Designed by Waugh Thisleton, A key component of the design was to exceed the Mayor’s target for on-site sources of renewable energy. Conceiving of the energy producing/saving mechanics of the building as an integral part of the design was a challenging process, requiring the design team to investigate how the height and form of the building could best harness the wind energy at that location.

The resulting form of the plan ensures that the tower acts as an aerofoil, concentrating the greatest wind speed to the spine of the building, where four turbines will be attached vertically, in a spiral form that is as visually stunning as it is innovative.

The turbines will provide the building with more than 15% of its energy requirements, exceeding the Mayor’s targets for energy effi ciency. Dependent on wind speed, the four turbines will generate around 40,000kW hrs a year. This is enough to power an 80-person office, or the electrical energy requirement of more than 40 flats and it will save approximately 7 tonnes of carbon dioxide from being pumped into the atmosphere every year.

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