Ashurst is a multi-national law firm and their core values centre around delivering through collaboration. They envisaged a working environment that would reflect their core values to create a truly integrated and collaborative workplace for all.

This project has been nominated for Mixology North 2021 Workplace Interiors Award, 30k-70k sq. feet category, put forward by the architects Wellwood Leslie.

Saxen has provided Ashurst with their day-to-day furniture requirements since 2018. There had been some discussion of a major refurbishment of the Glasgow office and then, following the start of COVID-19 Lockdown in March 2020, the decision was made by Ashurst management that, whilst employees were working from home, this would be the ideal time for the major refurbishment to take place. During the past few years, the total number of Ashurst employees had more than doubled from 200 to 550 and space was therefore restrictive across the two floors the company already occupied. To allow for expansion, a 3rd floor in the same building was acquired.

From the outset, the design and refurbishment of the Ashurst Glasgow Office was to be an exciting project for our Saxen team and one of our aims was to create an inspirational workspace that would challenge traditional ways of working. Working with the designer Nick Roemer, Saxen assisted him by specifying furniture products that would not only fit in with but also enhance his design concepts.

Furniture made from recycled materials was included – chairs, soft seating and acoustic panels made from recycled PET bottles, chairs made from recycled clothing and acoustic solutions made from recycled bottles and fabric off-cuts.

Ashurst requested that a new bookable desk system be included to facilitate and embrace what was to be and indeed is, the new hybrid way of working. This system had been successfully introduced during the refurbishment of the Ashurst London offices and was to be emulated in Glasgow.

In June 2020, during the Covid-19 Lockdown period, virtual design team meetings commenced. Discussions and decision making were slightly more challenging than normal whilst the team adapted to this new style of communication. Saxen continued to propose and redefine furniture products to best fit in with and complement the design scheme.

In November 2020. following several months of client meetings, the furniture contract was awarded to Saxen. Saxen were also successful in bidding for the removal and recycling/disposal of their old furniture through our Regener8 Furniture Recycling Scheme. All products were then placed on order from our carefully selected UK and European manufacturers and a staged delivery schedule was planned to take place between March and September 2021 to tie in with the completion of building work on each floor.

Overall Project Plan:



Saxen’s Project Manager and Installation Manager both attended weekly scheduled site meetings with the client, main contractor and fellow sub-contractors to ensure that all furniture deliveries and installations were scheduled in line with the Overall Project Plan. Any potential delays with building works were identified and our delivery schedule was continually reviewed and updated accordingly. Our support staff then notified our manufacturers and installation team of any delays.

Kirsteen and Kevin continued to work very closely with the site team, both pre-start and throughout the contract, to ensure that all trades received clear instruction regarding the timeous completion of each area to facilitate seamless installation of the loose and fixed furniture.

Every delivery and installation was supervised by Installation Manager, Kevin Duffy. All furniture products were inspected prior to installation and any defects or damages reported back to our support staff to be actioned by the relevant manufacturers for quality control purposes and also to arrange provision of replacement parts and/or products as quickly as possible.

Completion:

Post completion site meetings were attended to ensure that our client was 100% satisfied with both the design and delivery of the furniture contract. Further requirements were subsequently actioned which included the publishing of the client O&M Manual.

We believe that the amazing spaces that have been created on all three floors of the new Ashurst LLP Glasgow offices showcase the very best elements of the future workspace and that they provide a truly inspirational environment to foster collaboration and engagement across the entire company.

Saxen are proud to have been selected to work closely with Ashurst LLP, Whitecross Building Consultancy Ltd, Insite Contracts Ltd, and Wellwood Leslie, and honoured to have been part of such a fantastically strong team to successfully deliver such an exciting and impressive project.