The Cavell Street site, spanning 0.21 hectares adjacent to the Royal London Hospital, is designed to become a landmark life science building that promotes biomedical research and collaboration. This project aims to deliver a shell and core building with the flexibility for wet labs to be positioned throughout the floor plate, enabling multi-tenancy for small to medium-sized companies. Additionally, the facility will include incubator space for emerging startups. The design accommodates containment level 2 (CL2) laboratory operations, addressing the necessary specialist logistics, mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP) requirements, alongside robust structural performance.

Key challenges included the site footprint, which measures 125 meters in length and 18 meters in width, complicating the creation of an efficient speculative lab layout. The landlocked nature of the site necessitates smart construction techniques to optimise the footprint while integrating specialist deliveries, such as lab gases and liquid nitrogen, into the design. The project also required navigating complex local planning requirements, including nine pre-applications, public consultations, and collaboration with the Greater London Authority (GLA). To maximise return on investment, the team focused on balancing massing efficiencies with the need to minimise daylight impact on neighbouring properties, ultimately achieving an expected net internal area of 120,000 sqft with a net to gross ratio of 72%-75%.