AKT II is a London based firm of

structural A structure is an arrangement and organization of interrelated elements in a material object or system, or the object or system so organized. Material structures include man-made objects such as buildings and machines and natural objects such ...

civil Civil may refer to: *Civic virtue, or civility *Civil action, or lawsuit * Civil affairs *Civil and political rights *Civil disobedience *Civil engineering *Civil (journalism), a platform for independent journalism *Civilian, someone not a membe ...

and transportation engineering consultants. It was founded as Adams Kara Taylor in 1996 by

Hanif Kara Hanif Mohamed Kara is a structural engineer and is design director and co-founder of London-based structural engineering practice AKT II (previously Adams Kara Taylor). He has taught design internationally, is a member of the board of trustees ...

, Albert Williamson-Taylor (an

Honorary Fellow Honorary titles (professor, reader, lecturer) in academia may be conferred on persons in recognition of contributions by a non-employee or by an employee beyond regular duties. This practice primarily exists in the UK and Germany, as well as in m ...

of the Royal Institute of British Architects since 2009) and Robin Adams. Now numbering over 350 employees, it is one of the largest structural engineers in London.

History

Originally founded as Adams Kara Taylor in 1996,

, Albert Williamson-Taylor and Robin Adams were joined by new principals Paul Scott and Gerry O'Brien in 2011 when the practice was renamed AKT II. The façade engineering consultancy service AKT II Envelopes was founded in 2015 to draw upon the past experience of the parent company. In 2016 the practice celebrated its 20th year in business, and following completion of the White Collar Factory project

Old Street Old Street is a street in inner north-east Central London that runs west to east from Goswell Road in Clerkenwell, in the London Borough of Islington, via St Luke's and Old Street Roundabout, to the crossroads where it meets Shoreditch High ...

in 2017, AKT II relocated its headquarters to the building in May. AKT II regularly collaborates with academic institutions such as

Harvard Graduate School of Design The Harvard Graduate School of Design (GSD) is the graduate school of design at Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It offers master's and doctoral programs in architecture, landscape architecture, urban ...

, the

Architectural Association The Architectural Association School of Architecture in London, commonly referred to as the AA, is the oldest independent school of architecture in the UK and one of the most prestigious and competitive in the world. Its wide-ranging programme ...

and

KTH Royal Institute of Technology The KTH Royal Institute of Technology ( sv, Kungliga Tekniska högskolan, lit=Royal Institute of Technology), abbreviated KTH, is a public research university in Stockholm, Sweden. KTH conducts research and education in engineering and technolo ...

in Stockholm as well as industry institutions including CABE, BCO, and the Architecture Foundation.

Projects

Since its inception, AKT II has contributed to projects in the UK and internationally, spanning five continents, with architects such as Allford Hall Monaghan Morris,

Bjarke Ingels Group Bjarke Ingels Group, often referred to as BIG, is a Copenhagen and New York based group of architects, designers and builders operating within the fields of architecture, urbanism, research and development. The office is currently involved in a ...

David Chipperfield Sir David Alan Chipperfield, (born 18 December 1953) is an English architect. He established David Chipperfield Architects in 1985. His major works include the River and Rowing Museum in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire (1989–1998); the Museum ...

Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios (also known as FCBStudios) is a British architectural design firm, established in 1978, with offices in Bath, London, Manchester, Belfast and Edinburgh. The firm is known for its pioneering work in sustainable desig ...

Foreign Office Architects Foreign Office Architects, FOA, was an architectural design studio headed by former husband and wife team Farshid Moussavi and Alejandro Zaera-Polo. The London-based studio, which was established in 1993, specialised in architectural design, master ...

Foster + Partners Foster + Partners is a British architectural, engineering, and integrated design practice founded in 1967 as Foster Associates by Norman Foster. It is the largest architectural firm in the UK with over 1,500 employees in 13 studios worldwide. ...

Thomas Heatherwick Thomas Alexander Heatherwick, (born 17 February 1970) is an English designer and the founder of London-based design practice Heatherwick Studio. He works with a team of around 200 architects, designers and makers from a studio and workshop in ...

and

Zaha Hadid Dame Zaha Mohammad Hadid ( ar, زها حديد ''Zahā Ḥadīd''; 31 October 1950 – 31 March 2016) was an Iraqi-British architect, artist and designer, recognised as a major figure in architecture of the late 20th and early 21st centu ...

