The brief

Home to more than 100 digital and technology businesses, EW2 needed a ground floor that felt like the beating heart of the campus. Bruntwood SciTech commissioned 2G to design the entire ground-floor footprint, encompassing the main entrance, building reception, tech lounge and the central restaurant and café. The space had to cater effortlessly to morning coffee rushes, informal afternoon co-working, formal client lunches, and evening community events.

The challenge

Designing a space that operates simultaneously as an office reception, a commercial F&B venue, and a public-facing lounge comes with inherent friction. Traditional office lobbies often feel cold and transitional, while pure hospitality venues can lack the power supply, acoustic management, and practical layouts needed for co-working. The challenge lay in balancing these competing needs within a single, continuous footprint, ensuring that high footfall and noise from the café did not disrupt semi-private meetings or quiet work zones.

Looking ahead

Now in pre-construction with a complete set of 3D visual renders, the ground-floor design for EW2 showcases how multi-tenant buildings can unlock higher commercial value through hospitality design. By transforming a standard lobby into a thriving F&B and social hub, the scheme ensures EW2 remains a premier location for tech enterprises across the Midlands.

See the adjoining project for EW1 here.