Dubbed London’s most important development in the past 25 years, the International Quarter London (IQL) is a modern business neighbourhood built by property developer, Lendlease. Located in east London’s up-and-coming Stratford, the 22-acre site boasts 333 new homes, 4 million sq. ft. of Grade A office space and is connected to the 560 acres of parkland in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

Ambar Kelly worked on the S9 phase of the IQL development alongside the client Lendlease, architects Roger Stirk Harbour + Partners, consultants Arup, concrete frame contractor Byrne Bros, and M&E contractor T Clarke. Ambar Kelly’s innovative, full riser zone solution, RiserSafe^®, was specified for the construction of S9, a commercial office building named 2 Redman Square which is now home to the British Council and Cancer Research UK.

RiserSafe^® ticked many boxes when it came to safety and sustainability during and post-construction. As RiserSafe^® seals every floor opening at every level of a building, working from height can be completed in perfect safety. RiserSafe^® also negates the need for temporary handrails, which are an added cost and cause risk. RiserSafe^® seals floor openings in one action, and therefore provides horizontal fire protection, preventing the spread of smoke and flame in the event of fire during construction. RiserSafe^® has been tested for 90 minutes at the British Research Establishment (BRE) with a temperature of 1000^oC underneath without failure to its integrity. When used in conjunction with a fire-stopping compound, RiserSafe^® has been tested to assure fire stopping protection of over 120 minutes, passing integrity and insulation requirements.

Furthermore, S9 has been rated BREEAM Excellent for its sustainability credentials. As the project teams selected RiserSafe^® for this phase of the build, they were able to deliver a solution which met with the sustainability aspirations. This may have not been the case if alternative products with high embodied carbon content were used.

This project marked Ambar Kelly’s first collaboration with fully coordinated 3D modelling using Trimble Tekla software, which enabled the 3D RiserSafe^® design to be integrated, viewed and reviewed alongside the structural models and the M&E designs from T Clarke. A highly successful collaboration met with praise from all parties, Ambar Kelly has since gone on to secure further work with Lendlease including 1 Triton square, Oxford House, the Google Building, 6-8 Bishopsgate and Richmond House on the Parliamentary Estate.

Completed on time and to specification, Ambar Kelly is thrilled to have been part of the S9 phase of the IQL project, which has produced a striking commercial building that is at the forefront of sustainable design in the UK.