Computacenter

One of the most significant design moves was rethinking how the building’s best spaces were used. Employee breakout space had previously occupied the windowless lower-ground floor, while the upper floor’s views towards The Shard were largely underused. AIS reversed that hierarchy, transforming the top floor into a staff breakout and collaboration destination.

Flexible collaboration space, integrated AV, the boardroom and workspace now support everything from informal meetings to larger gatherings. The lower-ground floor was repurposed for auditorium-style training, bookable collaboration and project war-room settings.

The ground floor became a dedicated client destination, easing congestion from high meeting volumes. New lounge settings, upgraded meeting rooms and integrated technology create an experience more closely aligned with Computacenter’s technology-led business.

Across the workplace floors, collaboration areas, informal settings and phone pods provide greater variety, while the balance of meeting rooms was shifted towards smaller spaces better suited to hybrid working. Tea points sit alongside collaboration areas to encourage spontaneous interaction, with oak and lighter timbers, black and white accents and brighter blue details creating a contemporary palette with subtle links to Computacenter’s identity.

Wellbeing and inclusion are embedded throughout, with showers and heated lockers for active commuters, a prayer room, wellbeing and mother’s room, and a sensory retreat for neurodivergent employees.

Transforming six floors while Computacenter remained fully operational required careful sequencing, communication and coordination throughout delivery.

The refurbishment was completed in phases across the entire building, including the lower ground, broadly working through three floors at a time. The ground and lower-ground floors were addressed first before work progressed through the remaining levels.

Throughout construction, Computacenter continued to occupy the building and host significant numbers of clients. Teams worked within designated zones as the programme moved through the office, allowing day-to-day business activity to continue alongside the transformation.

Clear and consistent communication was central to the approach, helping employees and clients navigate the changing environment while maintaining momentum across the programme. The result was a substantial live-workplace transformation delivered without requiring the business to stand still.

Furniture played a central role in moving Blackfriars away from a desk-dominated environment towards a more agile workplace.

AIS reviewed the furniture and joinery provision floor by floor, considering how each setting could support a different type or duration of work. Reducing the permanent workstation count created space for a significantly broader range of touchdown, informal and collaborative settings, increasing touchdown provision from just 14 positions to 118.

Rather than replicating a fully ergonomic workstation everywhere, the furniture strategy creates appropriate settings for shorter periods of individual work alongside permanent desks, collaboration spaces, meeting rooms and quieter environments.

Flexibility was built into the specification so settings can be reconfigured as teams and requirements change. Together with the revised workplace layout, this gives Computacenter greater capacity to adapt the office over time rather than designing around a fixed way of working.