Pennington Street Warehouse is a Grade II listed building, constructed between 1804 and 1806 as part of the London Dock. Originally designed for the storage of imported goods, the design brief was to refurbish and convert the warehouse into mixed-use commercial units. This project repurposes the warehouse into a series of lettable workplace spaces within the former rum, wine and spice stores.
The warehouse is a two-storey brick structure extending over 300m long. It was founded on a network of timber piles submerged deep within the marshy ground beneath. The conversion of such historic warehouses involves considerable challenges. Large openings in the existing brick-vaulted ground floor have been designed using raking Cintec anchors and reinforced concrete ground beams that prevent the remaining brick vaults from spreading but still allow existing clearances within the basement spaces to be retained.
While most of the original roof was destroyed during WWII bombardment, eight original timber trusses have been carefully relocated and preserved. A steel-framed roof is installed along the full length of the building, incorporating vast glazed roof lights to flood internal spaces with natural light.
An elegant steel-framed canopy creates a striking entrance to the development at the western end of the warehouse. Mezzanine floors, designed with a striking combination of both steel and timber, provide tenants with an option to substantially increase the lettable area of each unit.
External terraces have been designed to incorporate outdoor spaces for tenants along a quayside promenade. To avoid the need for additional piles, the external terraces are supported by a series of steel ‘gallows bracket’ frames hanging from the building’s external walls.
