BDP have designed their own HQ in piccadilly basin
permission has been given. due to start early 2006.

the only reason I found out about this is bcs ive just email my cv to em.
and came accross it on their website.

I havent seen this before. 2 months old. I may av missed it. :runaway:

http://www.bdp.co.uk/flash/index.asp#newsArticle

It's already in the piccadilly basin thread.

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?p=4221050#post4221050

Already been discussed here.

http://www.lsh.co.uk/images/cms/bdp.jpg

BDP have announced the signing of the Agreement to Lease to take a new building for the company’s Manchester headquarters at Piccadilly Basin. Lambert Smith Hampton (LSH) was involved in developing, selecting and negotiating on behalf of BDP, GVA Grimley, Donaldsons and Hill Woolhouse acted on behalf of the developer, Town Centre Securities PLC.

BDP selected Piccadilly Basin as the ideal Manchester site and Town Centre Securities as its preferred developer to develop its new northern headquarters on Ducie Street after an extensive search. Planning permission has been obtained for the new building, extending to 31,000 sq ft, designed by BDP, which will accommodate its 275 strong Manchester team. The building is scheduled for completion in early 2008. BDP is to take a 20 year lease at a rental level of £19.75 per sq ft. Kier Northern has been appointed as the contractor.

The six storey building is to be located on a very tight site on the southern edge of the Piccadilly Canal Basin with eye catching glazed elevations cantilevered over the Rochdale and Ashton canals. It will provide highly energy efficient and flexible design studio space with dramatic views over the canal basin.

Stephen Redfern, Business Director at BDP, said: “BDP is delighted that construction work has now commenced on our new offices at Piccadilly Basin and that our relocation will assist in the regeneration of the area. The integrated design reflects BDP’s commitment to sustainability and is intended to achieve an Excellent BREEAM rating. The new design studios will provide a flexible working environment, responsive to change and showcase BDP’s design vision”.

Richard Lewis, Development Director, Town Centre Securities, said: “We are delighted to have attracted BDP to our major regeneration scheme in Manchester and that they shared our vision for producing quality sustainable buildings on this very important site.”

Peter Skelton, head of Lambert Smith Hampton’s Manchester office, commented: “This letting is the catalyst not only for Piccadilly Basin’s recognition as a major office location but also for the regeneration of the whole of the wider Piccadilly area, which is seeing significant development activity in both the commercial and residential sectors.”

http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u180/markydeedroppics/City%20Centre%202008/023-1.jpg

http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u180/markydeedroppics/City%20Centre%202008/020-1.jpg

http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u180/markydeedroppics/City%20Centre%202008/019-1.jpg

'Hammered stainless-steel' effect...

It's like the side of stealth ships..!

http://web.mac.com/b4mmy/iWeb/Site%202/Library%202_files/IMG_4452.jpg

http://web.mac.com/b4mmy/iWeb/Site%202/Library%202_files/IMG_4451.jpg

http://web.mac.com/b4mmy/iWeb/Site%202/Library%202_files/IMG_4450.jpg

http://web.mac.com/b4mmy/iWeb/Site%202/Library%202_files/IMG_4449.jpg

This and the Copper Clad Piccadilly Place are proving that metallic clad buildings can be very attractive if designed right.

I don't like the bumpy finish on the metal. Would look so much better if it was flat and smooth. What were they thinking?

I don't like the bumpy finish on the metal. Would look so much better if it was flat and smooth. What were they thinking?

You must detest the Guggenheim...

It looks great (and expensive). Particularly the wood. I must admit the basin side is a little fussy but it is still a very welcome addition to the area.

Cheers for the pic Bammy . the BDP building looks great i love it .

http://web.mac.com/b4mmy/iWeb/Site%202/Library%202_files/IMG_4449.jpg

http://www.nickgrayson.net/Gallery/Manchester's_Northern_Quarter_etc/images/IMG_0890.jpg

Here's a view of the front (just to the right of the stone entrance gate). Cheers for the image Comdot.

gshutty :)

BDP last april (i took a pic of it to put in the ISSA Quay listing on the website (http://www.skyscrapernews.com/buildings.php?id=626) but it's too small itself for skyscrapernews)
http://www.skyscrapernews.com/images/pics/626ISSAQuay_pic9.jpg

http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u180/markydeedroppics/City%20Centre%202008/035-2.jpg

http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u180/markydeedroppics/City%20Centre%202008/036-2.jpg

http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u180/markydeedroppics/City%20Centre%202008/037-3.jpg

http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u180/markydeedroppics/City%20Centre%202008/041-2.jpg

http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u180/markydeedroppics/City%20Centre%202008/042-2.jpg

With City Tower reflected in the windows...
http://i250.photobucket.com/albums/gg270/SteKnight/BDP150408.jpg?t=1208366280

From Manchester Confidential.

