TWO companies are preparing to move their headquarters to Felixstowe to a stunning new maritime-themed office block able to accommodate 250 workers.China Shipping (UK) Agency Co Ltd and Johnson Stevens Agencies Ltd will share the new building, which they hope to construct on a 1.

TWO companies are preparing to move their headquarters to Felixstowe to a stunning new maritime-themed office block able to accommodate 250 workers.

China Shipping (UK) Agency Co Ltd and Johnson Stevens Agencies Ltd will share the new building, which they hope to construct on a 1.7 acre site just outside the port complex.

Designs of the innovative three-floor office block are currently with planning officials and the companies hope to hear the outcome soon.

The property will be built in Walton Avenue at the junction of Dooley Road. The site is being purchased from Trinity College, Cambridge.

The main features will be walls of glass and copper, with the two wings of the building each side of a reception and entrance constructed like a circular huge drum or barrel. Wooden masts, to continue the shipping theme, will form part of the outside – creating a look similar to a large sailing ship.

The offices will provide 3,458 sq metres of accommodation.

Planning officers have been told there will be 250 extra jobs for Felixstowe – but both companies currently have staff at the port and it is not known if employees from elsewhere will transfer.

Project architect Max Esposito , of London-based architects and agents Colwyn Foulkes, said it had been an exciting building to design.

"We hope the planners will like it and accept it – it was a complicated project to work on but very interesting. The use of the materials, such as the copper, is an interesting mix but I think it will work well," he said.

"We hope to hear soon from the planning officers and it is encouraging to hear that Felixstowe councillors like it."

Felixstowe Town Council has recommended approval for the scheme and "greatly welcomes this prestigious design".

All floors of the building will be built above flood levels and there will be a flood barrier around it, and all materials will be flood resistant.

China Shipping (UK) Agency Co Ltd is the agent for China Shipping Container Lines, which has two weekly services sailing between Felixstowe and the Far East, and a weekly service from India, which loads at Felixstowe for the USA.

China Shipping sails one of the two largest container ships in the world in and out of Felixstowe – the CSCL Europe, which can carry 8,468 standard-sized boxes.

Johnson Stevens Agencies Ltd's work at the port includes acting as agents for the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines' many services.