Moor House, London
Project Overview :
As part of our ongoing partnership with Savills property managers, we were asked to support them and the team at Moor House in the specialist cleaning, refurbishment, and maintenance of the external façades.
Moor House is an iconic building, constructed primarily of glass, stainless steel and aluminium, located in Moorgate, London. With two traditionally flat façades and two giant statement curved façades, the building almost takes on the appearance of an optical illusion. The 19 storey building stands at 84 metres tall, with 29,000 square meters of prime real estate in the busy financial district. As one of the first buildings you see when you exit Moorgate tube station, it is impossible to miss. In recent years, the façade has seen little in the way of detailed maintenance and repairs, beyond regular glazing cleaning and reactive repair.
The repair and refurbishment of the external façade of Moor House is a pivotal project, not only for the client but also for the City of London. Proactive and targeted façade maintenance will support the building both now, as the refurbishment commences, and into the future.
We are carrying out complete external façade refurbishment, specialist restoration and refurbishment, to the glazing, aluminium, and stainless steel, including specialist cleaning, leak detection and repair, replacement of cappings, and gasket replacement, with the use of rope access and cradles.
What are we working on?
- Deep cleaning of all glazing, aluminium, and stainless steel
- Leak detection surveys and repair to all façade elements
- Replacement and repair of aluminium cappings
- Steam cleaning and redecoration of low-level soffits and concrete pillars
- Sourcing and replacement of bespoke gaskets
Difficulties/Challenges
- Multiple access strategy, utilising abseiling, cradle, and MEWPs, to maximise programme delivery and reduce weather delays
- A fully occupied, multiple tenant building with high security and sensitive clients, requiring specific working patterns and an understanding of each tenants’ unique security protocols
- Located within one of London’s busiest districts and surrounded by ongoing developments, the project required safe delivery via collaborative communication with the developers, councils and Transport for London
Methodologies
We had to use various access methods including abseiling, MEWP, and cradle to be able to reach all aspects of a façade of this shape. We are able to carry out steam cleaning, including deep cleaning with the use of specialist pH-neutral cleaning solutions including a combination of degreasers and cremes, to breakdown and remove the ingrained soiling, de-ionised water and reach-and-wash glazing cleaning systems. Also, the removal of corrosion with hand and power tools and the application of anti-corrosion and hydrophobic coatings systems using airless sprayers and traditional methods such as brush and roller.
As an iconic, architectural statement, many of the materials and designs used in the development of Moor House were unique. The sourcing and fitment of new gaskets, cappings and other materials was therefore a non-standard and bespoke process, requiring discussions and negotiation with suppliers in order to ensure the correct bespoke materials were used.