33 Davies Street
This contemporary building opposite Claridge’s Hotel, is situated within the Conservation Area of the Grosvenor Estate. Incorporating the essence of classical architecture, it is a powerful contribution to one of London’s most prestigious addresses.
Grosvenor Estates
Architect
HOK International
Contractor
Sir Robert McAlpine
Quantity Surveyor
Aecom
Working with the design team and contractor, our remit was to design, supply and deliver the façade to the ground floor retail spaces out of pure bronze. With an impressive 64m frontage that stretches along Davies Street, featuring a central entrance lobby formed from 3 double height porticos with bronze portcullis gates that lead to the concierge.
The architectural brief was demanding with a 100% bespoke extruded bronze system that needed to be matched exactly. Due to the dimensional tightness specified by the architect, this resulted in many dies and processes to produce precise extrusions from the highly sensitive material. This included external cappings, panelling, decorative access hatches and doors.
Trial runs were performed with aluminium to ensure the quality and precision could be achieved, before proceeding with the pure bronze which was then clad over an aluminium core to ensure that the building performance would still be achieved in a conventional glazing manner.
Included in the system were large doorsets to each retail unit which incorporated automatic assistance. Again, there were a number of challenges surrounding the extrusion of bespoke profiles which were clad over a steel core to achieve the robustness and ongoing continuity of door operation.
Fitting comfortably in its traditional surroundings, the grand entrance attracts the interest of passers by and leads into an imposing and beautifully finished reception area.
