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The McLaren Group is a collection of high-tech companies involved in the design and development of Formula One cars, high-performance road cars, electronic systems and composite materials. Since McLaren began competing in Formula One in 1966, it has established a global reputation as one of the most successful teams in the history of the sport.

The Technology Centre provides a headquarters for the group and is designed to reflect the company's design and engineering expertise. It includes design studios, laboratories and testing and production facilities for Formula One and high-performance sports cars. Viewed on plan, the building is roughly semi-circular the circle being completed by a lake, which forms an integral part of the building's cooling system. Shaded by a cantilevered roof, the lakeside facade is a continuous curved glass wall, developed in part using McLaren's own technological expertise. Internally, the building's circulation is organised around double-height linear 'streets' which articulate 'fingers' of flexible floor space; these house production and parts storage areas on the lower levels, with top-lit design studios, offices and meeting rooms above. Directly behind the facade is a broad 'boulevard' which leads to areas for hospitality and to the staff restaurant, both of which look out across the lake. Other social facilities include a swimming pool and a fitness centre.

The new Production Centre, which lies immediately to the south-west of the Technology Centre, has allowed McLaren Automotive to step up its production capability and to introduce a range of new road cars, heralded by the 600bhp MP4-12C. Although it provides 32,000-square-metres of accommodation, over two floors, the building is dug discreetly into the landscape to minimise its physical presence. It is connected to the Technology Centre by a subterranean walkway, lined with interactive exhibition spaces. A Visitor Centre with educational facilities is located in a separate building at the entrance to the complex. This two-storey structure is also buried underground. It houses an exhibition space and lecture theatre and is reached via a subterranean link that features a permanent display of McLaren's racing and road cars.

It is absolutely perfectly done. It's put together like a Swiss watch. It's not just that the joints line up it’s that the joints between materials are all exactly the same width.

The Architects' Journal
Drawings

Drawings

HSBC UK Headquarters
2002 - London, UK

HSBC UK Headquarters

McLaren Technology Centre
2004 - Woking, UK

McLaren Technology Centre

Hongkong and Shanghai Bank Headquarters
1986 - Hong Kong, China

Hongkong and Shanghai Bank Headquarters

425 Park Avenue
2022 - New York, USA

425 Park Avenue

McLaren Production Centre
2010 - Woking, UK

McLaren Production Centre

Lusail Towers
2022 - Lusail, Qatar

Lusail Towers

HM Treasury
2002 - London, UK

HM Treasury

ITN Productions
1991 - London, UK

ITN Productions

Gerling Ring
2001 - Cologne, Germany

Gerling Ring

ICD Brookfield Place
2020 - Dubai, UAE

ICD Brookfield Place