The main core of the 50-storey tower One Blackfriars has reached level two, and a quarter of the feature columns have been cast from levels one to three.
One Blackfriars will regenerate a 0.67 hectare vacant site directly south of Blackfriars Bridge that had been vacant and unoccupied for more than a decade.
Ross Faragher, Managing Director of St George, said: "Now that work on the superstructure is well underway, London will be able to watch as this iconic tower begins to take shape on the city skyline."
"One Blackfriars will also make a significant contribution to the Southwark economy. By this time next year over 1,000 people will be working on the construction site, and we are also making considerable investments in local training initiatives."
In February 2015, St George celebrated a construction milestone, as Laing O'Rourke completed a 3,200 sq m concrete pour at the site. This was the largest continuous concrete pour ever completed by the contractor in the UK
The form of the tower, designed by Simpson Haugh and Partners, presents a range of challenges in construction. The unusual geometry of the building means that each floor plate is different, and the smoothly curving façade with its double envelope structure is painstakingly crafted so that each pane of glass is unique.
The tower structure comprises 9,126 individual panels of glass arranged as two distinct layers, with the outer façade of 5,467 panels amounting to the area of three football pitches.
The building's unusual double skin façade provides residents with winter gardens.
On Thursday 18 June 2015, One Blackfriars participated in the London Festival of Architecture, welcoming visitors to the site in the London borough of Southwark. The London Festival of Architecture is a public event held each year at multiple venues across the city.
Once complete the One Blackfriars tower will provide 273 new homes, a boutique-style 161-bedroom hotel, retail outlets and a viewing lounge on the 32nd floor for the local community. At the heart of the development will be a new 641 sq m public piazza with gentle landscaping, water features and locally commissioned artwork.
Source: St George www.berkeleygroup.co.uk 30.06.2015