CoStar, the American commercial real estate company, appointed Skansen to construct its new European headquarters on the fifth floor of 40 Portman Square.

The fifth floor plate is 15,000ft², finished to a high quality Cat A finish by the landlord. CoStar leased a 10,000ft² area for its headquarters, with the remaining 5,000ft² segregated for use by future tenants.

The scope was to provide a full Cat B fit-out within eight weeks, incorporating upgrade works to the landlord's common parts and future tenant demise.

Key areas such as the comms room, breakout space, telephone booths, sales area, directors' offices, executive suite and reception were integrated into the predominantly open plan office. The finishes utilised were of a very high standard, with bespoke joinery for kitchens, coat cupboards, copy points, recycling units, display units and meeting rooms. To add to the aesthetic impact, the flooring installed combined a number of finishes including carpet, solid oak timber flooring and porcelain tiles.

Full height seamless glass systems to the office fronts and meeting room areas maintained a high level of natural daylight throughout the space. Bespoke furniture in the executive suite and reception delivered the conceptual ethos of the project.