. AKT II designed the

Francis Crick Institute The Francis Crick Institute (formerly the UK Centre for Medical Research and Innovation) is a biomedical research centre in London, which was established in 2010 and opened in 2016. The institute is a partnership between Cancer Research UK, Impe ...

with HOK and the

Birmingham New Street railway station Birmingham New Street is the largest and busiest of the three main railway stations in Birmingham city centre, England, and a central hub of the British railway system. It is a major destination for Avanti West Coast services from , and via ...

redevelopment with AZPML, the latter receiving the 2016

Institution of Structural Engineers The Institution of Structural Engineers is a professional body for structural engineering based in the United Kingdom. The Institution has over 30,000 members operating in over 100 countries. The Institution provides professional accreditation ...

' Structural Awards for Infrastructure or Transportation Structures. Westquay South

UK projects

Google Google LLC () is an American multinational technology company focusing on search engine technology, online advertising, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, artificial intelligence, and consumer electronics. ...

King's Cross, London (ongoing, architect: BIG - Bjarke Ingels Group and

Heatherwick Studio Thomas Alexander Heatherwick, (born 17 February 1970) is an English designer and the founder of London-based design practice Heatherwick Studio. He works with a team of around 200 architects, designers and makers from a studio and workshop in ...

) *

Wood Wharf Wood Wharf is a 23 acrehttps://group.canarywharf.com/portfolio/wood-wharf/ Wood Wharf, Canary Wharf Group PLC, Retrieved 26 April 2018 site in Canary Wharf, London. It is currently under construction to provide offices, residential homes and ret ...

, London (ongoing, architect: various) *

Whiteleys Whiteleys was a shopping centre in Bayswater, London. It was built in the retail space of the former William Whiteley Limited department store, which opened in 1911 as one of London's first department stores, and was one of the main department ...

, London (ongoing, architect:

) *

One Nine Elms One Nine Elms is a mixed-use skyscraper scheme currently under construction in Nine Elms, London. It was originally developed by Wanda One, a UK subsidiary company of Dalian Wanda, until they sold the project to R&F Properties, another Chines ...

, London (ongoing, architect: KPF) * One Grosvenor Square,

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, (2020, architect:

EPR Architects EPR Architects is a London-based architectural practice that originally started business under the names of its founders Elsom Pack & Roberts. It is known for commercial, residential and hotel projects. Cecil Elsom CBE (17 January 1912 – 3 Apr ...

) *

King's Cross Central King's Cross Central (''KXC'') is a multi-billion pound mixed-use development in the north-east of central London. The site is owned and controlled by thKing's Cross Central Limited Partnership It consists of approximately of former railway la ...

, London (ongoing, architect: various) * Bloomberg European HQ, London (2018, architect:

) * Westquay Watermark,

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

, (2017, architect:

ACME Acme is Ancient Greek (ακμή; English transliteration: ''akmē'') for "the peak", "zenith" or "prime". It may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Acme'' (album), an album by the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion * Acme and Septimius, a fictional ...

) *

One Rathbone Square One Rathbone Square is a commercial building in London, and the UK headquarters of Facebook. History Rathbone Square is a development in central London. The site was bought from Royal Mail Group for £120m in September 2011; it was the former We ...

, (2017, architect:

MAKE Architects Make Architects is an international architecture practice headquartered in London that also has offices in offices in Hong Kong and Sydney. Founded in 2004 by former Foster + Partners architect Ken Shuttleworth. The practice has a variety of proj ...

) *

Serpentine Pavilion The Serpentine Galleries are two contemporary art galleries in Kensington Gardens, Hyde Park, Central London. Recently rebranded to just Serpentine, the organisation is split across Serpentine South, previously known as the Serpentine Gallery, ...

, London (2016, architect:

) * The Francis Crick Institute, London (2016, architect: HOK) *

South Bank Tower Southbank Tower (formerly South Bank Tower King's Reach Tower until 2013) is a high-rise building in Stamford Street, Southwark, London. It was originally a thirty-storey structure high and was completed in 1972, designed by the architect Ric ...

