St Magnus House metal cladding revamp: façade performance notes for engineers
Reviewed by Joe Ashwell
First reported on The Construction Index
30 Second Briefing
Reynaers Aluminium’s low‑carbon ConceptWall 50 (CW 50) curtain walling has been selected to replace the brutalist cement façade of the 11‑storey St Magnus House on London’s Lower Thames Street, which will be renamed Fresh Wharf. The CW 50 system, with 50mm sightlines and capacity to support glass panes up to 700kg, is being installed by Century Facades and Aluminium & Glass Facades under Mace Construct for client Pegasi Management. The retrofit targets demanding energy and carbon performance, with the lightweight, highly glazed envelope intended to maximise daylight, river views and long‑term operational efficiency.
Technical Brief
- CW 50 uses low‑carbon aluminium, with recyclability central to the façade material selection.
- System was developed for easy fabrication and installation, shortening programme and reducing site complexity.
- Retrofit aims to meet “extremely challenging” operational energy and carbon targets for the 11‑storey block.
- Replacement of the monolithic cement façade is framed as applying circular design principles to an existing structure.
- High‑performance envelope is expected to cut long‑term energy consumption and associated operational carbon emissions.
Our Take
Among the 738 Infrastructure stories in our database, relatively few focus on retrofit of 1980s London office stock, so the St Magnus House upgrade signals continuing appetite to extend life and improve performance of mid‑rise riverfront assets rather than redeveloping them outright.
The use of a slim 50 mm curtain wall system capable of supporting 700 kg glass suggests Reynaers Aluminium and Century Facades are targeting higher-spec, larger-pane refurbishments, which can materially improve daylighting and façade U‑values without major structural interventions on 11‑storey frames.
With St Magnus House sitting on Lower Thames Street opposite high-profile landmarks like the Shard and Tower Bridge, façade-led sustainability upgrades here are likely to influence expectations for similar Thames‑side refurbishments, especially where owners such as Pegasi Management are under pressure to meet tightening UK operational energy and EPC requirements.
Prepared by collating external sources, AI-assisted tools, and Geomechanics.io’s proprietary mining database, then reviewed for technical accuracy & edited by our geotechnical team.
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