Wren Urban Nest

From its design to its operation, attention to detail has been a driver in the city centre hotel’s sustainable achievement. It features a biodiverse rooftop garden; a zero-waste, fossil-free kitchen, and an ‘ALT’ bar and restaurant serving organic and locally-sourced produce.

Powered by 100% renewable energy, the Wren was built for net-zero carbon luxury. It was constructed using the most advanced sustainable technologies, whilst key to its aesthetic is eight Brick Slip Arches. These contribute to an intriguing faceted façade, comprising a form and material that facilitates energy sharing across the hotel. This remarkable structural innovation also reflects light along the street and cantilevers out to optimise hotel room sizes.

Working in direct collaboration with the architect, IG Masonry Support was selected to design, manufacture and supply Welded Masonry Support (WMS) at each level of the hotel building and eight Brick Slip Arches. It was a challenge that came with many complexities and carried a major responsibility, as no other market supplier was able to produce systems of such high quality and detail.

The Urban Nest hotel project provided a true test of IG Masonry Support’s design and manufacturing ingenuity. It was the first time the company had produced a brick-on-soffit box system, for example. This bespoke feature, used in conjunction with IG Masonry Support’s arch-forming B.O.S.S. units, ensured the building’s aesthetic requirements were met without issue or delay. Each prefabricated system arrived on site ready to install, ensuring even the most complex detailing was completed in a time and cost-effective manner.

The hotel building’s eight arches comprise six designs at 6.4m wide, and two designs that met at a 90-degree corner at the main entrance. The arches’ size and the complex structure meant they couldn’t be designed as one unit. For IG Masonry Support, this required multiple units to be bolted together to enable their correct fixing back to the structure. Without a consistent cavity on the hotel building, each B.O.S.S. unit had to be detailed individually to suit the results of a slab edge survey.

To the naked eye, the hotel’s front façade arches looked identical. However, the structure for each one varied significantly due to the inconsistent cavity. The reception corner arches’ 90-degree angle presented an additional issue. IG Masonry Support overcame this issue by designing a cornered masonry support that connected to the corner and spanned the cavity. The brick soffit systems then fixed directly to this.

In terms of the arches’ delivery, the hotel’s city centre location required an adaptable response from IG Masonry Support. Hence, the company arranged early morning deliveries to ensure materials’ safe, timely, and undisruptive arrival.

The adaptable nature of IG Masonry Support’s bespoke, stainless-steel B.O.S.S. units was intrinsic to upholding the architect’s aesthetic vision for the Wren Urban Nest hotel. Their offsite prefabrication meant each Brick Slip Arch was delivered readymade to site. Then, in respect of installation, all that was required was the pointing of the brickwork. The systems’ easy adjustability in accordance with IG Masonry Support’s WMS ensured each unit aligned with the most complex elements of the building’s façade. Negating the need for mechanical lifting, the lightweight, carbon neutral B.O.S.S. units contributed to the hotel’s sustainable build and performance.

The technical innovation of IG Masonry Support’s design and manufacturing teams was another notable factor in the hotel’s stylish and sustainable construction. It was as an outcome that was eminently more achievable due to the excellent working relationship between IG Masonry Support and the project’s architect, Building Design Partnership. The Wren Urban Nest hotel’s exceptional design, which led to its compliance with the World Green Building Council’s definition of Net Zero Operational Carbon, last year earned a collection of industry awards. These included:

• Irish Construction Excellence Award (Leisure or Tourism over €10m Category)
• Building & Architect of the Year Award
• Sustainability Award for a Single Building or Development
• Mixology Awards – Positive Impact Award
• Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) Awards

IG Masonry Support is proud to have played its part in the creation of an enterprise that is the first of its kind of in Europe. The Wren Urban Nest hotel not only minimises the environmental and social impacts of its guests, it actually improves the air quality around it.