Background

Occupying a full city block, Bloomberg was designed by architects Foster + Partners, and constructed by Sir Robert McAlpine at a cost of £1bn.

The building was was awarded the Stirling Prize iin 2018, with the judges calling it a “once-in-a-lifetime” building that has “not just raised the bar for office design and city planning but smashed the ceiling.”

Requirement

Ultra-high specification, movable planters were required for the ground level hospitality and civic spaces known as the Bloomberg Arcade.

Solution

128 IOTA planters were commissioned for the spaces under and around the Bloomberg building. The high specification, complex design included:

Custom-sized gland plates

Internal to the planters, the custom-sized gland plates accommodate electrical supply units to allow retail sites to integrate custom arrangements of outdoor lighting and heating apparatus.

Magnet secured hinged doors

The gland plates are accessed via hinged doors, secured by quality Neodymium magnets, able to withstand reverberation caused by transit on uneven surfaces. The hinged doors also allow the end user access to the castors.

Lockable and height adjustable castors

The movable planters are fitted with castors which are both lockable and height adjustable, to cater for multi-directional falls within the Arcade.

Metalite Zinc Age finish

The planters are finished with the high-spec, ultra-durable ‘Metalite Zinc Age’ system finish, by Bradleys Metal Finishers.

Project responsibilities

IOTA’s planters were commissioned by ISG Fit Out Limited on behalf of Bloomberg LP. The essential design concept was by Foster + Partners. IOTA’s responsibilities covered design detailing and development, and value engineering,