YY London

Canary Wharf is changing and a new generation of users and residents is arriving. As the estate’s expectations change, so must its buildings. YY London is the striking reimagination of a first-generation Canary Wharf building that is focused on the wellbeing of its occupants. Where the previous building was inward-looking, the new building gestures outwards, with more space for retail, restaurants and bars to enliven the public realm and connect with the wider estate. This was achieved by first reinvigorating the public realm and a key ‘face’ of Canary Wharf by improving the image of the building, entirely re-cladding the facade with continuous glazing to bring as much natural light as possible into the building and by creating a new entrance on its southeast corner. We then enhanced the arrival experience, with a triple-height reception defined by natural materials, digital artwork displays, signature furniture pieces and integrated breakout spaces. We created a wellbeing offering within the refurbished workspace that also includes a strong F&B offer at ground-floor with new restaurant and cafe spaces as well as refurbishing all vacant office areas, WCs and communal areas, whilst a pavilion at rooftop level is available for all the building’s users - for leisure or work. Finally, where the previous building had no outdoor spaces for tenants, we created a sequence of new spaces: one for every floor, including a large wraparound terrace for level 12. The large communal roof garden at level 14 has dense, varied planting and integrated outdoor furniture. A new high-performance façade, with solar control coatings, has reduced air permeability, and alongside highly efficient services has the overall energy demand of the building by 62%. The building incorporates demand-controlled ventilation, optimising energy use depending on occupancy, and has a calculated energy use intensity of 57.47kWh/m2 (NIA) – for landlord rated areas, in line with Nabers Design for Performance methodology. The building is all-electric, with rooftop photovoltaic panels, air source heat pumps, and mechanical ventilation with heat recovery. Avoiding demolition of the existing structure has saved 10,260 tonnes of CO2e. The completed building is BREEAM Outstanding; WELL Platinum enabled; has a Platinum WiredScore rating; and incorporates SMART technologies, being one of the first buildings in London to receive a SMARTScore Platinum rating.