20 Fenchurch Street – Follow Up

Following on from the late summer media frenzy, over the problem of the “Solar Death Ray” being reflected from 20 Fenchurch Street, as reported in an earlier post, it appears a solution may have been found!

Since that warm sunny spell in early September, the overcast weather has assisted in diminishing the immediate problem, but also the angle of the sun has dropped, and the beam of light has moved from being directly onto the pavement, to higher up the buildings and further along the side street of Eastcheap.  Good news for pedestrians, but bad news for anyone working in the first or second floors of those immediate buildings.

During the height of the problem, temporary scaffolding and hoardings were erected in front of some the shops affected in an attempt shield them but this was remove after only a matter of weeks as the problem lessened.  A longer term solution was still needed.

Temporary curtains being attached to south elevation of 20 Fenchurch Street to combat the solar beam problem
Temporary curtains being attached to south elevation of 20 Fenchurch Street to combat the solar beam problem

Whilst walking along Eastcheap this afternoon, I spotted some activity on the tower, and what looks like an attempt to provide a solution to the issue.  What seems to be black voiles are being draped over the entire southern aspect of the tower.

Zoomed view of anti-glare "curtains" being attcahed to the south elevation of 20 Fenchurch Street.
Zoomed view of anti-glare “curtains” being attcahed to the south elevation of 20 Fenchurch Street.

At this point in time I’m not certain whether this is just another temporary fix, or will develop into the long term solution, but there is no doubt the developers have been pressured into producing a fix for this problem which is set to reoccur each year.

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