The six storey building on Ducie Street was developed by Town Centre Securities as part of their Piccadilly Basin masterplan. Situated along the southern edge of the canal basin, the building is used exclusively by BDP?s Manchester team. The building provides large open plan studio space and ancillary accommodation including a hub space at ground floor level. This interactive area including caf?, staff restaurant and extended reception space, overlooks the canal at raised ground level. A striking feature of the building is the punctuated stainless-steel south fa?ade that rises above the Ducie Street colonnade to contain the open-plan studio areas before sweeping over to form the roof of the building. The reflective external finish, heavily insulated build-up and narrow vertical apertures all serve to minimise solar heat gain, and to maximise privacy with the residential buildings opposite. By contrast, the northern fa?ade of the building is transparent. The floor-to-soffit glazing takes maximum advantage of north light to illuminate the full extent of studio spaces and reveals wonderful views of the city centre. A fully-glazed circulation staircase cantilevered over the canal provides the circulation for all floors. Sustainability has been a key driver in all aspects of the design and delivery of the new studio which is an expressive response to context and microclimate. Rainwater is harvested from the roof and used to flush toilets throughout the building. It is the first naturally ventilated and night time cooled office building in Manchester to achieve an Excellent BREEAM rating.