Sony Music

Cundall were originally appointed to assist Sony Music in relocating their London headquarters (housing 900+ employees) from Kensington to Kings Cross, providing consultancy through the building search and technical due diligence phases.

A potential solution was identified in the 160,000ft² space in the S1 building in Kings Cross. We then helped negotiate key tenant variations pre-lease in order to achieve Sony's vision. This included the provision of internal stairs and atria, event/live music spaces and recording/podcasting studios. Staff facilities would include a café, library, commercial kitchen and centrepiece canteen. IT operations would be supported by critical power and cooling solutions. The project was then designed to RIBA stage 4 and procured with Traditional + GMP model to provide minimum risk for the client.

Already a hub for creative, tech and music businesses, Sony Music's £40m HQ stands out against other projects in the area. By opting to take the space from shell and core, the scheme had substantial flexibility, allowing for the creation of internal feature stairs and atria across all seven floors. We were also able to substantially reduce the waste that would have been generated from modifying a Cat A install.

Creating the internal voids for the atria was a particular challenge, and we worked collaboratively with the base build team, fire engineers and Morey Smith to introduce the necessary smoke management systems to office floor plates where none were previously intended. The successful amendments to the base build scheme and integration to the architectural finishes, security features and cause and effect testing meant no smoke curtains had to be deployed and escape was protected, even from the cantilevered board room spaces.