, London (2015, architect: KPF) *

, Birmingham (2015, architect: AZPML) * Merchant Square Footbridge, London (2014, architect: Knight Architects) *

Sainsbury Laboratory The Sainsbury Laboratory (TSL) is a research institute located at the Norwich Research Park (NRP) in Norwich, Norfolk, England, that carries out fundamental biological research and technology development on aspects of plant disease, plant dise ...

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

(2011, architect:

Stanton Williams Stanton Williams is a British architectural design practice based in Islington Islington () is a district in the north of Greater London, England, and part of the London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner ...

) * Ravensbourne College, London (2010, architect:

) *

Hunsett Mill Hunsett Mill is located on the east bank of the River Ant one mile north of Barton Broad in the English county of Norfolk. The Windmill is 1.2 miles south west of the town of Stalham. The mill structure is a grade II listed building. Descriptio ...

, Norfolk (2009, architect: ACME) *

Highcross Highcross Leicester is a shopping centre in Leicester, England. It was opened as The Shires in 1991 to supplement the Haymarket Shopping Centre, also since re-developed. It was built on a central location within the city centre on Eastgates and ...

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

(2008, architect: Foreign Office Architects) *

East Beach Café East Beach Café is a seafront cafe in Littlehampton, West Sussex, United Kingdom. It is owned by Jane Wood and Sophie Murray, who commissioned designer Thomas Heatherwick to create an iconic building for the seaside town of Littlehampton. Arc ...

Littlehampton Littlehampton is a town, seaside resort, and pleasure harbour, and the most populous civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, England. It lies on the English Channel on the eastern bank of the mouth of the River Arun. It is south sout ...

(2007, architect: Heatherwick Studio) *

Blizard Building The Blizard Building is a building in Whitechapel in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It houses the Blizard Institute, formerly known as the Blizard Institute of Cell and Molecular Science, part of Barts and The London School of Medicine and ...

, London (2005, architect: Alsop Architects) *

Cadogan Hall Cadogan Hall is a 950-seat capacity concert hall in Sloane Terrace in Chelsea in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England. The resident music ensemble at Cadogan Hall is the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO), the first ...

, London (2004, architect:

PDP London Studio PDP, formerly known as Paul Davis + Partners or PDP London, is an architectural practice based in the UK. Founded in 1994, Chairman Paul Davis, retired from the practice as chairman in 2013, with the other 10 partners continuing to lead. ...

) *

Peckham Library Peckham Library is a library and community building situated in Peckham in south-east London. It was designed by Alsop and Störmer,

, London (1999, architect: Alsop & Störmer)

Notable international projects

* Zayed National Museum,

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi (, ; ar, أَبُو ظَبْيٍ ' ) is the capital and second-most populous city (after Dubai) of the United Arab Emirates. It is also the capital of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and the centre of the Abu Dhabi Metropolitan Area. ...

, UAE (ongoing, architect: Foster + Partners) * Vessel, New York City, NY, USA (ongoing, architect: Heatherwick Studio) * Napoli Afragola railway station,

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

, Italy (ongoing, architect: Zaha Hadid Architects) * Oslo Airport Terminal 2, Gardermoen,

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

(2017, architect: Nordic — Office of Architecture) *

Eastland Shopping Centre Eastland Shopping Centre is a super-regional shopping centre located in the eastern Melbourne suburb of Ringwood, Victoria, Australia, which first opened on 31 October 1967. It is adjacent to Ringwood railway station on Maroondah Highway a ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Australia (2015, architect: ACME) *

Heydar Aliyev Cultural Center The Heydar Aliyev Center is a building complex in Baku, Azerbaijan designed by Iraqi-British architect Zaha Hadid and noted for its distinctive architecture and flowing, curved style that eschews sharp angles. The center is named after Heydar Ali ...

Baku Baku (, ; az, Bakı ) is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is located below sea level, which makes it the lowest lying national capital in the world a ...

, Azerbaijan (2013, architect: Zaha Hadid Architects) *

Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum The Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum (colloquially MSU Broad), is a contemporary art museum at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan. It opened on November 10, 2012. History On June 1, 2007, Michigan State received a $28 millio ...

