How a Building With a Living Wall Is Creating a Paradise For Businesses

The “living wall” of lush green plants and insect hives running up The Core in Newcastle make it one of the most recognisable office blocks in the North East.

And as well as being eye-catching the building is also remarkable for the effect it has had on Newcastle as a whole.

The Core originally opened its doors in 2014, marking the first stage of the Science Central urban development project.

The building aims to provide a home to science and technology businesses and those attempting to fix future problems and this mission has led to it attracting some of the most innovative firms in the region.

“Future problems” is quite wide ranging in its definition but covers companies who are looking to fix energy problems, work on new technology, or deal with waste disposal or over population issues.

The Core’s niche market has paid off and it is currently operating at a 92% occupancy level. Those wishing to take up space in the building often face lengthy waits to join the environmentally friendly office space.

“We were previously in offices in Pink Lane but only because we couldn’t get in here,” says Gemma Johnson, head of operations at medical app Changing Health. “It’s a new development that is the face for science and technology companies.”

The building offers everything you would expect from a modern office block. Tenants are able to take advantage of additional meeting rooms, conference space, ultra-fast internet, and are able to attend regular networking events ran by The Core’s team.

Gemma Johnson, head of operations at medical app Changing Health (Image: Paul Lynch Photography)

The office also sets itself apart by offering affordable rates that allow start-ups to operate in a busy city centre.

Another added benefit is the site’s positive impact on the environment. Its huge “living wall” is made up of a number of plants that reduce air pollution, while the bee “hotels” embedded among the greenery attract pollinating insects to the area.

“The fact that it is environmentally friendly was really important to us,” adds Gemma. “As a small business it is really hard to achieve that when you are limited by size. It is sustainable, so it’s limiting our carbon footprint.”

To limit its energy use the building does not have central heating, with the temperature instead controlled through the use of wide corridors and large windows. Those working at the site also don’t need to worry about what they throw away as all waste is sorted in-house into recyclable and non-recyclable material. And to top it off the toilets operate using rain water.

From an ethical point of view this is all good news, but the environmental positives also provide additional commercial benefits for some of The Core’s tenants, such as Probio Energy International.

Probio recently moved into The Core, from its previous home at the Team Valley trading estate, after sitting on a waiting list for 14 months. The company specialises in taking waste material and using it to produce energy. The alternative energy firm now uses The Core’s eco friendly nature as a talking point to impress clients.

“We work with big companies such as E.on and they are into corporate responsibility and social responsibility,” says Kris Baker-Rain, director at Probio. “We spoke to them about The Core and they were interested.

“There are a lot of companies who talk about corporate responsibility but don’t do it.”

Kris Baker-Rain, director at Probio Energy International (Image: Staff)

However, Kris admits that having an affordable city centre office space is one of the biggest draws The Core has to offer.

“A lot of it comes down to cost,” he says. “What you get for your money here is great. We were paying three times the amount in the Team Valley. The amount we saved [by moving to The Core] allowed us to hire another person in the office.”

Having an affordable city centre location is not something to be sniffed at. Being based in the heart of a city centre allows firms to take advantage of improved transport links, making it easier to attract talent to the firm, as well as being able to meet international clients more easily. Probio has taken advantage of the fact that many international energy clients often stay in Newcastle city centre before travelling to meetings in Edinburgh and Aberdeen.

The plan for Newcastle Science Central - soon to be known as Newcastle Helix - shown on a wall within The Core (Image: NCJ Media)

The two universities based within the city also allow firms access to talented workers who might not even find out about the company if it is located miles from the city centre. The access to talent was a major factor in intranet and web portal developer Invotra’s decision to open its doors at the site.

“We had been in the North East for two and a half years before The Core opened,” says Damian Robinson, lead developer at Invotra. “We were in a much smaller office but the aim was to grow our base here.

“With the technology sector here it is a much better option then the South East. You get more home grown talent that can stick around.

“We moved to The Core because we wanted to grow our apprenticeship scheme. We relied heavily on apprentices and have hired three more this year. We started with one member of staff - that was me - but we are up to six now.

“The core is ideal because of its large spaced rooms, great facilities and superb transport, with the Metro, bus and rail. The apprentice that lives the furthest away lives in Consett and she can get the bus here every day.”

Damian Robinson, lead developer at Invotra (Image: GRAINGE PHOTOGRAPHY LTD)

But The Core has also served a much bigger purpose than simply providing affordable offices for a few of the region’s businesses. The office block was a test site for Newcastle’s Science Central, soon to be rebranded as Newcastle Helix, which is the country’s biggest urban development site outside of London.

The £350m project will see 20 different buildings erected over 24 acres and will provide a mix of commercial and residential properties in the city. The site will pave the way for new research being conducted in the North East and include the Urban Sciences Building (housing the School of Computing), the Centre for Doctoral Training in Cloud Computing for Big Data, and the Centre for Doctoral Training in Digital Civics.

The project is expected to be fully completed in the next 10 years and it is hoped it will lead to 4,000 jobs moving to Newcastle. But without the success of The Core the project may never have got off the ground.

“The three things the core is about are attracting and developing high growth businesses to Newcastle, creating high quality jobs in the city centre, and at the same time launching the major economic initiative that is now called Newcastle Helix,” says Toby Hyam, managing director of Creative Space Management which manages the day-to-day running of The Core.

“The Helix will be about positioning that location to a global market. It is an ambitious shift but, if you think about it, the success of The Core was critical to attracting Legal and General’s investment on the site.”

In this way The Core has helped shape the future of Newcastle’s economy and led the way to bringing thousands of jobs to the area.

Work on Newcastle Helix is well under way with construction work being carried out within the surrounding area. Creative Space Management is already working to set the tone for the rest of the Helix complex, which they want to be an open space that can interact with the local community.

Toby Hyam, managing director of Creative Space Management (Image: Unknown)

“It’s not just our job to make sure businesses have a competitive, attractive space to work in,” adds Toby, “but its about creating an interface with the public, and maybe getting them to spin off and start their own business.”

To do this Creative Space Management has organised a series of events at The Core under the banner “The Science Of...”. The events see experts explain the science behind every day objects and why they are important. Previous topics include The Science Of Data, The Science Of Comics, and The Science Of Beer.

Tenants in The Core are invited along to the talks but so are members of the public. The talks regularly attract around 100 people to the building.

“The other thing we have done is we have regularly ran community days at The Core and we makes sure that people living nearby have an opportunity to find out what’s going on at the site.

“We don’t see The Core, or the whole site, as very exclusive. It’s an attractive part of the city and from a young person’s point of view, we want people to know there are great jobs here in buildings such as The Core.”

You would be forgiven for thinking that The Core is yet another office space for small businesses, but in truth its more than that. Its Living wall breathes in the city, its events blend business with the local community, and it is striving to make Newcastle a brighter city to live and work in.

This post was originally posted on Chronicle Live: https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/business/business-news/core-how-building-living-wall-14734106