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Arup partners with Overbury to create its fourth largest Global office in Birmingham City Centre

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Mat Lovell Mat Lovell Marketing Manager,Solihull
6 February 2023

Arup has reached a key milestone in the relocation of its fourth largest global office as it begins fit out of the new Birmingham city office at One Centenary Way in Paradise Birmingham. Started in January and delivered in partnership with fit-out specialists Overbury, the fit-out project brings to life plans which will see Arup push the boundaries of intelligent building design and sustainable fit-out options.

Mark Jones, Birmingham Office Leader (L) and Andrew Wood, Managing Director, Overbury (R) at One Centenary Way

This office will play a significant part within the Arup ambition to reach Net Zero Carbon target by 2030. Working closely with developer MEPC, One Centenary Way will be the first building in the Paradise development with all-electric heating. Overbury will install a suite of SMART sensors to enable dynamic monitoring and future learning around utilisation, comfort, and energy use in workspaces throughout the office. To minimise embodied carbon of the fit out, a natural and recycled material pallet will be incorporated into elements of the design, such as carpets, paints, and internal aesthetics.

As the first international building standard to focus exclusively on human health and wellness in the built environment, the office will achieve WELLTM Building Platinum Certification; further enhancing Arup’s commitment to its own employees providing additional workspaces to support neurodiversity, wellbeing, and inclusivity. Understanding the future office need to compete with the highly personalised home working arrangements, a variety of workplace settings, social areas, wellbeing areas, creative spaces and focus zones will be provided.  To align with Arup core values, additional bike storage, lockers and shower facilities will also be installed to support active travel and overall wellbeing.

The fit out also includes a dedicated café with an invitation to local social enterprises to operate the café in partnership. A flexible open-plan gallery ground floor space will give Arup a shop window to introduce the diverse Birmingham communities to Arup and engage with them in knowledge sharing and innovation whilst supporting the wider city region arts, culture, and education.

“

Our partnership with Overbury will help us to deliver the exciting next chapter of the Arup journey of more than 60 years in the Midlands. By combining our deep research into ways of working and wellbeing, linked to our own innovation, our new office will be a brilliant showcase setting new standards for excellence and encapsulating our passion for sustainable development. I am really pleased that we have chosen to partner with Overbury, a company sharing our dedication to decarbonisation and social value. ” Mark Jones Mark Jones Director

Andrew Wood, Managing Director, Overbury says: “We are proud to be working with Arup on an adaptable workspace designed in a sustainable way which reflects the company’s core values. We look forward to playing our part in creating this global hub for flexible working and collaboration in the heart of Birmingham.”

Rob Groves, Regional Development Director of MEPC, development and asset manager of Paradise says: “We are very pleased to be able to continue our relationship with Arup, building on the opportunity to share knowledge and insight around better ways of working and achieving social value for the Paradise development.”

Arup will operate from their new home at One Centenary Way in Birmingham’s Paradise development in late summer 2023.

More information on Arup’s net zero commitment and strategy is available here.

Arup & Overbury Arup & Overbury
Members of the Birmingham Office Move Project team from Arup and Overbury

Project

Paradise Birmingham

Paradise is the biggest and the most radical development scheme Birmingham has seen for a generation. When delivered in 2028, the development will comprise 1.8 million ft2 (167,225 m2) containing a new public realm as well as up to ten new high-quality buildings offering offices, shops, bars, cafés, restaurants and a hotel.

Read more about this project