Project overview
PTS was engaged to design and deliver the structured cabling and WLAN infrastructure for a Global Law Firm’s new London headquarters at Northcliffe House.
The firm was required to vacate its previous premises due to building renovation works, with a fixed migration date in place. Avoiding lease extensions and ensuring a seamless transition were critical. The new 6,281 sq m office needed to provide high speed connectivity, resilience and performance, operating as a seamless extension of the firm’s New York head office.
PTS was appointed to develop a future proof network infrastructure capable of supporting a world class legal environment.
Vision
The new London headquarters was designed to reimagine the firm’s workspace, creating a future focused and high performing office environment across three floors. The space needed to support collaboration, professional development and client engagement within a premium architectural setting.
A key challenge was delivering a fully resilient IT and WLAN solution within a strict programme. The go live date was fixed, making performance, coordination and risk mitigation essential.
Resilience also needed to be designed into the IT rooms from the outset, removing single points of failure and ensuring business continuity for a global legal practice.
Our Approach
PTS worked closely with the firm’s IT team from early design stages, defining IT room locations and coordinating resilience strategies with the wider consultant team. This enabled early mitigation of single point of failure risks and accurate planning of power and cooling loads in collaboration with the MEP consultant.
We developed a converged network design to support security, AV and WLAN across all floors. Detailed IT and connectivity requirements were translated into the technical design, ensuring alignment with global standards and operational needs.
The WLAN design was developed iteratively, with Wi-Fi heatmaps reviewed and refined to achieve the required coverage and performance. Coordination with architects ensured that access point placement supported both functionality and the premium aesthetic of the workspace.
A centralised UPS strategy was developed to support the IT network and enhance resilience across the estate.
The final design phase refined device placement and coordination, ensuring integration with architectural and visual standards expected of a high end legal environment.
PTS also designed physically segregated infrastructure to support third party systems, including independent internet connectivity for external providers. This ensured corporate network security was maintained while allowing operational flexibility.
During construction, PTS provided on site support, coordinated device positioning and conducted post installation wireless surveys, delivering detailed reporting to support operational readiness.
Outcomes and benefits
The new London headquarters benefits from a resilient and high performance network infrastructure tailored to the demands of an international law firm.
Key Outcomes
- Future proofed structured cabling supporting potential Wi-Fi expansion
- Redundant Wi-Fi deployment enabling seamless roaming across floors
- Removal of single points of failure within IT spaces
- Secure segregation of third party systems from the corporate network
- Seamless migration aligned with a fixed programme
The result is a robust and scalable digital backbone that supports collaboration, business continuity and long term operational performance in a premium City of London workplace.
Key Stats
6,281 sq m legal workplace across three floors
Redundant, converged network supporting security, AV and WLAN systems
Client testimonial
PTS successfully delivered our project through their expertise, knowledge and professionalism. From initial design of our data centre and infrastructure to post build wireless surveys, PTS were able to focus on our requirements and deliver a high quality product and service.
Head of Technology Support