Building Design articles from February 2003

Building Design archives from February 2003

Gateway contest scrapped.(Greater London Authority design competition for Thames Gateway bridge )
February 7, 2003... A major design competition for London's much-vaunted Thames Gateway bridge, which bridge design luminaries were expected to enter, will not be going ahead, BD learnt this week. The Greater London Authority has turned its back on a...

Cabe lands lead role in [pounds sterling]22bn housing reform.(Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment )
February 7, 2003... Deputy prime minister John Prescott this week more than doubled Cabe's budget as part of his [pounds sterling]22 billion housing reform. Cabe chief executive Jon Rouse said that he would not be afraid to use newly reinforced powers and...

Koolhaas trial witness cleared of misconduct. (News).(Rem Koolhaas case; witness Michael Wilkey )(Brief Article)
February 7, 2003... The architect slammed by a High Court judge for giving a "biased" report when acting as an expert witness against Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas was cleared of misconduct by the Arb this week. Michael Wilkey, 54, stood accused of acting...

Fosters WTC scheme rejected. (News).(Foster and Partners, World Trade Center (New York, New York), kissing tower proposal )(Brief Article)
February 7, 2003... Foster & Partners' "kissing tower" proposal to replace the World Trade Centre was thrown out this week as the judges narrowed down the shortlist of seven schemes to Studio Daniel Libeskind's "soaring needle" and the Think collective's...

Validation and PII are key issues in Arb vote. (News).(validation of schools, professional indemnity insurance; Architects Registration Board elections)
February 7, 2003... Education and professional indemnity insurance (PII) form the major battlegrounds for candidates contesting the forthcoming Arb elections. The election statements of the 21 candidates, seen by BD this week, show a determination to change...

School selection. (News).(Patel Taylor Architects selected for redevelopment of St Paul's School)(Brief Article)
February 7, 2003... London-based architect Patel Taylor has been chosen ahead of a strong shortlist of practices including Andrew Wright, Terry Farrell and Derek Lovejoy Partnership, to masterplan the redevelopment of St Paul's, one of Britain's oldest schools,...

Station mastered. (News).(Strategic Rail Authority committed to revamp of Edinburgh Waverly Station )(Brief Article)
February 7, 2003... The Strategic Rail Authority has said that it is still committed to the [pounds sterling]400 million revamp of the grade I listed Edinburgh Waverly Station after plans worked up by the Building Design Partnership were shelved last week as part...

York go-ahead. (News).(Dowries Illingsworth Partnership to design business park, York, England)(Brief Article)
February 7, 2003... North Yorkshire-based architect Dowries Illingsworth Partnership has received planning permission for a [pounds sterling]45 million business park in York. Work is due to start in July.

Greenfield freeze. (News).(Doncaster City Council, United Kingdom; building homes on greenfield sites )(Brief Article)
February 7, 2003... Doncaster City Council chiefs voted this week to extend a freeze on building new homes on greenfield sites across the town after the council imposed a moratorium last September.

Peter Falconer dies. (News).(UK)(Brief Article)(Obituary)
February 7, 2003... Architect Peter Falconer, best known for remodelling the main facade at Highgrove House, has died, aged 86. He also designed a building for Harvey's of Bristol in 1959 and worked on public schools.

South Bank lifeline for Jubilee Gardens: winning designs to be scrapped as third competition in five years is launched. (News).
February 7, 2003... The launch of the third design competition in five years for the redevelopment of Jubilee Gardens on the South Bank, London has brought the curtain down on proposals by West 8, Foreign Office Architects (FAO) and Rafael Vinoly. The schemes...

Estates plan in jeopardy: Hackney project could be ditched after homes are sold to housing association. (News).(Brief Article)
February 7, 2003... Plans to regenerate two housing estates in east London by Jestico & Whiles and Peter Barber Architects have been thrown into jeopardy after it emerged this week that Hackney council plans to sell the estates to a housing association. BD...

Ken plays havoc with King's Cross plans. (News).
February 7, 2003... Plans to transform a massive plot of land behind London's King's Cross station into an upmarket mixed-use development were thrown into chaos by London mayor Ken Livingstone this week because he wants to see some of the site given over to a tram...

Survey shows PFI on time and to budget. (News).(Brief Article)
February 7, 2003... The government's continued commitment to PFI was given a boost this week by a National Audit Office (NAO) survey of 37 central government building projects, which showed dramatic improvements in time and budget over the last three years. ...

Modernist classic's stay of execution. (News).(Twentieth Century Society prevents demolition of home designed by noted architects)(Brief Article)
February 7, 2003... The Twentieth Century Society has claimed a major victory in its baffle to save a listed 19305 modernist classic from demolition. The heritage group has forced Runnymede Borough Council to withdraw its demolition consent for Greenside, a...

