The Ford Motor Company Showroom and Offices 88 Regent Street London

THE FORD MOTOR COMPANY’S OFFICES REGENT STREET -  The Ford Motor Company’s new premises at 88 Regent Street W are eight storeys in height, and the exterior is of grey Portland stone. On the ground floor is an arc of plate glass rising nearly two storeys, surrounding a massive dark polished granite setting, in which the doors give entrance to the main showroom. This showroom is of striking design, consisting of a continuous seascape, made of thousands of pieces of vari-coloured marble and mosaic. The upper part of the showroom is of silver and gold, the gold mosaic of the piers merging into green as they Afan@ towards the ceiling. The ceiling is composed of 81 coffered panels, the whole being covered with silver metal leaf. Glass stars are let into 45 of these panels. At the further end of the salon id the lift, enclosed in a wrought iron and glass grille, and approached bya flight of black marble steps. Here too, is a series of archways with marble columnar supports leading to the showroom in the rear. Another arcaded storey surmounts them, with a balcony from which the salon below may be seen. The floor of this balcony is of glass, in curved panels and at one end there is a marble fountain. Three other large showrooms are incorporated in the building. One of these, on the ground floor at the rear of the main salon is panelled in oak. The entire  mezzanine floor, where the decorative scheme resembles Caen stone, will also be used as a showroom. The entire first floor is also given over to showrooms, having mahogany panelling surmounted by special plaster-work. A car lift on the Glasshouse-street side of the building will bring in the cars for these showrooms and will also give access to the basement. On the second floor are the chairman=s office and boardroom suite. These rooms are carried out in polished walnut and silver enrichment. The floor is also of walnut. On the third, fourth and fifth floors are many offices, large and small, a number panelled in mahogany. On the top floor of the building is the conference hall, with a seating capacity for more than 80 people. The main central stairs are constructed entirely of fire- resisting materials, and every window or screen adjoining them is glazed to give similar protection.

The general contractors are the Western Construction Company and the following are sub-contractors: Steelwork - London and Wales Steel Construction Company ; Floors - Caxton Floors Limited; Joinery throughout - Samuel Elliot & Sons; Slates - Wiggins Sankey; paint - Thomas Parsons; distemper - John Hall and Sons; plasterwork - Veronese Limited; general and special plaster - Mab-l-cote; heating - G N Haden and Sons; electrical installation - Waring Withers and Chadwick; internal telephones - Relay Automatic Telephone Company; plumbing and sanitary fittings - Stitson White and Company; iron escape stairs, pavement lights and deck lights - Heywoods Limited; steel windows and roof lanterns - Henry Hope and Sons; Portland stone frontage - United Stone Company.

A MOTOR SHOWROOM IN REGENT STREET - The word showroom does not adequately describe the new Ford building in Regent Street. Behind the facade designed by Sir Reginald Blomfield, R.A., as part of the Quadrant, is the central administrative office of the Ford activities in England. Apart from the showrooms for Ford and Lincoln cars, commercial vehicles and tractors, there are a boardroom suite, offices, staff rooms, a spare parts depot, and a conference room—panelled and furnished in limed oak—for meetings of managers and agents.
 
The site is thoroughly awkward, particularly for a building to contain cars. It long and narrow, with a well light on one side only. Regent Street and Glasshouse Street are, at different levels, which necessitated ramps instead of steps so that cars could be moved easily. The plan shows a remarkably clever fitting in of lifts, stairs and rooms, and the interior has a surprising amount of daylight. Party walls existed on both sides when work began. It was decided that these should not be disturbed as the cost of so doing would have been heavy. The stanchion foundations, therefore, do not extend under the party walls but are connected together across the site by inverted steel beams, on the ends of which the stanchions rest. Thus, the building is quite independent of its neighbours. 

The two principal showrooms arc on the ground floor, that for Lincoln cars rising to approximately double floor height. Tractors and commercial vehicles are shown on the mezzanine over the back portion. In the principal showroom it was decided that an attempt should be made to depart from the panelling and palms of the usual motor showroom. The walls have therefore been covered with marble inlay arranged pictorially. The piers are covered with green, gold and silver mosaic, while the ceiling is coffered and silvered. An unusual provision is that of a plenum ventilation system to the showrooms. The lift is reached up a short flight of black marble steps and forms the termination f the main axis. The interesting balcony is of silvered cast-iron and glass. 

The other rooms follow standard office practice, except that precautions are taken to prevent sound transmission by means of double glazing and that there is a wiring system for Dictaphones as well as telephones. The heating is by means of oil-fired boilers. The board-room is an essay in the Renaissance manner, with walnut panelling and silver ornaments. The shop-front and main showroom were designed by Mr. Gerald A. Brown in. collaboration with Messrs. Charles Heathcotc & Sons, F/F.R.I.B.A. The general contractors were the Western Construction Co., Ltd., Artillery House, S.W.1. 

The sub-contractors included London & Wales Steel Construction Co., Ltd. (steelwork) ; Caxton Floors, Ltd. (floors) ; Samuel Elliott & Sons, Ltd. (joinery throughout) ; Wiggins - Sankey, Ltd. (slates); Thos. Parsons & Sons (paint); John Hall & Sons (distemper); Veronese Co. (plasterwork, general and special—Marb-l-cote); G. N. Haden & Sons, Ltd. (heating); Waring, Withers & Chadwick (electrical installation) ; Relay Automatic Telephone Co. (internal telephones); Stitson White & Co. (plumbing and sanitary fittings); Haywards, Ltd. (iron escape stairs, pavement lights, and deck lights); Henry Hope & Sons, Ltd. (steel windows and roof lanterns) ; United Stone Firms, Ltd. (Portland stone frontage); Empire Stone Co., Ltd. (pre-cast stone to back elevation, and staircase); The Art Pavements & Decorations, Ltd. (main staircase and floor tiling); Marble Mosaic Co. (lavatory partitions and floors); G. & A. Brown, Ltd. (main showroom decoration; special lift enclosure (metalwork by Bagues, Ltd.) ; fibrous plaster, and main showroom front to Regent Street); Fenning & Co. (marblework for main showroom); Haywards, Ltd. (balcony for main showroom); Waygood-Otis, Ltd. lift and passenger lift) ; General Electric Co., Ltd.; Osler & Faraday, and Best & Lloyd (electric fittings); White Allom & Co. (board-room suite decoration);  Shoolbred, Ltd. (furnishing) ; Shannons, Ltd. (special fittings); David Rowell & Co. (metalwork in basement) ; Mather & Platt (hydrant service) ; Milners Safe Co., Ltd. (strongroom door and fitting); Light Steel Work, Ltd. (steel doors); Gent & Co. (synchronised clocks) ; Fenning & Co. (granite work); Samuel Elliott & Sons, Ltd.; Thos. Firth & Sons, Ltd. (metal framework); Floorcraft, Ltd. (board-room floor); Fram Reinforced Concrete Co. (general floor finish in cork) ; Cashmere Art Workers; Morris Singer Co. (wrought iron work); K. F. M. Signs, Ltd. (electric window signs); A. E. Davis (ironmongery throughout) ; A. L. Gibson & Co., Ltd. (shutters); Gilbert Seale. & Co. stone carving); Minton Hollins & Co. tiling). [Architect and Building News 11 April 1930 page468, 476-477 and 492]

Reference    Builder Vol. CXXXVIII No 4549. 11 April 1930 Page 707-710
Reference    Architect and Building News 11 April 1930 page468, 476-477 and 492