Global environmental services specialists Veolia recently completed transferring staff from two ageing Midlands locations in Four Ashes and Brownhills to newly built offices at Kingswood House in Cannock, Staffordshire.

Veolia commissioned architectural interior design company Monteith Scott to provide space planning and interior design solutions for its new 47,000 sq ft regional office.

The appointment follows the Birmingham-based company’s successful refurbishment of Veolia’s 24,000 sq ft HQ in London last summer.

Alison Monteith, managing director of Monteith Scott, said: “For the Cannock office, Veolia wanted a wide range of meeting rooms and bespoke board room, lecture and project space – all arranged in a flexible open plan arrangement to BREEAM excellent standards. Low running costs and high levels of parking were also a priority.

“Like other blue chip office projects we have worked on, the brief included a quality catering area and company gym. These facilities are a big hit with employees as they provide a better working environment and help to improve their wellbeing by supplying healthy meals and a fitness centre at their workplace.”

GVA Second London Wall, a leading provider of project management services, also worked on the project, which was recently submitted by Veolia for the Corporate Workplace Award at the British Council for Offices (BCO) Awards 2012. Monteith Scott will find out if it has been shortlisted later this month (March).

The new three-storey building currently accommodates around 300 personnel and administrative staff members but the flexible design allows increased numbers as required.

Jon Whittaker, estates director at Veolia Environmental Services UK, said: “We wanted every floor to be open plan to encourage collaboration and a sense of community. No member of staff has their own office. Instead, we have a variety of meeting spaces and breakout areas, which are fully and semi enclosed for different levels of privacy.

“We were also keen to have multi-purpose spaces and Monteith Scott installed an excellent example of this with our restaurant. It is much more than just a catering outlet – it is designed to host all-day meetings, visitor and internal contact and for both formal and informal gatherings.

“Two large ground floor meeting areas can also be combined to create a conference or lecture facility. It has even been used as a children’s activity area during our Staff Family Open Day.”

Alison said: “We worked closely with the staff to ensure that their opinions were heard and requirements were met. This approach can be challenging when there are lots of conflicting needs being thrown into the mix. However, the reoccurring requirement from most employees was the need for appropriate levels of storage, which we solved. The idea of a completely open plan office was quite daunting for some people but they can now see how it allows them to work more efficiently and interact better with each other.”

Veolia Environmental Services has 73,000 commercial and industrial customers and employs more than 12,000 people in the UK alone. It works with around 133 local authorities and provides services to almost one third of the UK population.

Monteith Scott, which is based in the Jewellery Quarter, Birmingham, is led by managing director Alison Monteith, design director Derek Matthews and technical director John Millington. The company has two divisions – Work and Play – operating across a range of sectors, which means that it understands the demands of its clients’ industries. For more information please visit www.monteithscott.co.uk.

The First Church of Christ, Scientist, at Ely Street, Stratford-upon-Avon, is due to undergo an extension and refurbishment in 2012. Birmingham-based interior designers Monteith Scott has been tasked with designing the church to make it more approachable and inspire more visitors and tourists to go inside.
Working alongside architects Corstorphine & Wright, Monteith Scott’s brief was to create a space that is for the community, which will be used by local families as well as visitors to Stratford.

Alison Monteith, managing director of Monteith Scott, said: “The design will be fresh, colourful and contemporary, which will help to create an inviting atmosphere for current members of the church as well as the general public.

“The space will be family-friendly with a reading room and lending library. We are also putting intellectual phrases on the walls and ceiling to help engage visitors and inform them of the church’s beliefs.”

Monteith Scott has also recently completed a consultancy project with The Saltisford Evangelical Church in Albert Street, Warwickshire, which will undergo a refurbishment and upgrade of its existing premises during 2012. The designers advised the church on finishes and lighting.

Alison added: “The team has enjoyed working on the church projects as it gives us the opportunity to widen our portfolio and show that we can apply our design skills to places of worship as well as offices and bars, which we are more well-known for. It also shows we can adapt our services to suit small projects as well as large scale fit outs and refurbishments.”

Monteith Scott, which is based in the Jewellery Quarter, Birmingham, is led by managing director Alison Monteith, design director Derek Matthews and technical director John Millington. The company has two divisions – Work and Play – operating across a range of sectors, which means that it understands the demands of its clients’ industries.

Brand integration specialist Sean Espinasse spent his first day with the company not at its Birmingham offices – but on board a flight to Taiwan to meet the team behind an exciting 16-storey office scheme.

The 35-year-old design consultant, from Ambergate, Derbyshire, joins award-winning Monteith Scott’s WORK division with an impressive pedigree.

Until recently he was head of design at Paragon Interiors Group, Nottingham, where he worked with leading brands including Adidas, Experian and Specsavers.

Welcoming him to the company, managing director Alison Monteith said: “Sean brings some great qualities to the team here at Monteith Scott. He is young and enthusiastic as well as being extremely talented.

