Washroom Washroom makes off-site work at new Paddington central offices

Leading commercial washroom designer and manufacturer, Washroom Washroom, has utilised its off-site service to deliver the perfect design solution for a high specification office washroom and changing area.

4 Kingdom Street, the first building developed by British Land at Paddington Central, is a landmark nine-storey building encompassing a number of wellbeing design features including outside terraces; a ‘glass pod’ delivering a creative meeting space outside of the main floorplate; and a social rooftop space including a café, bar and London’s highest rooftop basketball court.

Washroom Washroom worked closely with Allies and Morrison and main contractor Wates Construction to create the unique washrooms and showers, designed to complement the high specification interior of the building. Washroom utilised its off-site construction methods in order to fine-tune the design before installation on site.

The full height Alto toilet cubicle doors, which are a key feature of the new washroom design, were specified with a real wood veneer finish, stained to match the solid Douglas fir timber panelling in the reception area. Washroom took the lead on this and undertook several trials, adjusting the colour of the stain until a near-perfect match for the distinctive pale grey Douglas fir was achieved. This delicate process was undertaken off-site at Washroom’s Essex factory, several months ahead of installation, saving valuable time on site and reducing the risk of costly changes to the design at a later stage.

The full-size mock-ups took into consideration the placement of existing windows, doors and lighting to create an accurate representation of the finished space. A photo was even taken looking out of the existing washroom window and this image was then blown up to the exact size of the window, allowing the client the opportunity to view the washroom as close to finished as possible. Once the design was approved, the washrooms were deconstructed and stored safely at the factory ready to be delivered to site just in time.

As well as the distinctive Douglas fir real wood veneer finish, the toilet cubicles also incorporate a bespoke iPad holder as part of the design. The full-height Alto cubicles feature a flush front design to create an attractive, virtually seamless façade – ideal for a high specification office washroom.

Washroom also manufactured bespoke vanity units with cast polished concrete tops manufactured by MASS Concrete and integral waste bins. Its attractive Tego hinged mirror unit was fitted above the sinks to provide a neat and compact hidden storage solution for essential washroom consumables.

The new staff shower and changing room area which Washroom installed in the basement at 4 Kingdom Street features full height Alto FENIX shower cubicles for an ultra matt, high performance finish, along with Z style Forza solid grade laminate lockers.

Greg Holme, associate director at Allies and Morrison said “Washroom were helpful and patient, especially regarding getting the Douglas fir stain exactly right. They also recommended the concrete manufacturer for the vanities, who went on to supply concrete flooring for the main reception and concrete treads for the feature stair.

“The washroom mock-up was part of our specification and was vital to the success of this project. Washroom worked closely with us to deliver exactly what we were looking for and I know the client is happy with the end result.”

Trevor Bowers, director at Washroom Washroom added “One of the defining trends of commercial washrooms in recent years is the demand for more expensive and unusual materials so taking the time to make sure the design is perfect at the earliest stage is essential. Creating full-scale mock-ups is an invaluable tool for projects like this to help clients visualise the complete washroom design months ahead of installation, making the whole process more efficient.”