BDP headquarters and Piccadilly Basin

Phil Griffin appreciates the contribution a new swathe of steel brings to a burgeoning city area


The new Manchester HQ for architects BDP at 11 Ducie Street nonchalantly dips its toes into the water of Dale Street Lock like a reinvented Victorian bathing machine. The south elevation is a curving wrap - a “duvet”, according to project architect Gary Wilde - of stainless steel almost randomly perforated by narrow vertical windows and louvered slots. There’s considerably more wall than window. In contrast, the north elevation, overlooking Piccadilly Basin and the rich mix of buildings in this part of the Northern Quarter, is largely glass. The building is straightforward: six floors running east – west. Whilst it looks like no other building on the street, the timber, steel and glass feels like a fit.

This is a distinctive building designed to fit purpose and location. It feels like it was a good sketch at the time, that went ahead to keep on schedule. A bit more questioning might have hurt the schedule, but eased the strain on the finished building.

The entrance is in the east corner below the main stair tower. Come into reception and in front of you is the canal panorama. Main boardroom and cafe are on this level. Downstairs the building drops below the water. The glass wall means you are waist-deep in a pool of reflected light.

Moving up through the building, views and light keep coming. In the top space the curving roof, supported by tapering steel struts, passes through the glass wall, projecting over an outside terrace. The Douglas Fir-lined ceiling is broken by big circular skylights that open mechanically. BDP will be moving in here in mid-summer. The skylights could be useful. On the street side of each floor are what look like timber cupboards. Open the doors to reveal louvered ventilators drawing in air from the street. Environment management in the building begins to make sense.

http://www.propertyconfidential.com/images/bdp4.jpg


This is not a big building, 33,000 sq ft, but I get the feeling it’s generous. Two hundred and seventy people will work here. Most of the rest of us will only ever know it from outside. It has character. On the street it can be over-bearing. The curving steel duvet is unrelieved, shed-like, with no views in. The duvet doesn’t hit the ground. There’s a shallow run of brick and glass, and the whole arrangement hits the pavement on raking concrete pillars, like kitten heels. It’s either playful or a bit of a strain.

http://www.propertyconfidential.com/images/bdp5.jpg

This is a distinctive building designed to fit purpose and location. It feels like it was a good sketch at the time, that went ahead to keep on schedule. A bit more questioning might have hurt the schedule, but eased the strain on the finished building. Some of its neighbours are stinkers. Some are strong. Carver’s Warehouse, the Conran-designed apartments, and the Maghull apartment conversion across the basin give real identity to the area. The BDP building makes a positive contribution.

BDP’s landlord is Town Centre Securities, the Leeds-based developer that is building out Piccadilly Basin to a masterplan by Ian Simpson Architects. BDP has not included car parking in its scheme, suggesting the office will use existing car parks that will inevitably shrink as more buildings take up the space. Is this big swathe of car park at Dale Street being eaten up for the benefit of the city? Is Piccadilly Basin a good thing?

http://www.propertyconfidential.com/images/bdp2.jpg

Piccadilly Station, brilliantly reconfigured and reborn by BDP themselves, in the run-up to the Commonwealth Games, is a more important passenger terminus now than it has ever been. Piccadilly Place is thousands of square feet of new offices on London Road, and there’s a 22 storey tower scheduled to fill the gap next to 111 Piccadilly, the 1960’s tower that Bruntwood has spruced up.

