The new office, designed by Frank Gehry and Associates, will be home to mainly engineering staff as the UK becomes Facebook’s largest engineering hub outside of the US. Credit: Ben Lister/PA Wire
Wieland’s Metalynx2 structured wiring system has been used for the connection of power supply throughout the new London HQ for social media company Facebook. The company has increased its British workforce by 50% since it came to the UK in 2007 and is now located in the prestigious One Rathbone Square development near Tottenham Court Road in Fitzrovia.
One Rathbone Square is a 418,698 sq. ft. development that also features 142 apartments and 24,222 sq. ft. of retail space surrounding a new public garden square, which is the first of its kind to be created in Central London in 100 years. The new Cat A office space occupied by Facebook has been created using intelligent construction, which also applies to the cabling methodology that has been applied to the building with the use of Wieland’s Metalynx2 structured wiring system to deliver the small power and lighting.
Wieland’s Metalynx2, based on a ‘plug and play’ connectivity that allows quick and easy installation, was specified by Daletech Ltd, electrical contractors based in Chatham, Kent. The system arrives on site pre-wired and ready for use and has been shown to dramatically reduce installation time by around 70%, making it the perfect choice for contractors and specifiers working on fast-track projects. Thanks to its innovative design, Metalynx2 uses a minimum number of components, all of which lock together for secure installation and every system component is factory tested in a quality-controlled environment prior to delivery and, with the ability to customise Metalynx2 components for special projects, it offers infinite design flexibility. For ease of installation, the system also incorporates an earth clamp that bonds to the conduit and a patented cable grip to prevent strain being transferred to the contact pins.
The Metalynx2 system also provides future proofing as, once Metalynx2 has been installed, its inherent flexibility means that any changes to the system can be accommodated quickly with minimum downtime for the building owner should the building layout and usage change. Wieland’s Metalynx2 system can also be re-used, reducing waste during a re-wiring project in both product and packaging. Consequently, structured wiring helps to reduce waste, meet recycling targets and it support the sustainability objectives of designing intelligent buildings.