Date: April 2014
Location: 20 Fenchurch Street, London
Background: 20 Fenchurch Street is renowned architect Rafael Viñoly’s latest London skyscraper. The high performance, energy-efficient
building breaks with common architectural design by enlarging the floor plans at the top of the building instead of the bottom. This creates additional
public space at ground level and provides extra leasable floor area to valuable upper stories.
Project details: Townscape was enlisted by leading security engineering consultants, QCIC, to develop a bespoke perimeter security
solution which would not only protect the building from hostile vehicle attacks, but also create a high quality urban landscape at the base of the
property. The developers behind the scheme also wanted the security system to be multipurpose and not viewed solely as a hostile vehicle mitigation
measure. Working with leading stone masonry firm, Gormley, Townscape developed and installed six PAS 68 Counter Terror Blocks, which are topped
with granite and include LED spot lighting on the sides. The high quality granite finish was selected to tie into the prestigious City of London surroundings.
Result: 20 Fenchurch Street is protected from any hostile vehicle incursions to the highest PAS 68 standard, thanks to Townscape’s
Hostile Vehicle Mitigation expertise. Townscape took its leading Hostile Vehicle Mitigation product, the Counter Terror Block, and gave it additional
purposes as security seating and lighting for this special project. Visitors to 20 Fenchurch Street will enjoy a public plaza, unaware that the seating
and landscaping has been creatively designed to provide the utmost protection.