Last updated 19th April 2023
HOK International
HOK International is part of a global design, architecture, engineering and planning firm that was founded in the United States in 1955 and has some 23 offices on three continents. In recent years, the firm has ranked highly in the ENR league table of the top 500 design firms.
In London, HOK International Ltd. works on projects in a wide variety of sectors both in the UK and overseas. HOK was part of the team which produced the various options for the huge task of refurbishing the Palace of Westminster, which covers some 1 million sq ft.
Major projects in the UK where the firm has worked include the new BBC Broadcasting House in London and BBC Worldwide hq in west London, the Darwin Centre Phase One at the Natural History Museum and the Francis Crick Institute. It has also worked on the Istanbul International Finance Centre. HOK designed the redevelopment of St Bartholomew”s Hospital in London which was built by Skanska and opened in summer 2016. HOK is also an architect on the alterations made at Buckingham Palace.
One prominent project the firm is currently involved is The Merlin Place building for developer Kadans Science Partner which will provide lab space in the Cambridge Science Park area. HOK is providing architecture, interior design, lab planning and sustainable design services for the seven-story, 140,000 sq ft building.
According to the 2021 AJ100 survey, HOK ranks 43rd amongst UK architecture practices with 49 architects working in the UK and a total UK staff of 130. Architects fees paid to UK offices at the firm were worth £14.88 million out of total architects fees across the firm of £222.6 million. Recently, the firm has been aiming to increase its UK turnover.
In 2021, turnover at the business was split architecture – £13.7 million; interiors-£1.22 million; consulting-£83,000; planning £1.7 million. The UK accounted for turnover of £9.85 million, the rest of Europe £1.3 million and the rest of the World, £5.6 million.
HOK’s London office is one of a group of design teams pre-qualified on London’s Architecture and Urbanism Panel pre-approved to assist the Greater London Authority on design initiatives and to work with TfL on over-station development and transport infrastructure for housing.
Financials
To view the financials for HOK International Ltd, visit Companies House and use Company ID 03115072.
The latest accounts for HOK International Ltd, published in September 2022, show that the UK company is in good financial health although it remained in loss at the operating level. Turnover fell by 6% to £16.7 million in the year to December 2021 although gross profit rose by 6.3% to £7.4 million, giving a gross margin of 44%. Turnover fell at the firm”s architecture & interiors business and was partly offset by an increase in planning work. The company was left with an operating loss before exceptionals of £317,177, compared to a loss of £530,881 previously. HOK reported a pre-tax loss of £316, 620 in 2021, compared to a loss of £518,454 previously. Meanwhile, the firm said it ended the year with £6.13 million cash at bank, up from £4.97 million previously and a healthy position which it believed would support it through any upcoming economic difficulties.
Operations
HOK has offices in Atlanta, Beijing, Calgary, Chicago, Columbus, Dallas, Denver (recently opened), Dubai, Hong Kong, Houston, Kansas City, London, Los Angeles, Mumbai, New York, Ottawa, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Seattle, Shanghai, St Louis, Tampa, Toronto and Washington DC.
The key sectors that HOK works across include: aviation & transportation; civic & cultural; commercial, corporate, education; government; healthcare; hospitality; justice; residential; retail, science & technology; and tall buildings. Overseas work designed by HOK ranges from a refurbishment of a seventeenth century convent and church in Sicily to the Istanbul International Finance Centre scheme and the design for the expansion of Riyadh Airport.
In terms of current UK projects;
HOK’s London studio is working with developer Atenor on a 1950s City of London office building where plans have recently been approved for a ‘deep retrofit’. The project at 10 New Bridge Street will provide around 77,500 sq ft of office space over eight stories and involves a new pedestrian passageway linking two City streets.
Meanwhile, Ireland’s taoiseach Leo Varadkar recently performed marked the start of construction on a 150-bed private hospital designed by HOK’s London studio and Reddy Architecture + Urbanism in Ballysimon. The 190 million euros facility is set to open in 2025.
HOK’s London office also designed BBC Studios’ new Bristol 60,000 sq ft workplace, the broadcaster’s largest outside London and which involves the lower three of the six-storey Bridgewater House in the city.
Meanwhile, on the re-developed London Spire on West India Quay in Canary Wharf, HOK’s design for a 67-storey tower provides 861 private and affordable homes in a landmark scheme. At 789 feet tall, it will be Western Europe’s tallest residential tower.
Overseas, HOK designed the British government’s new Canadian high commission building, complete with strong green credentials.
Glenigan data
Glenigan data highlights HOK”s workload on some significant projects in the UK. It shows that the firm is an architect on the £280 milllion Atlantic Wharf Arena Phase 1 scheme in Cardiff involving some 15,000 sq m of hotel & leisure space and where work is due to start in early 2024 and run for four years (Project ID: 21427440). Meanwhile in London, HOK Internaional is architect on the Transport for London Bollo Lane Phase 2 scheme, a £52 million development involving some 450 homes with commercial and retail space (Project ID: 21230221).
Conclusion: Prominent international group with a strong UK reputation
HOK is one of the biggest international names in the UK and European architectural scene and has a stream of blue chip clients and landmark buildings in its portfolio. Its commissions in London and Cardiff suggest it is winning a reputation for designing major landmark centres linked to regeneration and it appears well-placed to meet its strategic goal of increasing its UK workload. As the economy recovers, the firm”s wide range of sector interests and broad international spread should leave it well-placed for further growth.
Winning Work With HOK International
HOK uses the buildingSMART software for design and specification using 3D modelling, concurrent analysis and integrated project delivery practices. Using this method has produced savings of up to 19% and reduced programme schedules by up to six months. HOK runs a website on BIM (building information modelling).
Key HOK International procurement business contacts in the UK include:
John Rhodes Design Director for HOK”s London studio.
Tel: 020 7898 5004
David Weatherhead Design Principal for HOK”s London office.
Tel: 020 7898 5004