Piccadilly Basin helps unlock Ancoats and East Manchester, and the Northern Quarter through to Victoria. BDP’s new Manchester office, is well sited. For a couple of decades the practice has been in Sunlight House, Joe Sunlight’s exuberant 1930’s mini-tower on Quay Street. The move across town puts them close to a new community of design, construction and communication people that includes Marketing Manchester, Martin Stockley engineers, Taylor Young and Ian Finlay architects and various communication and media companies in Ducie House and Four Ways House, amongst others.

http://www.propertyconfidential.com/images/bdp3.jpg
money and people to an area that needs critical mass. And it does so with flare and crowd-pleasing lack of restraint. This is characteristic of the present generation of the Manchester office of this long established international practice whose recent work includes the Abito apartments in Salford and the new Grandstand at Aintree.

11 Ducie Street is like going camping, pitching a tent next to water. How soon before we get the fishing rods out and launch a raft? Not much wrong with that either. Nothing you won’t see in Amsterdam, Hong Kong or Sydney. The top floor of the building is a bit like a primary school hall, though a good one at that. Each floor is perhaps a little too deep for people working on the street side not to have an aspect. The proof will be when people move in. I suspect their new studio will bring new energy to BDP, as the building does to Piccadilly Basin.

i really like the architecture. reminds me i need to get up and close and look at the scan building because i've not yet seen it looking any good.

Love this building, inside and out. Curves rock!

http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k103/samorost/UEDS/PiccadillyApt1.jpg

Giving the redstart a headstart

http://www.bbc.co.uk/manchester/content/images/2008/04/24/bdp_roof_203_203x152.jpg

One of the UK's rarest birds is being given a helping hand in Manchester. Architecture firm BDP has created a 'living roof' at its new headquarters with the hope of bringing back the elusive black redstart.

When BDP began designing its new office in Piccadilly Basin, its specialist Sustainability team was set the challenge of improving the ecological value of the new building.

Working closely with experts from The Greater Manchester Biodiversity Project and the urban regeneration group Living Roofs, they set out making the limited flat roof area into the preferred urban habit for the black redstart.

The roof uses recycled rubble and gravel taken from the building's own construction site which has been seeded with the redstarts' favoured vegetation.

Elusive

The black redstart is an elusive city dweller that somewhat strangely favours urban wastelands to live and breed.

In fact, the bird is said to have thrived after World War II with the huge numbers of bomb sites but its numbers have fallen with increasing redevelopment in the UK and is now one of the nation's rarest bird species.

The UK's entire breeding population of black redstarts is now put at at between just 80 - 100 pairs.

In Manchester, records state that between 1992-1997 they attempted to breed in the city and more recently they were reported to have bred in 2005 and 2006. It's thought that two or three pairs could still reside in the city - but despite efforts to track them down, they are hardly ever spotted.

Sustainable

In helping encourage Manchester's redstarts, BDP has also teamed up with the RSPB's Homes for Wildlife initiative. The RSPB will give BDP ongoing habitat advice to increase their chances of attracting the rare birds.

"The living roof should provide ideal feeding habitats for redstarts, helping these rare and delightful birds to make a home in the city"
Matthew Capper, RSPBMatthew Capper, of the RSPB's Northern England Region, said: "We are delighted that BDP are backing our Homes for Wildlife campaign and applaud the way they are creating rooftop habitat for black redstarts in Manchester.

"The living roof should provide ideal feeding habitats for redstarts, helping these rare and delightful birds to make a home in the city. Manchester has a growing reputation as a great place for urban birdlife and thanks to this initiative, black redstarts could soon become a more familiar part of the city's wildlife scene."

Gary Wilde, Architect Director at BDP, said: "In designing our new office we wanted to create a building which was as sustainable and environmentally-friendly as possible. During the planning we consulted with experts who have helped us develop the perfect habitat for the black redstarts.

"Now all we can do is wait to see if they want to make our building their new home."

Living roofs

Manchester City Council is encouraging living roofs as part of its goal to become Britain's greenest city. As well as providing wildlife habitats, they will also help the city adapt to climate change - absorbing carbon dioxide and helping prevent flooding by soaking up heavy rainfall, for example.

A wildlife-friendly living roof is also planned for the pavilion building in Piccadilly Gardens as part of an ongoing programme of improvements.

BDP is hoping to install a live webcam on the living roof to monitor any visits from redstarts or other wildlife. The new building itself will officially open this summer when over 250 staff will relocate.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/manchester/content/images/2008/04/25/black_redstart3_180_180x240.jpg

http://www.bbc.co.uk/manchester/content/articles/2008/04/24/redstart_headstart_manchester_feature.shtml

:)

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f85/garybaldy/CRW_3053.jpg

What a let down those cheap looking white window units are. Did the council install them for free? Such a contrast to the sublime front elevation.

