A Comprehensive Refurbishment

On Friday, May 24, 2024, residents and visitors in the City of London, U.K., stopped in their tracks by the sight of a large piece of machinery being craned 250 feet (75 meters) into the sky.

This carefully planned operation, which required the closure of major City roads such as Fenchurch Street, was the installation of energy-efficient air-source heat pumps (AHSP) onto the roof of 30 Fenchurch Street.

Acquired by Brookfield Properties in 2021, the 545,000-square-foot (50,000-square-meter) development recently underwent a comprehensive refurbishment to enhance its amenity offering and sustainability credentials, marking a significant improvement in the building’s occupier experience.

HDR was appointed by leading commercial real estate manager and developer Brookfield Properties, to provide a wide range of services, including mechanical, electrical and public health (MEP), asset management, engineering, commissioning and operations, as well as sustainability and resiliency.

Decarbonization

Following the successful heat pump installation, the building is now run on 100% renewable electricity. Once complete, the works will dramatically reduce the carbon intensity of the building’s operations from 45kgCO2e/m²/year in 2023 to 8.5kgCO2e/m²/year by 2030, in line with “The Paris Agreement” 1.5°C target. Enabled through careful stakeholder engagement facilitated by Brookfield Properties’ Accelerate Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) programme, this phased capital expenditure (CapEx) work was undertaken without displacing any tenants from the building.

The scope of HDR’s involvement spans the entire level 14 as well as the renovation of the ground-floor reception, design of new facilities utilising the existing loading bay and car park spaces. A 10-year Planned Preventative Maintenance (PPM) study, and a long-term decarbonization strategy will help 30 Fenchurch Street achieve sought–after environmental certifications.

The PPM study focused on a plant maintenance programme and asset management. HDR experts compiled all relevant data on the boilers, which are approaching the end of life, and developed a detailed step-by-step replacement plan for the next 10 years, enabling the client to make informed decisions and allocate resources appropriately.

The decarbonization strategy for 30 Fenchurch Street, prepared by HDR in collaboration with industry partner TClarke, focuses on improving the energy performance certificate (EPC), rating from an ‘E’ to a ‘B’, thus meeting existing and upcoming regulatory obligations and targeting obsolescence issues. We carried out a complex and holistic analysis of the potential upgrades of various systems, including feasibility, taking into consideration how these systems intersect. This resulted in an energy model, informed by tenant behavior, which determines the building's current performance and how each incremental proposed change, such as efficiencies of air handling units or introduction of light-emitting diode (LED) lighting, can influence the EPC. At the time of writing, the EPC ‘B’ rating has now been achieved and has been lodged with the accreditation body, much to the delight of the client.

As part of the decarbonization effort, our experts developed studies for a variety of boiler replacement options, analysed installed loads against building consumption data, proposed numerous upgrades, including MEP plant, building management system (BMS) and electrical infrastructure, and updated energy metering to meet heat network regulations.

Taking the Client on a Journey

HDR collaborated with the client by producing a comprehensive document akin to a menu, taking into consideration energy usage, costs and asset lifecycle, creating a flexible step-by-step roadmap towards energy efficiency goals.

The switch to AHSPs was one of the choices made by client. AHSPs are regarded as a highly sustainable alternative to conventional gas boilers, as they extract existing heat from the surrounding air and run on electricity. The installation of the units in May 2024 was a prelude to a major milestone for 30 Fenchurch Street, namely the switchover from fossil-fuel–powered boilers to AHSPs in the summer of 2025. This effort, due to its magnitude and the building's premium location, is one of the first and will set the standard for future carbon–conscious refurbishments.

Dean Manning, Brookfield Properties senior vice president, construction services, U.K. office division, commented:

“30 Fenchurch stands as one of the first major gas replacement projects of its scale within the City of London, demonstrating our commitment to a net zero future. Working alongside our industry partners, including HDR, we’re delivering meaningful progress that aligns with our broader sustainability goals and supports a healthier, more sustainable environment for our occupiers.”

All refurbishment works were completed while the building remained fully operational, utilizing an intricate phased approach to minimise any tenant disruption. This was informed by Brookfield Properties desire to reuse existing infrastructure, which enabled HDR to take advantage of existing pipework to switch over a number of the old systems with the new ones. Additional challenges included a lack of access to digital operations and maintenance (O&Ms), prompting new surveys on existing plant and kit at all stages of the development.

HDR's Mark Parson, project director for 30 Fenchurch Street, stated:

“Owners and occupiers are constantly being challenged by the ever changing building regulations, especially regarding the improvement of energy performance. We help to create resiliency through these comprehensive upgrades of building engineering services, as part of a sympathetic refurbishment effort. This approach remains attractive for existing and potential tenants, as the industry strives towards a net zero future. I have recently received feedback that operational energy figures and costs have been significantly reduced after implementing HDR’s Engineering Design. There are no gas bills now. The electricity bills and energy consumption have reduced too. This is incredible given that all the gas heating has been replaced by electricity and yet there is still a significant saving as a result of all the efficiency improvements.”