IT and AV Consultancy for London Relocation of McCann Worldgroup UK

A new destination workplace built for collaboration to showcase the work of McCann Worldgroup UK’s brands.

The Team

Gardiner & Theobold, Gensler, Cundall, BW: Workplace Experts, Torpedo Factory Group, TCG

The Project

IT and AV Consultancy for London Relocation of McCann Worldgroup UK

The Technologies

Wayfinding and digital display technology; Meeting space AV for a range of settings; wired and wireless network; futureproof Structured Cabling System; Unified Communications.

The Client

McCann Worldgroup is a leading global marketing services agency with an integrated network of advertising agencies in over 120 countries.

McCann Worldgroup UK was relocating 11 of its London-based agencies from multiple buildings across London to a new building at 135 Bishopsgate, occupying 140,000 sq ft over 4 floors.

The move to the building, was to accommodate the relocation of 1,200 people and create a technology-enabled hub with wow factor that would boost interaction and collaboration between brands.

Cordless was employed as IT and AV Consultants, to support the Group from the strategic phase of the relocation, through design, procurement and project management of the AV, Structured Cabling System, Network and Unified Communications.

During the initial strategy, Cordless worked to explore the technology requirements of the business to recommend new workplace technology ideas that would marry with the company culture and project aspirations. Collaboration needed to be at the heart of the teams’ working practices. It was key to create a high specification space for the agencies to interact as much as possible, but at the same time allowing each to retain its own character.

On arrival, high impact display technology and digital signage create a branded experience throughout the space to guide people as they move through the building. As a marketing agency, the business has a lot of content to share, so signage is integrated into the customer journey. Staged presentation areas as people step out of the lift lobbies showcase brand messaging and add wow factor. The atrium area is also digitally enabled for events and wireless presentations, with directional sound for high quality audio.

There are a range of meeting rooms from traditional board rooms through to lounge style seating, with fully AV-enabled pitch rooms making use of best-in-class technology. A divisible gallery space benefits from zoned audio to support changing use of the area. A restaurant at the highest level of the building features welcoming drop in workspaces. In all meeting spaces, the technology specified can be driven using laptops, for ease of connectivity – just as when sitting at a desk.
Wired and wireless networking throughout the building supported by Unified Communications enables a consistent user experience as people move throughout the building, with reliable connectivity. A remote management system delivers proactive monitoring and management of technology.

Underpinning it all, a futureproof Structured Cabling System has been designed carefully by Cordless. This means that that the IT physical infrastructure gives the Group ownership of further moves, adds and changes as the businesses plans for ongoing use of the space, whatever the future may hold.

Bringing together operations into a destination hub will not only allow the Group to capitalise on economies of scale for its facilities, but also greatly support agile working and collaboration.

As the Group continues to support the workforce to return to the premises post Covid-19, the IT infrastructure in place is robust enough to cope with any changes ahead.

Stephen Guy, Chief Integration Officer at McCann Worldgroup UK said:

“Our clients want greater integration – they’re looking at how to efficiently connect all the different marketing disciplines. By co-locating we will be able to better focus our collaborations where they really matter.”

Images courtesy of BW: Workplace Experts