Jordan O'BrienUrmet has secured an order to supply the latest IP door entry systems for a new development of luxury apartments at a £500m mixed-use development at Rathbone Square in London’s West End.
The 2.3-acre project (a former Royal Mail sorting office) comprises new office space, retail outlets, a public square and 142 luxury apartments and forms part of the £1bn development of Tottenham Court Road in preparation for the Crossrail railway construction project.
The Urmet equipment at the apartments and penthouses will be installed by nationwide building services contractor TClarke and will operate from IPervoice, Urmet’s IP door entry software platform.
The building services company required a single system that would offer both the comprehensive screening of visitors and the ability to integrate with third-party home automation Apps that control everything from blinds to lighting.
Visitors can make calls using external stainless steel Elekta entrance panels. These Power over Ethernet (PoE) panels feature a 3.5in colour display with a 2MP camera, allowing the recording of both video and audio messages.
All the units have been designed with compact dimensions and sleek lines to ensure the equipment has minimal impact on the period architecture surrounding Rathbone Square, which includes a number of Georgian buildings. Security has also been taken into account, with the equipment featuring an impact-resistance rating of IK09, while also offering minimal pry points to prevent vandalism.
After the installation, Rathbone Square residents will communicate with visitors via Urmet’s black MAX IP Android-powered touchscreen, a 7in device with quad-core processor. The system enables call-forwarding to mobile phones via Urmet’s Call2U App when residents are away from home and allows users to grant access from their remote location. Families can take advantage of this feature on up to four devices simultaneously.
TClarke has also used Urmet’s concierge switchboard software, which enables the 24-hour concierge staff to manage calls, receive and create alarms, generate usage reports and send messages on a global, group and individual basis.
Throughout the Rathbone Square project, TClarke has worked to the requirements of Secured by Design (the official UK police flagship supporting the principles of ‘designing out crime’).
The MAX IP touchscreen (now available in both black and white) adheres to these recommendations with its 1024 x 600 pixel screen and destination control for lifts.
The screen features a lift icon, while logic control within the IPervoice software allows the resident to limit a delivery person’s access to the floor for which they have permission. Secured by Design mandates intelligent lift management of this kind.
“The Rathbone Square project shows us working in a collaborative environment with installer and developer,” says Mark Hagger, Urmet’s sales and marketing director.
“As the project matures, the MAX IP touchscreen will become a true portal. It will integrate with a host of third-party home automation apps, including lighting and blind control.”
The various sections of Rathbone Square have either six or eight floors, with three basement levels. The office space is on the south side of the building close to Oxford Street, while the residential block faces Fitzrovia.
Rathbone Square consists of two ‘L’-shaped buildings, one incorporating the residential units and the other office space for which Castel UK, part of the Urmet Group of companies, provided an IP intercom solution. The exteriors feature precast concrete cladding and metalwork with a focus on low carbon footprint throughout from Hilson Moran, which is acting as sustainability consultant.
Many of the apartments at Rathbone Square have balconies overlooking a central garden. Residents can enjoy facilities such as a gymnasium, 18m pool, sauna, screening room and even a wine storage and tasting room. The adjacent public square is the first such area built in London for 100 years.