Pictured above: Jonathan Carmalt from King Sturge with Gary Andrews from Hoare Lea outside 54 Hagley Road

With a history spanning almost 150 years in Birmingham , Hoare Lea, an award-winning firm of consulting engineers has taken the opportunity to upgrade its offices whilst market conditions are attractive for occupiers and has signed a ten year lease at the prominently positioned, grade A offices of 54 Hagley Road in Edgbaston.

Hoare Lea's founder, Henry Lea, was born in Birmingham and was responsible for groundbreaking schemes in the city. Lea was a pioneer of electrical lighting and in 1882 supervised one of the first electrical lighting systems installed in a public building at Birmingham Town Hall . He was also closely associated with the development of Birmingham University and Birmingham General Hospital , where Lea pioneered new methods of artificial ventilation based on the plenum system.

Hoare Lea continues to provide innovative environmental design services for major schemes across all construction sectors including many prestigious projects in Birmingham , such as Brindleyplace, Baskerville House, The Cube, 45 Church Street and Birmingham City Council's offices at Woodcock Street .

"Birmingham and the Midlands continues to be a very important market for us," says Hoare Lea Birmingham's managing partner, Gary Andrews. "We have maintained a healthy mix of work across all market sectors and have significant ongoing projects with New Street Station, Telford & Wrekin and Derby Local Authorities as well as many schools, academies and healthcare projects across the region.

"To take forward a new decade of opportunities we wanted to improve the quality of our workspace and the amenities for both our staff and visitors," continues Gary.

"The entrance to the building gives an excellent first impression and the light, modern offices and ground floor coffee shop offer something extra for employees."

Traditionally a location for professionals, Edgbaston enjoyed a good year in 2010 with some notable lettings to occupiers attracted by the reasonable rents, good parking and transport links. Hoare Lea joins Francis Graves and Robinson Low Francis as recent lettings to property professionals at 54 Hagley Road .

"The easy access to Birmingham city centre and wider transport links enable us to service our clients across the entire Midlands region," adds Gary .

Founded in 1862, Hoare Lea has a national network of 10 offices and a growing international presence.  An independent partnership, the Practice has specialists to support every aspect of the building environmental brief and can offer expert advice in many complex areas of design, construction and operation.

Hoare Lea has been five times winner of the Large Consultancy of the Year category at the Building Services Awards and has also received a number of recent awards for innovation, professional development and training. In 2010 Hoare Lea won both the 'Infrastructure' and 'Building Services' categories at the Association for Consultancy and Engineering Engineering Excellence Awards.

"You can't argue with a firm such as Hoare Lea in their selection of new offices," says Jonathan Carmalt from King Sturge, joint letting agency with GBR PB. "They're extremely experienced in their field and they know what they want from a building. We worked closely with them in the entire moving process to meet their needs and we believe that having them as a tenant sends out a very positive message to other prospective occupiers looking for quality, affordability and service."

54 Hagley Road offers a bright vibrant central reception area, air conditioning, six new lifts and suspended ceilings with LG7-compatible lighting, as well as open floor plates with carpeted raised floors, new toilets and showers, and improved disabled facilities.

The car parking ratio of 1:438 sq ft of office accommodation in surface, undercroft and multi-storey levels is also much better than parking available in other areas of Birmingham .

All this is complemented by views across a surprising amount of green space in Edgbaston which is one of Europe 's largest Urban Conservation areas. A wealth of amenities are also available with first class transport links including Five Ways train station, quality schools, Michelin star restaurants, historic beauty spots and first class sporting and leisure facilities.