Ilona Rose House: Electrical Shell & Core

Standing proudly on Charing Cross Road, Ilona Rose House is built on the former site of the famous Foyles bookshop. The 13-storey mixed-use development is purpose-built to meet the individual needs of Soho Estates’ tenants, and is just around the corner from Tottenham Court Road station.

Ilona Rose House is a truly unique addition to Soho and sets itself apart from London’s landscape with its unique design which boasts glass-reinforced concrete cladding, patinated brass and a rose-patterned pale pink and cantilevered façade.

Aiming to anchor the film and creative industries in Soho, the building provides bespoke technical spaces and studios as well as high-quality office space, shops and restaurants, an art gallery, nightclub, rooftop terrace, and eight residential apartments.

Gratte Brothers Building Services & Engineering (GBL) was appointed to provide the electrical shell and core services package which achieved practical completion three days early by Sir Robert McAlpine and Soho Estates. The installation included works across four levels of basement, eight above-ground floors and the roof level which housed the major plant equipment.

The package delivered transformers, a generator, bus bar risers for tenants and landlord areas, lighting control, emergency lighting, fire detection and alarm equipment, distribution boards and switches, medium-low and high voltage switchboards and all associated design, logistics and commissioning work.

Gratte Brothers was also responsible for installing the building’s solar farm which consisted of 355W photovoltaic panels across 223m2 of the building’s roof area, providing an estimated 42,948kwh of electricity per annum. In addition to this environmental credential, Ilona Rose House was also recognised as the first building in London to use a minimum of 75% recycled aluminium in its façade – saving 326 tonnes of CO2 emissions.