Semple Street, Edinburgh

OWA makes the grade for Scotland’s landmark sustainable office development. The architect chose a trio of recyclable metal ceiling systems from OWA to complete the new-look interior at 30 Semple Street – a major new office redevelopment located in the heart of Edinburgh which is setting new standards for sustainable design.

Dating back to 2001, the outdated facilities at 30 Semple Street have been given a major overhaul with the decision to refurbish and renovate helping to breathe new life into both the office block and regional commercial market. Overseen by the building’s original designer, Michael Laird Architects, the building has been transformed by main contractor, Ogilvie Construction, with the addition of two new floors, a roof terrace, and a host of sustainable design features. The resulting scheme is the first office development in Scotland to achieve an ‘outstanding’ design-stage BREEAM rating.

Now standing at 8-storeys, the Grade-A office accommodation at Semple Street also boasts a clean, crisp, and light interior design scheme that features products from OWA’s popular OWAtecta metal ceiling collection. Installed by CCL Interiors Ltd and supplied through OWA’s distributor partner, Galaxy Insulation and Dry Lining Ltd, a combination of OWA’s metal S48 bandraster ceiling system, S36 hook-on metal corridor system, and S45 T15 metal lay-in ceiling tiles were specified throughout the building.

OWA thriving in Scotland

The contract for 30 Semple Street is OWA’s largest order for its metal S48 bandraster ceiling system in Scotland to date. Ideally suited for large open-plan office areas, the S48 metal ceiling hides the services above while ensuring ease of access via the fully demountable hook-on panels. The concealed primary suspension system gives a clean and contemporary finish to create a bright and spacious workplace environment. Furthermore, OWA’s S36 Progress hook-on metal corridor system, which incorporates demountable acoustic panels, enhances the corridors and lift areas. The use of this ceiling system also features an attractive ‘shadow gap’, which further complements the contemporary design of the new interior. For the washroom areas, a simple yet striking ceiling design includes OWA’s S45 TI5 metal lay-in suspended ceiling system to provide a practical yet attractive solution.

Overseen by OWA’s regional sales team, full-size samples of each ceiling solution were provided at the design stage to ensure that OWA’s products aligned with the project’s exact aesthetic, performance, and environmental criteria.

OWA provides some of the lowest embodied carbon figures for its range of metal ceiling systems available on the UK market. As well as being durable and easy to maintain, OWA’s metal ceiling systems are fully recyclable and manufactured almost entirely from steel produced using electric arc furnace technology. This results in embodied carbon figures as low as 4.99 kg CO2/m² for metal tiles or canopies, plus varying additional amounts depending on the suspension system.