M&G and Wrenbridge Plug Siemens Into Ultra Sustainable Cambridge Office Prelet
Lease of the Year for the East of England
Wrenbridge and M&G Real Estate’s prelet to Siemens Digital Industries Software of a new office at Brooklands, the Cambridge business campus off Clarendon Road, stood out for the judges of CoStar’s Impact Awards.
Siemens has agreed to take a 10-year lease of 27,631 square feet over two floors, representing about 40% of the total 67,000-square-foot scheme and the largest deal in the city centre in 2022.
The industrial technology company has been based nearby in Hills Road. Thanks to green energy procurement and sustainable control measures, the move is expected to cut Siemens Digital Industries Software’s total carbon dioxide impact from 154kg to 0kg. It is the first major letting at Brooklands.
About the project: A rare new business campus development in the city’s historic centre, it has been setting new healthy, sustainable and green working standards. Located within a cluster of tech and pharmaceutical organisations including Apple, AstraZeneca, Microsoft and Amazon, Brooklands is on course to be Cambridge’s first net zero carbon office development, with BREEAM Excellent and EPC A+ ratings being targeted.
On-site demolition work has now been completed and main contractor SDC Building Control is working on the build which is due to be completed in the final quarter of 2024.
What the judges said: Bidwells’ partner, logistics and industrial, Walter Scott, said: “This is a rare new business development in the heart of Cambridge to produce a highly sustainable new building following demolition of existing space.”
Cambridge University’s Nick Mansley, who is the executive of its real estate research centre, said: “This is a new sub-area with little commercial activity and demonstrates the value of the highest environmental standards in securing a tenant.”
Trinity IM’s executive director Richard O’Boyle added: “This is a town centre, complicated site with strong ESG credentials delivering the most impact.”
They made it happen: Jamie Garrett, director, Wrenbridge, Max Bryan, partner, head of laboratory and office agency, Bidwells, William Clarke, director of leasing, Savills.