East Lansing East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. Most of the city lies within Ingham County with a smaller portion extending north into Clinton County. At the 2020 Census the population was 47,741. Located directly east of the state capital ...

, MI, USA (2012, architect: Zaha Hadid Architects) *

Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium is a cricket stadium situated in the city of Pune, India besides the Pune Mumbai Expressway nestled between the hills of the Western Ghats. It is the home venue for the Maharashtra cricket team and is ...

Pune Pune (; ; also known as Poona, (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name from 1818 until 1978) is one of the most important industrial and educational hubs of India, with an estimated population of 7.4 million ...

, India (2012, architect:

Hopkins Architects Hopkins Architects (formerly Michael Hopkins and Partners) is a prominent British architectural firm established by architects Sir Michael and Patricia, Lady Hopkins. Background The practice was established in 1976 by Michael and Patty Hopkins ...

) *

UK pavilion at Expo 2010 The UK pavilion at Expo 2010, colloquially known as the Seed Cathedral, was a sculpture structure built by a nine-member conglomeration of British business and government resources directed by designer Thomas Heatherwick. It referenced the race ...

, Shanghai, China (2010, architect: Thomas Heatherwick) *

Masdar Institute of Science and Technology The Masdar Institute of Science and Technology was a graduate level, research-oriented university focused on alternative energies, sustainability, and environmental research. In 2017, it merged with two other institutions in Abu Dhabi, Petroleum ...

, Abu Dhabi, UAE (2010, architect: Foster + Partners) * Henderson Waves, Singapore (2008, architect: IJP Corporation) * Phæno Science Center,

Wolfsburg Wolfsburg (; Eastphalian: ''Wulfsborg'') is the fifth largest city in the German state of Lower Saxony, located on the river Aller. It lies about east of Hanover and west of Berlin. Wolfsburg is famous as the location of Volkswagen AG's hea ...

, Germany (2005, architect: Zaha Hadid Architects)

Awards

In both 2016 and 2017, AKT II featured on

New Civil Engineer ''New Civil Engineer'' is the monthly magazine for members of the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE), the UK chartered body that oversees the practice of civil engineering in the UK. First published in May 1972, it is today published by Metropoli ...

's Top 100 civil engineering firms to work for and with, coming 13th in both years and winning the Global Firm of the Year Award in 2017. They were also UK Consultants of the Year (under 250 employees) at the 2015 NCE/ACE Consultants Awards. In 2019, the practice won Building Magazine's Engineering Consultants of the Year award. AKT II has supported projects which to date have won more than 350 design awards including four

Stirling Prize The Royal Institute of British Architects Stirling Prize is a British prize for excellence in architecture. It is named after the architect James Stirling, organised and awarded annually by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). The S ...

s (

Peckham Library Peckham Library is a library and community building situated in Peckham in south-east London. It was designed by Alsop and Störmer,

in 2000,

in 2012, Bloomberg European HQ in 2018 and Kingston Townhouse in 2021), the

RIBA The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally, founded for the advancement of architecture under its royal charter granted in 1837, three suppl ...

Manser Medal 2010 for

, and the RIBA Lubetkin Prize 2010 for the UK Pavilion, Shanghai Expo. Other prominent wins include over ten BCI Awards, including the Judges' Special Award for the Angel Building and the Prime Minister's Better Public Building Award for Five Pancras Square, and IStructE Structural Awards for Birmingham New Street station, Chenil House and Phæno Science Center.

Publications

* ''Design Engineering'' (Actar, 2008) – This publication explores the first ten years of Adams Kara Taylor's existence, becoming one of the most innovative engineering firms working today. * ''Design Engineering Refocused'' (Wiley, 2016) – This books draws upon AKT II's second decade to explore how the role of the design engineer has evolved, illustrating examples of interdisciplinary interactions and revealing the processes that challenge conventions of traditional and new modes of practice.

References

{{Reflist

External links

AKT II website
Companies based in the London Borough of Islington Construction and civil engineering companies of the United Kingdom 1996 establishments in England Construction and civil engineering companies established in 1996 British companies established in 1996