Cooperative Group Head Office, Manchester

The 16 storey Co-operative Group headquarters represents the first phase in the redevelopment and regeneration of the Co-op’s 20-acre site, located at the city’s northern gateway. The structure includes around 30000m² of open plan office space, providing modern working facilities for the Co-op’s staff. The client wanted the project to be a sustainable landmark by becoming the first building in Manchester to achieve a BREEAM ‘Outstanding’ rating.

The centre of the building is hollow, as a large triangular atrium extends from ground floor all the way up to a sloping roof, a glazed structure that follows the line of terracing that slopes down from level sixteen to nine. To coordinate the structural engineering, architecture and building services, 3D BIM technology was used. The software also provided energy models. Using the building’s thermal mass formed a key part of the design, with concrete planks left exposed within the steel frame.

“It’s very much a bespoke design chosen to achieve the highest BREEAM rating, with the large atrium allowing natural daylight to penetrate the floorplates and an exposed soffit maximising the thermal mass,” says Paul Richardson, Buro Happold Project Engineer. “Steel was the natural choice for the framing material as it gives us the required large column free floors levels and the option for future flexibility within the building.”

A detailed video case study can see by clicking Video_case_studies#The_Co-operative_Group_Head_Office.2C_Manchester here