CIS Tower

The CIS Tower is a high-rise office building on Miller Street in Manchester, England. Designed for the Co-operative Insurance Society (CIS) by architects Gordon Tait and G. S. Hay, the building was completed in 1962 and rises to in height. As of 2023, the Grade II listed building is Greater Manchester's 11th-tallest building and the tallest office building in the United Kingdom outside London. The tower remained as built for over 40 years, until maintenance issues on the service tower required an extensive renovation, which included covering its façade in photovoltaic panels. Location The tower is situated on Miller Street, which forms the Manchester Inner Ring Road, and stands adjacent to New Century House, a high-rise office building also designed by Gordon Tait and G. S. Hay and constructed concurrently for the CIS's parent company, the Co-operative Wholesale Society (CWS). The plot on which the building stands had been heavily bombed during World War II and subsequently cleared. The site chosen for CIS Tower and New Century House was one of two areas of land offered by the local authority; the other site was in Piccadilly, but this came with the condition that any development scheme had to include shops and a hotel. Not wishing to compromise their autonomy, the CIS board chose the Miller Street site. Opposite the tower sits One Angel Square, which opened in 2013 and serves as the headquarters of the Co-operative Group (the successor to the CWS). The complex of buildings form NOMA (a portmanteau of 'North Manchester'), a area of land previously known as the Co-operative Estate. The area was developed by the Co-operative Group in a joint venture with Hermes Investment Management. In 2017, the Co-operative Group sold its stake in NOMA to Hermes Investment Management in order to focus on its core retail business, however, it remains a tenant in several buildings. More than 6,500 people work in the neighbourhood. Design