Hub and Norwegian family-owned investor Smedvig have submitted plans for a six-storey timber office block in Maidenhead, Berkshire.
Called Trehus, Norwegian for “house of wood”, the building will be part of the wider 3.5-acre mixed-use scheme formerly known as the Landing at One Maidenhead.
The building will be a sustainable timber superstructure and would be the first building of its kind in Maidenhead and the wider Thames Valley. It is targeting BREEAM Outstanding certification.
The Waugh Thistleton-designed building will form part of the next phase of the development, which includes 429 homes, and retail and leisure centred on a new public square.
The developer plans to reduce embodied carbon by 40%, compared to a concrete frame. The design of its facade aims to reduce solar gain while maximising natural light, thereby lowering the reliance on artificial lighting, heating, and cooling. There are also plans for a roof terrace.
Victoria Manston, development director at Hub, said: “The use of timber will result in a building that is both elegant and highly sustainable, in line with Hub’s strategy of reducing embodied carbon across our portfolio.”
Smedvig chief executive Cecilie Melbye said building for the future “means designing sustainable quality buildings with a low carbon footprint and which are flexible and will stand the test of time”.
Kirsten Haggart, associate director at Waugh Thistleton, said the building would set “a high standard in the area for high-quality sustainable office design”.
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