Fire & Security In Islington

Islington's commercial stock is dominated by conversion. The southern end around Old Street, Clerkenwell and Farringdon is full of former warehouses, print works and light industrial buildings turned into offices for technology, design and professional services firms. Further north, Upper Street and Angel carry a dense strip of independent retail, restaurants and bars, much of it in Georgian and Victorian terraces.

Conversions bring their own quirks. Exposed services are often a deliberate design feature, which means containment is visible and has to be installed to a standard that survives being looked at. Solid masonry, timber floors and irregular layouts make cable routes awkward, and many buildings carry conservation area or listed constraints that limit what can go on an elevation.

Multi tenancy is the other defining feature. A single converted building may hold six or eight small firms sharing a front door, which complicates both fire zoning and access control. Systems need to give each tenant control of their own suite while keeping common parts, escape routes and the main entrance working as one coherent whole.