The Biscuit Factory

AHMM designed this redevelopment of the buildings at the former home of the Peek Frean’s Biscuit Factory which for 123 years produced biscuits in Bermondsey until 1989 including the iconic Bourbon and the Garibaldi.

The triangular site covers 12 acres and is a mixture of new build and the refurbishment of many of the buildings that date back to the Victorian age when this area was first developed as a major centre for food production.

The finished scheme will provide a major mixed use scheme and the boroughs largest hub for small businesses as it will provide 25,084m2 of business space and 7,500m2 of new business accommodation, as well as 800 new residential units.

EH Smith worked with AHMM to look at various options for the façade which not only met the requirements regarding colour and texture for the first 6 storey building of the development, but also a brick which met the design wishes of a smaller than normal joint profile of 7.5mm. This requirement of the design meant the project needed to embrace special batching measurements when setting the building out, with the bricks being produced in a single firing to remove as many of potential hurdles to achieve the best consistency from a Clay product as was possible.

The attention to detail included a number of pre-production visits to the factory by EH Smith, the Architect and Client to talk through and agree the production methods required not only for the standard facings but also to ensure the required standard and quality for the considerable number of special Brick types needed.

The intricate detailing of the project has been achieved not only by the strict control and hands on approach EH Smith took, but also by the fantastic on site work by Grangewood the Brickwork Sub-contractor.

Multiple off-site units where produced and installed to help achieve the exacting demands of the design and the finished building is outstanding. The precise brickwork by Grangewood along with pre-fabricated items give a finished façade of the highest quality.

The window heads and cill units where produced using specials that were all sampled for approval prior to going to site to ensure all parties understood the final standard that was needed.