The Smokery, Farringdon

Overview

As part of the final fit-out of The Smokery, a high-quality CAT A+ office refurbishment in Farringdon owned by Steve Parish, Azar was appointed to deliver key elements of the passive fire protection strategy, alongside the supply and installation of fire-rated doorsets, supporting compartmentation and compliance across the refurbished floors.

Our package

• Inspection and upgrading of compartmentation within the office areas
• Fire stopping of service penetrations introduced during the refurbishment
• Linear gap sealing where new partitions met the existing structure
• Supply and installation of 26 unfinished European oak pre-hung doorsets
• Installation of antique brass ironmongery to all doorsets
• Alignment, adjustment and commissioning to ensure compliant performance

The challenges, and how we solved them

Maintaining fire compartment integrity during refurbishment: the CAT A+ upgrade introduced new service penetrations and layout alterations, so fire-stopping measures had to be carefully reinstated. We coordinated closely with the M&E and partition contractors to seal every penetration using tested and certified systems, with full photographic records maintained throughout. Achieving a high-end finish: the unfinished European oak doorsets, complemented by antique brass ironmongery, needed precision installation to look premium without compromising fire performance. Every door was carefully handled, accurately set out and adjusted for visual consistency and correct operational tolerances, with ironmongery fitted using templates for uniformity. Programme coordination: working in the final phase of the refurbishment, we sequenced installation around area readiness and kept in close communication with site management to avoid delaying completion.

The outcome

The offices were handed over with compartmentation reinstated and fully documented, and 26 European oak doorsets installed to a premium finish without holding up the programme. The result is a workspace that meets its fire compartmentation and compliance requirements while achieving the high-end look the scheme was designed around, backed by a complete photographic record of the passive fire protection works.