Love longy's picture. Been trying to work out hgow to get BDP without cars in foreground. Never occurred to me to take the shot at dusk. Doh!

What a let down those cheap looking white window units are. Did the council install them for free? Such a contrast to the sublime front elevation.

don't tell me they're pvcu

http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f85/garybaldy/bdp.jpg

A fine picture, of a fine building. Good work Longford. :cheers:

Does anybody have any updates on Eider House which will sit next to BDP HQ? I've heard they're looking for a pre-let. It would really finish off that side of Picc Basin and looks from the renders like another high quality proposal.

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e321/carlf/Manchester/IMG_5727.jpg

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e321/carlf/Manchester/IMG_5729.jpg

how did you manage to capture that building on that street with NO CARS? well done

12:51 on a Saturday is always like that. Cheers Kev.

http://i168.photobucket.com/albums/u180/markydeedroppics/City%20Centre%202008/065-4.jpg

All the portakabins between the BDP building and the Car park have been removed today - it opens up the area nicely now and shows the potential for Piccadilly Basin - as long as yer keep yer eyes squinted when looking at Issa Quay so as not to see the crumbly bits.

the office is now open.
Those BDP people are happily working away in their new home.
Good on yer guys, you've produced a belter!

I heard a while back that BDP were laying people off, even some directors and associates got the chop, regular staff got to vote their favourites out.
democratcy at work, abit mean thou, but a good way to route the bad eggs out!

Nice little building. Work of art. Shame the faddy wood won't look good for long.

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e321/carlf/Manchester/IMG_5727.jpg



Cracking building :)

(And photo)

http://www.newcitycontracting.com/images/mainPhoto.jpg

Just found this:
Lift Restaurant in Vancouver. It could have been the BDP staff canteen.

Just found this:
Lift Restaurant in Vancouver. It could have been the BDP staff canteen.

Cheers macc! :)

For the last couple of weeks, i've actually been looking at the BDP Building (I work in Piccadilly Basin) and thinking "I'm sure i've seen something like that before!" but couldn't place it. Spent a bit of time in Vancouver a couple of years ago, never eaten in there, but thought it was a great looking building. Fantastic location too.

^^is that not the same architect then?

there's some BDP in cambridge... homerton college

http://*************************/cambridge/jpgs/bdp_cambridge_mhk2.jpg

only just realised it was BDP the other day. been there nearly 10 years. always thought it looked amazing, especially back when it was built.

check out the interior

http://*************************/cambridge/jpgs/bdp_cambridge_mhk3.jpg

Had to take this one handheld, so it's not come out all that well (and a bit overexposed!), but I love this building, and it looks cool lit up at night.

http://i389.photobucket.com/albums/oo332/phphotography/DSC02749.jpg

Shame about the dump next door...

From:http://www.insidermedia.com (http://www.insidermedia.com/nwest/property/daily_property_news1/index.html)

BDP goes for green building world title

Architects firm BDP’s Manchester studio has been shortlisted in the Green Buildings category at the MIPIM Awards, held at the international property exhibition in Cannes this March. The building faces competition from the Centre for Sustainable Energy Technologies in Ningbo, China and the Elm Park scheme in Dublin. Gary Wilde, the BDP director responsible for delivering the scheme, said: “I’m thrilled that our commitment to genuine sustainability has been recognised as a world-class example of low-carbon design. It has also brought BDP Manchester’s reputation for innovation and sustainability to a global audience.”

http://www.mipim.com (http://www.mipim.com/App/homepage.cfm?appname=100517&moduleid=288&campaignid=11888&iUserCampaignID=46453053)

Read yesterday in the MEN that BDP got a RIBA award this week for its new HQ near Piccadilly Station. I doubt it will win the Stirling - but just found this neat little film at the end of a press release which goes 'behind the scenes' of the office with the chairman Gavin Elliot. It looks quite cool on the inside as well as the outside.

http://www.visitnorthwest.com/news/bdp-wins-awards-for-buildings-in-manchester-and-liverpool/

^^