old Street Yard is a brave and bold iteration of our five-year research project for Derwent London. A 16-storey tower is placed at the epicentre of London’s Tech City; Silicon Roundabout. Behind it, a redundant service yard is transformed into a new public realm. A series of new alleys and passages connect the square and the tower to two retained buildings and three new ones – all between four to five storeys. Together, they offer a mix of living and working spaces to make a new place in the city. A full-scale working prototype (a 325m2 slice of an entire floor) currently stands on stilts on the site to demonstrate to prospective occupiers exactly how it looks and works. Featuring big spans, flexible floor plates, operable windows, generous volumes and robust construction, it’s a ‘new’ office building type that takes its cues from the multi-level factory typology.