Ben Knight, director at dMFK Architects presents case studies on retrofit projects focussing on renovations that maximise natural light, create visual connections, and incorporate new communal spaces.

How are architects, engineers and the construction industry as a whole developing solutions to maximise transparency while meeting energy performance targets? Why does transparency still matter today? And how can we manage and strike a balance between the tensions of optimum façade performance and embodied carbon?

Ben Knight, director at dMFK Architects, highlights key projects, namely Salters Hall, Chancery House, and York House – all in London. Salters Hall, a 1970s building by Basil Spence, has undergone a refurbishment with replaced façades, added extensions, and a new entrance pavilion. The design integrates neoclassical elements and a brise soleil-inspired glazed entrance, and maintains the original architecture. Detailed drawings and images showcase the transformation that focusses on aesthetics and functionality while respecting the building’s heritage – highlighting how the elements can bring further daylight in and maintain the character of the building.

At York House, a unique brick lattice façade emphasises the ‘evolution’ of the original building. Knight underscores the design, coordination, and construction processes, highlighting the intersection of design and technical execution required to make the façade system work and be integrated with the original structure. Similar to the latter, the architectural transformation of Chancery House is presented, with added emphasis on the importance of reimagining existing structures through retrofitting. Here, various façade options, from stick systems to deep fin stick systems, are explored, influenced by the building’s pre-existing terracotta and clay brick aesthetics.

Across all the case studies, challenges such as an understated entrances and poor visual connections are commonplace, and are addressed through renovations maximising natural light, creating visual connections, and incorporating new communal spaces.