Case Study: Cooper Weston’s Modern Office Refit In Shoreditch

ECN takes a look inside a modern office refit in Shoreditch by Cooper Weston for Forever Beta.

In recent years professional offices have become part of a new design culture where the spaces become aspirational and stylish, with the aim of being memorable and welcoming to both staff and guests. For any business operating in the competitive environment of London, an office is a signifier of success and a vehicle to attract highly skilled employees and big budget clients.

Recently, Sussex and London based Cooper Weston Electrical Contractors, owned by Stuart Cooper and Shane Weston, worked alongside professional design company Stoica on a total office refurbishment for Forever Beta in Shoreditch, London, resulting in a striking working environment for both the full-time creative agency occupying the space and additional hotdesk coworkers in the heart of the City.

The 12-week project reimagined the 7,000ft² old printworks into a versatile and contemporary space. Cooper Weston and its team of fully trained NICEIC contractors installed all new containment, steel conduit and perimeter trunking throughout. The team had to ensure they had a clear understanding of the office requirements and needs of the company as it launched in new premises.

For safety and to achieve the best results, the team installed both new power and data circuits throughout the entire office as well as running and splicing a new fibre line into the building. A new comms cabinet was supplied, installed and integrated into the design to allow both easy access and an aesthetically pleasing system for ongoing maintenance.

Jo Lunn, in charge of new business at Forever Beta, highlights that the quote from Cooper Weston was competitive, which included all the cabling the company required for its office move. She states: “The building is a large two-story warehouse that was an empty shell, with a two-story separate smaller office. Cooper Weston made sensible recommendations, met every deadline and were extremely diligent. Having dealt with lots of suppliers during our move, I can honestly say that working with Cooper Weston has been a pleasure.”

Each element of the electrics was planned based on the usage of the company moving in and were required to maximise performance and minimise the level of ongoing maintenance required by staff. The set-up needed to accommodate the large area reliably and an initial task for Cooper Weston was to understand the different spaces that would be created.

Project manager Cyril, from Stoica, comments: “On this specific job we needed to install about 150 data points and make adjustments to the power outlets in perimeter trunking as well as installing high level Wi-Fi points and a comms cabinet to service the ground floor and first floor areas. We also had to run power and make provision for feature lighting to be installed. All works were done with an exposed ceiling and concrete floor. Loads of metal conduit had to be installed and they used the existing metal tray to house all the power and data cables.”

Crafting unique environments

Working to a tight deadline, Cooper Weston used its expertise to craft multiple parts of the warehouse style office to have clearly defined purposes, creating variety for staff and different spaces ideal for the various and often complex needs of working life.

Combining practicality with style, the kitchen was fully fitted out with feature lighting for the dining area. Above a high level wooden food bench, three matching rise and fall ceiling lights, complete with energy saving lightbulbs, now provide soft lighting for eating and relaxing on breaks.
In two glass sectioned meeting style rooms, LED linear lighting suspends from the ceilings emitting natural light, matching those installed in the main office space. The benefits of these fixtures include an accentuation of the interiors, showcasing its size and quality design.

Stuart Cooper recognises the importance of the scope of modern electrics, saying: “It’s important for us to know that the work we do is both perfect technically and in the context of where it will be used and appreciated for years to come. Once you have all safety and spec requirements met you can be creative and offer something exciting to your client.

“This project is also an example of how we collaborate with designers to ensure total satisfaction. The rise and fall ceiling lighting in the kitchen was sourced and installed in keeping with the colour scheme and overall branding.”

Within the meeting rooms, Stuart and Shane oversaw the TV set-ups, including HDMIs and Category 6 cables to ensure a safe and reliable connection at all times.

Internal to external transition

The client for this office space also required external lighting on the multi-storey property to enable them the use of an outside space for hosting evening events, such as mixers and staff socials. Cooper Weston sourced and fitted a practical and stylish selection of feature lighting on an attractive outside space.

Choosing to complete this full scope refurbishment with Cooper Weston ensured the quality and design stayed consistent and that both internal and external lighting would offer a smooth transition over the threshold.

Shane concludes: “This high end commercial office project in Shoreditch is a perfect example of what can be achieved through collaborative efforts and strong communication. We’re pleased with the result and will continue to apply our full service, tailored approach on future refurbishment projects within the capital and throughout Sussex and Surrey.”