The Leadenhall Building
Prime Square Services were appointed to undertake a comprehensive package of mechanical and public health services as part of refurbishment works at The Leadenhall Building, London, covering Levels 27, 28 and 29, together with critical infrastructure upgrade works within the basement.
The mechanical installation included new Low Temperature Hot Water (LTHW) and Chilled Water (CHW) distribution systems, connecting into the existing base-build services and distributing throughout the floors to serve new fan coil units and associated mechanical equipment.
PSS installed the associated pipework, valves, fittings and supports throughout the office, meeting, social and ancillary spaces. The works required careful coordination with other building services due to restricted ceiling voids and the high density of services within the building.
The public health package included the installation of new boosted cold water, hot water and hot water return services, supplying kitchens, tea points, washrooms, showers, changing facilities, cleaners' areas and other amenities.
New sanitary drainage systems were also installed to serve the various sanitaryware and kitchen facilities, with connections made back into the building's existing drainage infrastructure.
Thermostatic mixing valves and associated isolation valves, strainers, non-return valves and flow regulators were installed to the required outlets as part of the domestic water installation.
A particularly critical element of the project involved major alterations to the building's boosted cold water infrastructure within the basement. These works required a planned full building water shutdown over a weekend, making detailed planning, prefabrication and coordination essential. The system had to be successfully modified, tested and reinstated within the agreed shutdown period ready for normal building operation.
PSS upgraded and upsized the existing pipework serving the basement Megaflo cylinders, which provide hot water to the basement shower facilities. The new pipework was prefabricated stainless-steel pipework incorporating grooved mechanical fittings, allowing much of the installation to be prepared in advance and significantly reducing the work required during the critical shutdown period.
As part of the upgrade, PSS also installed a new upgraded PRV valve arrangement, together with new isolation valves, supports and associated modifications to the existing boosted cold water system.
The works were carefully sequenced so that as much of the new installation as possible could be completed while the existing system remained live. During the weekend shutdown, the building water services were isolated and drained down, redundant pipework removed, final connections completed and the new installation pressure tested before the system was fully reinstated.
With the shutdown affecting the entire building's water supply, completing the works safely and within the agreed weekend window was critical. The successful delivery demonstrates Prime Square Services' ability to undertake major live-building shutdowns, prefabricated pipework installations and complex mechanical and public health upgrades within one of London's most recognisable high-rise commercial buildings.