“He has been leading a design team for a fit-out company for the last five years and brings a very focused strategic and brand-orientated approach and for us what was particularly attractive is that he is very hungry for success.”

Monteith Scott WORK delivers interior design solutions in the industrial, education and office sectors. It is led by managing director Alison Monteith, design director Derek Matthews and technical director John Millington. The company is based in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter, the city’s creative hub.
Sean said: “What attracted me to Monteith Scott was that, when I did my research on them, there was a very consistent message out there in the market that they had design integrity and believed in the ethos of designing the best you possibly can for your client.

“Everybody I spoke to said that Monteith Scott stick to their guns on design – they know what their clients want and they do not deviate from the design they present. They are very smart in the design solutions they produce.”

He added: “Flying to the Far East was perhaps an unusual start to my first day at the company. We can’t say too much at this stage but it is a fantastic project with a global brand and it represents a real coup for Monteith Scott.”

Monteith Scott WORK recently clinched a major regional award for its work at the British Horse Society’s impressive new headquarters. The company was commissioned to design internal layouts, lighting, finishes and furniture for the charity’s office development at Abbey Park in Kenilworth, Warwickshire.

The project won the British Council for Offices Midlands and East Anglia regional award in the ‘Projects Up To 2000 sq metres’ category and will now compete against other regional winners for the national title.

Frank Dellicompagni, who established the Francesco Group more than 40 years ago, appointed Monteith Scott to redesign his extended salon one last time before he decides to finally hang up his brushes and scissors.

The result is a superbly stylish salon at Weeping Cross, Stafford, which is appreciated by Frank’s hairdressing team and their customers.

Francesco Group is a nationally recognised brand with a host of awards to its name. It has more than 30 salons and three dedicated academies with a history of four decades of steady growth. The company is owned and run by the Dellicompagni family.

Frank Dellicompagni and his team at the refurbished salon in Stafford.

Frank commissioned Monteith Scott to give his own salon a style he could be proud of. He said: “I worked with Alison and the Monteith Scott guys in a new partnership to take my hair salon from Stafford suburbia to city centre chic. At the very first meeting it was clear that Alison knew her stuff and she took a very open, understanding approach with lots of questions which I must say had never occurred to me to ask or query.

“Alison’s background is in retail and that was perfect for my salon. She had no preconceived ideas, no interest in the hair industry standard, she was only concerned with my needs and the journey that the clients would take through my salon.”

He added: “I loved the design. It was new, it was fresh, it was innovative – in fact, it was perfect. One of our clients commented, ‘I feel like I have walked into a Bond Street Salon in London’. What’s more, the final design landed in just seven days so their service is truly excellent. I would recommend Alison Monteith to anyone.”

Alison Monteith, managing director of Birmingham-based Monteith Scott, said: “Frank is so well known in the hairdressing industry it was a real pleasure to be asked to transform his salon for what is likely to be the last time.

“He was doubling the size of his salon by taking an adjacent unit. We completely stripped out the existing salon and gave it a new shop front. Our design was focused around the workstations, the flow of movement through the salon and the customer experience.

“Frank’s stylists are very busy and have so many tools of the trade that their work stations can get very untidy. It was a key part of the project to make those areas as tidy as possible so we had to design a solution that included accommodation for all their equipment. The whole design was based around the ergonomics of the stations.

“We opted for very neutral colours but installed an LED lighting system that changes to suit the colours of the season. The colour bar, where the stylists mix the hair tints, also gives the salon a punch of colour.”

Birmingham-based Monteith Scott was commissioned to provide space planning and interior design solutions for Veolia’s 24,000 sq ft HQ at 210 Pentonville Road.

The completed project was unveiled recently to great acclaim by Veolia Environmental Services’ chief executive officer Jean-Dominique Mallet at an official opening ceremony.

Alison Monteith, managing director of Monteith Scott, said she was very happy with the eye-catching refurbishment which clearly demonstrates the company’s broad range of skills and keen eye for striking yet functional design.

She said: “Veolia Environmental Services is a global business and we were therefore thrilled to be commissioned to carry out the refurbishment of its UK headquarters. We were already working on Veolia’s new premises in Cannock, but this is Veolia Environmental Service’s most prestigious site.

“The BREEAM excellent building overlooks Kings Cross and provides office accommodation for the Executive plus their teams, training, meeting and breakout space. With a number of functions relocating to the site, our focus was on producing the most effective use of a challenging space that reflected the company’s status and brand.

Veolia Environmental Services' new London headquarters. Monteith Scott, based in Birmingham, was commissioned to provide space planning and interior design solutions.

“Our role was a full interior design service, space planning, furniture short-listing and tendering, interior design as in finishes specification and lighting, presentation material, working drawing package, site attendance and contractor liaison.”

