Webb Yates Engineers / Agnese Sanvito

Performance Data

Embodied Carbon: Not declared

Design Life: Not declared

End of Life: Load-bearing stone façade designed as a durable structural system; potential reuse strategy not declared.

Construction Process: Pre-cut Normandy limestone blocks formed a load-bearing exoskeleton, with stone columns individually sized according to structural loads and assembled alongside a concrete core and floor slabs.

Introduction

15 Clerkenwell Close is a mixed-use residential and workspace building in London designed by Groupwork and Amin Taha with structural engineering by Webb Yates Engineers. Completed in 2017, the six-storey building reinterprets stone as a primary structural system rather than a conventional external finish. The design uses a load-bearing limestone exoskeleton formed from large pre-cut stone blocks, creating a trabeated post-and-lintel structure inspired by historic masonry construction. The stone columns were individually designed and sized according to the loads they carry, reducing unnecessary material use while retaining the natural character of the stone. The limestone was left largely in its quarried finish, exposing natural bedding planes and fossil markings while reducing additional processing. Behind the stone structure, thermally broken concrete floor slabs span between the columns, with overall stability provided by a reinforced concrete core. The project demonstrates how contemporary engineering can revive traditional stone construction principles, reducing reliance on layered façade systems and positioning natural stone as a durable structural material with long service potential.

15 Clerkenwell Close is a mixed-use residential and workspace building in London designed by Groupwork and Amin Taha with structural engineering by Webb Yates Engineers. Completed in 2017, the six-storey building reinterprets stone as a primary structural system rather than a conventional external finish. The design uses a load-bearing limestone exoskeleton formed from large pre-cut stone blocks, creating a trabeated post-and-lintel structure inspired by historic masonry construction. The stone columns were individually designed and sized according to the loads they carry, reducing unnecessary material use while retaining the natural character of the stone. The limestone was left largely in its quarried finish, exposing natural bedding planes and fossil markings while reducing additional processing. Behind the stone structure, thermally broken concrete floor slabs span between the columns, with overall stability provided by a reinforced concrete core. The project demonstrates how contemporary engineering can revive traditional stone construction principles, reducing reliance on layered façade systems and positioning natural stone as a durable structural material with long service potential.

What to Notice

Stone as structure: Limestone operates as a load-bearing exoskeleton, replacing conventional façade systems with a structural masonry approach.

Material optimisation: Each stone column is individually sized according to structural loads, reducing excessive material use while retaining structural clarity.

Quarry-to-building expression: Stone surfaces retain natural bedding planes and textures, reducing processing while revealing the material’s geological character.

Post-and-lintel logic: Contemporary engineering adapts traditional masonry principles into a modern multi-storey construction system.

Stone as structure: Limestone operates as a load-bearing exoskeleton, replacing conventional façade systems with a structural masonry approach.

Material optimisation: Each stone column is individually sized according to structural loads, reducing excessive material use while retaining structural clarity.

Quarry-to-building expression: Stone surfaces retain natural bedding planes and textures, reducing processing while revealing the material’s geological character.

Post-and-lintel logic: Contemporary engineering adapts traditional masonry principles into a modern multi-storey construction system.

Hero Materials

Project Team

Location

Year Completed

Project Value

Awards

Sources

Growing Practical Material Knowledge for Architects


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Growing Practical Material Knowledge for Architects


Copyright © 2026 BuildBetterStuff.

All rights reserved.