The project involved the refurbishment of the existing space to a high standard and the design of the new office facility for CBL Insurance.

We worked closely with the outgoing tenant and landlords to secure important elements for our client as part of the package of the assignment of the lease, including securing a sizeable monetary contribution from the outgoing tenant to cover ‘dilapidations’ and retaining some useful elements of the previous fit-out for use by our clients as well as a small rent free period from the landlord.

We handled all the landlords requirements in terms of information, plans and specifications, including HVAC to cover both the build and the lease assignment.

Apart from the general office requirements, CBL Insurance, being a New Zealand company with head offices in Auckland, had a detailed requirement for highly effective visual and audio communication and presentations facilities between London and Auckland and other world wide office.

Of particular note our role included procuring specialist contractors to bring together a design and then facilitate the installation of a state of the art boardroom facility accommodating twenty people in a high quality boardroom environment able to video conference with minimal technological interference of any kind both to the presenter or the audience, whether they were in the room or not.

The end result is an environment where a person anywhere in the room can normally converse and present (without any visible equipment in place) but where the presentation is as if the person were virtually in the room across the other side of the world being communicated with. The obvious benefit of the bringing together of the latest state of the art video communications equipment in a quality setting is to ensure that the people involved can experience a high quality presentation or briefing because the person(s) giving the brief can do so with absolutely minimal technological knowledge or input throughout.

Other notable elements included the incorporation of an open café area delivering informal meeting facilities as well as pleasant working and breakout facilities for the London staff.