JP Reis has consulted on the trading floor element of an ambitious new development for a European energy trader.
A multi-billion Euro energy company is moving to a new location, not far from its current site in Paris. The new development will have top environmental credentials and be a healthy, productive place to work. A trading floor for 400 energy traders and support staff will be housed in one of the six separate buildings. The building hasn’t been specifically designed with trading in mind but the double height ceilings in the selected area will suit that purpose.
Specialist Trading Floor Consulting
Trading floors are rarely purpose-built in the purest sense. They either inhabit a floor or a designated area in a larger building. This is understandable, in strategic planning terms, it makes sense to avoid making any space within a real estate asset too specialist to be easily divested should the need arise. In general, the architect responsible for a new development will not integrate specific trading floor features into their wider design. Another aspect of any relocation or migration program is that incumbent suppliers will attempt to define any decision-making process as much as possible in their favor.
Our client has considerable in-house expertise but realized that their view of trading floor trends was skewed slightly by their own experience and the input of both architects and incumbent suppliers. Our consultants were called in to present a view based on our familiarity with trading floors around the world.
Considerations for Trading Floor Space
Some of our input served to validate our client’s opinions and strategy but there were significant areas where we were able to challenge the status quo. We can’t share our recommendations here, but areas covered included trends, best practice and selection criteria for:
- Occupancy levels and heat management;
- Specialist trading desks and the choice between passive, fan-assisted, forced air and water-cooled solutions;
- End user computing including the merits of various devices and distribution methods for the trading use case;
- Trading communications technology including trader voice devices (turrets, dealer-boards) and hosted solutions;
- Screens and monitors;
- Regulatory Compliance;
- Structured cabling;
- LED Power Over Ethernet Lighting and general light management;
- Noise control requirements.
We also made some less mainstream suggestions around fuel cells and energy-generating flooring which we felt were relevant to the specific ambitions of the wider project rather than the trading floor itself.
Having worked on the design and fit-out of trading floors globally and having been involved in some of the largest migration, upgrade and consolidation projects, JP Reis can provide unique insight to help achieve best practice and avoid expensive pitfalls that can hold a project back.
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