Workplace

Commissioned to deliver a CAT A signage project by architect, Sheppard Robson, on behalf of contractor, Mace Group, Signbox went on to devise a compelling solution for the architect’s ambitious bar code scheme that would create an exhilarating visual impact within the building’s vast, double-height reception space.

One Bartholomew is a 12-storey, 221,000 sq.ft office building with stunning views over Barts Square, St Pauls and the City skyline and is owned by property investor, Helical plc. Its ground floor is now dominated by the remarkable installation that spells out the building’s name in bar code and the commanding presence of its unique neon composition has led to a remarkable transformation for users and visitors of this cutting-edge space.

This was, however, to prove a demanding project, as Greg Bailey, Senior Project Manager at Signbox, revealed. “Creating a solution that would articulate the architect’s vision was not without its difficulties,” he explained. ‘The complex cabling and environmental factors had initially seemed insurmountable but, after much collaboration and feasibility research, our team devised a solution that would enable us to interpret and execute the scheme to achieve the desired impact.

“The project was not without its physical challenges either – the installation was huge, weighing in at almost a metric tonne and measuring 15,000 x 3,000mm overall. Maintaining the physical integrity of the unit along with the elaborate lighting and cable systems that would support it, meant we had to come up with a highly imaginative approach to both the manufacture and delivery of this project.”

The installation is suspended in front of a mechanically fixed stone wall cladding system and recessed lighting troughs were required to render the intricate LED cabling invisible. The lighting raft was also a substantial size – it was manufactured in aluminium in five, three-metre sections so it could be transported to the new building ready for assembly on site. The face elements of the bar code were fabricated from a specialist Perspex that would optimise the installation’s colour performance and impede any potential LED hotspots, while 3M translucent vinyls ensured the precise colour gradients could be achieved and present this ingeniously branded signage exercise to best effect.

Indeed, such has been the impact of the installation on this City space, it has fast-become a referenced landmark for visitors to One Bartholomew, and also to those in its immediate vicinity where the illuminated bar code is projected across the interior space – and out onto the streets outside.