Impact Hub King’s Cross – a business incubator providing meeting and workspaces for entrepreneurs on the move – appointed Interface to provide a sustainable flooring solution for its Central London base.
Impact Hub prides itself on its sustainability values, so when refurbishing its three meeting rooms the company wanted to work with suppliers that go above and beyond to minimise their environmental footprint, such as Interface.
“Part of our company’s ethos is a requirement for our partners to support our commitment to sustainability,” said Letizia Custodero, Operations Manager at Impact Hub King’s Cross. “We care deeply about the impact we have on the world around us, and we want our partners to be just as dedicated to cutting the carbon footprint of both their products and their supply chain. Having worked with Interface on a renovation project in 2013, we were impressed with the company’s Mission Zero commitment to eliminate its negative environmental impact by 2020.”
Impact Hub King’s Cross worked with Interface’s Concept Designer, Amy Farn, to create floor designs for each meeting room. The Interface Supply and Fit team also provided surveying, quotation and fitting services. Products from Interface’s Biosfera, Monochrome and Urban Retreat collections were chosen for the project.
Amy Farn explained: “As well as being highly durable and offering plenty of scope for design creativity, the tiles in these ranges are all manufactured using 100 per cent recycled nylon. This significantly cuts the flooring’s environmental footprint, in line with the sustainability goals of Impact Hub King’s Cross.”
Evoking the variation in colours flowing through a forest floor, the first meeting room, called the Study, was designed in a chequerboard of distinct green shades using Micro Cipollino, Boucle Smeraldo, Boucle Giado and Velour Spinelle Verde colourways from Interface’s Biosfera collection. The design was inspired by the concept of biophilia, which is the idea that nature-inspired elements in a space are crucial to support the physical and emotional health of occupants. In taking these natural influences, the floor achieves Impact Hub’s goal of creating a space that contributes to visitors’ well-being and to help boost their productivity when working.
The principles of biophilia also spurred the flooring scheme for the second meeting room, known as the Glass House. Urban Retreat 103 Grass and Urban Retreat 101 Straw/Grass were fitted in a design that transitions gradually from green to grey, imitating the pattern of moss growing over stone. This was bordered on two sides by Monochrome Barley to help define the space and draw visitors in.
Finally, Urban Retreat 201 Stone was installed in the third meeting room – the Boardroom – along with parallel stripes of Monochrome Pacific, Surf and Barley colourways. These begin at the door and wrap around the table in an eye-catching pathway that attracts visitors into the room and towards the seating area.
To further reduce the environmental impact of the refurbishment, the flooring was installed using Interface’s revolutionary glue-less TacTiles® system. These small adhesive squares are placed directly underneath carpet tiles to firmly attach them together, creating a securely fastened ‘floating’ floor system. TacTiles help minimise waste and keep the flooring in the meeting rooms looking fresh, as they allow individual tiles to be easily replaced when worn, rather than changing the entire floor.
“As well as helping to cut waste, TacTiles really speed up installation time, as they eliminate the waiting time needed for adhesives to dry,” added Donald Sutcliffe, Head of the Interface Supply and Fit Team. “They also introduce virtually no new Volatile Organic Compounds into the air, improving air quality in the meeting rooms, contributing to the wellbeing of visitors to the Hub.”
Speaking about the results of the refurbishment, Letizia concluded: “Many visitors have busy days ahead, so we want our Hub to be the ideal space to fire their creativity and boost their productivity. As such, creating a nature-inspired haven that was welcoming for our visitors and using the principles of biophilia to contribute to their well-being was crucial.
“Interface has provided us with unique flooring that does more than help us further enhance our sustainability. The beautiful biophilic designs also help us in our vision to be a supportive space for business people on the move.”
