Breakthrough at our new Pennington Street Warehouse studio
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Breakthrough at our new Pennington Street Warehouse studio

Published on 25 September 2017

Significant progress has been made on the site of JTP’s new studio in Wapping, East London.

The Pennington Street Warehouse at London Dock was constructed between 1804 and 1806, and was originally designed for the storage of imported goods held in bond.

JTP received listed building consent for the creation of a mezzanine and studio facilities in March this year, and works on site have now reached a notable milestone.

The heart of the building has been opened up by the removal of the ground floor slab to create a triple height space, which will form the future hub of the new studio, and a place where employees can convene for lunch, presentations, meetings and events. 

24 June - the concrete ground floor slab has been removed, revealing the top of the brick arches beneath
14 July - the brick vaults are pinned in place in preparation for the opening up of JTP's triple height hub space
3 August - formwork in place for casting the new reinforced concrete ringbeam around the atrium in preparation for breaking through the vaults
18 August - the brick vaults are broken through and the bricks removed, leaving the supporting stone columns standing
7 September - the stone columns are removed and work begins creating a new entrance to the studio from Pennington Street

This key stage of work has had a transformational effect, enabling the drama of the atrium to be experienced and exposing the striking brick vaults that form the warehouse basement. Temporary support for the brick arches allowed the metre-thick concrete ground floor slab to be broken up, with the retained arches pinned in place with a new concrete ring beam cast around the new openings.

The warehouse is steeped in history, and the character of this remarkable building is preserved and incorporated into the future use of the warehouse as a contemporary workspace. The striking existing features such as the inset arches and dramatic vaulted basement will be utilised to create spaces to sit and work, creating a flexible and collaborative environment.

We’re excited to see our future studio start to take shape, and will share further updates in the coming months.