E3 Architecture is delighted to announce that our completed Fresh Fuel project in Ancoats, Manchester, has been featured in the AJ Buildings Library, the Architects’ Journal’s online collection of exemplary architectural projects.
The £375,000 scheme transformed a redundant office and storage building into a distinctive new home for the growing independent food brand, Fresh Fuel. Located within the Ancoats Conservation Area, the project carefully balances a strong contemporary identity with the industrial character and architectural heritage of its surroundings.
A zinc-clad vertical “chimney” forms the principal architectural feature, referencing the mill chimneys that once defined the Ancoats skyline. Locally sourced brickwork, generous openings and restrained detailing help the building feel both confidently contemporary and firmly rooted in its historic context.
The constrained, landlocked site presented several logistical and operational challenges. With only one accessible elevation, the design needed to accommodate customer access, servicing, refuse collection and fire escape. Careful spatial planning allowed a full commercial kitchen to be positioned at first-floor level and served by a dedicated goods lift, preserving the ground floor for customer-facing uses.
Sustainability was also central to the project. More than 50% of the existing building fabric was retained, reducing embodied carbon, while improvements to the thermal envelope and building services achieved a 48% reduction in operational emissions compared with the original building.
We are extremely proud to see this modest but carefully considered adaptive-reuse project recognised by one of the UK’s leading architectural publications.
View the Fresh Fuel feature in the AJ Buildings Library