She added: “Right from the start we knew we had to be at the top of our game in order to reach the exacting requirements as outlined by chief executive officer Jean-Dominique Mallet. It was very satisfying to be at the official launch ceremony at which he praised us for our achievements in creating a great space for his workforce to enjoy.”

Jean-Dominique Mallet said: “In recent times our company has grown beyond all recognition to become a major leading player in the environmental market. As part of our ongoing development we commenced searching for new premises some eighteen months ago that would house our fast growing business under one roof within central London.

“If this was not a big enough challenge we tasked Monteith Scott to ensure that the look and feel of our new UK headquarters was sympathetic to our values, our environmental beliefs and how we wanted to be portrayed- ultimately professional, efficient & humble in display but also one where our staff would be proud to work and highlighting our reference role for the industry. We acknowledged this criterion is not easy to achieve by any stretch of the imagination but we believe excellence is something we should always strive for.”

He added: “Working closely with Monteith Scott we meticulously assessed every single component of our planned new head quarters engaging our staff so that they understood what we were trying to achieve and to ensure they were 100% behind each of the key decisions that would impact their new work environment.

“Having now occupied our new home I can only admire how much Monteith Scott understood our exacting demands and most importantly their experience in guiding us on the cultural change that would be needed on our part. Their attention to detail throughout the whole process has been exceptional and I can only congratulate them on a job well done in helping achieve an innovative, easy on the eye new home.”

Veolia Environmental Services has 73,000 commercial and industrial customers and employs more than 12,000 people in the UK alone. It works with around 133 local authorities and provides services to almost one third of the UK population.

Monteith Scott directors were joined by more than 50 property professionals to mark the first anniversary of the launch of its PLAY division, led by retail and leisure interior design specialist Gordon Thompson.

Award-winning Monteith Scott WORK – which delivers interior design solutions in the industrial, education and office sectors – is led by managing director Alison Monteith, design director Derek Matthews and technical director John Millington.

The company, based in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter, has gone from strength to strength in the past 12 months since Gordon joined as an associate and launched Monteith Scott PLAY.

In the last year it has worked alongside Marston’s to redesign and rejuvenate several of its top venues, including Bluu in Manchester and Pitcher & Piano in Bristol, and iNTERTAIN’s Walkabout Bar in Blackpool. The anniversary event was staged at Birmingham’s Pitcher & Piano bar – a venue also recently imaginatively transformed by Gordon and his team.

Gordon said: “It has been a remarkable year in many ways since the formation of Monteith Scott PLAY. We were always confident that we would be successful and therefore we are not at all surprised at the high level of new business we have secured. We are working with some of the UK’s leading leisure brands and we have formed very strong partnerships that will serve us well for years to come.

“Some of the venues we have transformed are reporting enormous increases in food and bar trade which is very satisfying for us and represents a very healthy return on investment for our clients. Looking to the future, we have many more exciting projects in the pipeline. This is only the start for Monteith Scott PLAY.”

Alison said: “It’s been an exciting and very rewarding year since the launch of Monteith Scott PLAY and I would like to congratulate Gordon on all he has achieved in this first year of business. We developed the new company specifically to design and deliver interiors for the leisure sector and many of the projects completed to date have been spectacular successes.

“These include projects for some of the UK’s leading leisure brands, including Marston’s, Pitcher & Piano and iNTERTAIN’s Walkabout. Gordon is a major asset to our clients and our business. His 24 years of unbeatable leisure industry experience is proving irresistible to the sector.”

Photos:

Complementing Monteith Scott WORK, our successful company which targets the office market, the launch of PLAY means even more growth.

The great news is that the combination of the launch of PLAY and growth in our existing client base has resulted in an expansion of staff numbers by 400% and a growth in turnover of 100%.

We’d better buy a bigger office biscuit tin!

The environmental services giant has commissoned us to provide space planning and interior design for another of its locations, its UK HQ at 210 Pentonville Road.

Veolia’s most prestigious site, the BREEAM excellent building overlooks Kings Cross and provides office accommodation, training and breakout space.  With a number of functions relocating to the site, our focus is upon producing a more effective and attractive use of space that reflects the company’s brand.

Environmental services giant, Veolia, has commissioned us to provide space planning and interior design for its regional office in Cannock.

Comprising offices, a reception, a restaurant and lecture theatre, the scope of work also includes finishes and furniture. A new build developed by Opus Land, we’re working with GVA and Second London Wall to deliver the site by 2011.

Award-winning CAN Mezzanine provides high-quality shared office accommodation in prime locations for social enterprises and charities. CAN selected Monteith Scott to design its new  Grade ‘A’ Old Street base due to its ability to breathe CAN’s brand into the fabric of the new space.  Services provided by Monteith Scott for the five-floor project included space planning, finishes, commissioning animation, furniture, reception and lighting.  Since its completion in April, demand for the 480 desk-space has been high.

www.can-online.org.uk