Letters.(Letter to the Editor)
February 7, 2003... Nato disagreement From Larry K Oltmanns and Michel Mossessian SOM, London In regards to your article "Nato snubs European firms" (News January 31) we would like to make the following points: The competition was conducted under UIA...

Errata.(Correction Notice)
February 7, 2003... In last week's article "Nato snubs European firms" it was stated that Kohn Pedersen Fox was on the shortlist of five firms for the competition to design Nato's new headquarters. While KPF was on the longlist of 22 firms, it was not in fact on...

Foster's kiss off. (Concrete Boots).
February 7, 2003... Sources at Foster & Partners stated a resolute "no comment at all to make" when quizzed by us recently about how its proposal to design a "kissing tower" at Ground Zero was progressing. However, we did not have to wait long for a possible...

Magnetic magnate. (Concrete Boots).
February 7, 2003... It seems that John Prescott's plans for areas where planning permission will not be required may have been cribbed from none other than fight-wing Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi. A new law passed by the media magnate means that homes...

Water chance. (Concrete Boots).
February 7, 2003... The Twentieth Century Society is looking for an architect to convert an unusual former water-softening plant in Kent into a new home. The brutalist 1930s plant is a one-off and consists of a 13m-tall tower and two 12m-wide, cone-shaped tanks....

Hammerson horror. (Concrete Boots).
February 7, 2003... The Dutch practice appointed by Railtrack last year to masterplan the controversial Bishopsgate Goodsyard in east London has found itself in a strange limbo now that Railtrack Property has sold the site to developer Hammerson. We struggled to...

Nothing matters. (Concrete Boots).
February 7, 2003... Will Alsop is honing his own live. to-loaf-philosophy at a couple of speaking engagements this month. The great man will present a lecture on "the importance of doing nothing" to Sheffield Hallam University, and will then address the London...

Masterplan and servant. (Comment & Analysis).
February 7, 2003... We are hoping to put the stamp of approval on our work in Glasgow's Gorbals with an application to build a 14-storey midtower as the final piece of our masterplan. CZWG has built nothing yet in the Gorbals but it feels right to build this icon...

Everything is illuminated: Herzog & de Meuron's Laban Dance Centre, in south-east London, is so much more than an eye-catching facade-it's one of the best new buildings in London. (Building Study).(UK)
February 7, 2003... To read some of the press coverage of Herzog & de Meuron's Laban Centre, you'd think that it was just a shimmering skin job, animated by some carefully staged dancers. You could hardly be further from the truth. This is one of the best new...

Back in the limelight: Michael Craig-Martin's unique collaboration with Herzog & de Meuron should reseal his reputation as an artist in his own right. (Building Study).
February 7, 2003... Not so long ago Michael Craig-Martin's name was virtually synonymous with one thing: teaching. He was the Goldsmiths' professor of fine art who nurtured the bright flowers and tabloid ne'er-do-wells of the Britart generation--Damien Hirst,...

Work, rest and play: the Design Museum celebrates the 70th anniversary of Mars, the Modern Architecture Research Group, with an exhibition about its most influential show. (Culture).
February 7, 2003... The membership list of the Modem Architecture Research Group (Mars) reads like a dinner party wish-list for any self-respecting modernist. By 1936 (it was founded in 1933), members included Ove Arup, John Betjeman, Christian Barman, Wells...

Rising from the ashes: renewing, rebuilding, remembering was the first exhibition to put September 11 in a wider, global context. Mark Cousins visits the show at Glasgow's Lighthouse. (Culture).
February 7, 2003... It is only proper that the survival of our cities is perennially at the forefront of debate. The great metropolises often develop at an alarming rate and invariably in an ad hoc fashion, despite the best intentions of omnipotent leaders and...

Casual text: Informal, by Cecil Balmond, is a heavy read, but rewards scrutiny, says fellow structural engineer Anthony Hunt. (Culture).(Book Review)
February 7, 2003... Cecil Balmond, a structural engineer with Amp, has written Informal about his collaboration with a number of currently fashionable architects who have come to prominence in recent years and who include, among others, Rem Koolhaas and Daniel...

Second home. (Back Space).
February 7, 2003... I think of them as personal cathedrals, and maybe lots of us have them. Certain buildings that take you in, encompass you, carry you away from the press of a million different things which is your life outside. Anfield, home of Liverpool...

Ian Martin.
February 7, 2003... Monday There are many advantages in being self-employed and working from home. No commuting. Flexible hours, synchronised with pub opening times. Little naps in the afternoon. The disadvantages, however, include being sacked all the time....

Finally, joined-up government kicks in. (Comment & Analysis).(The Thames Gateway development)
February 7, 2003... Tony Blair's decision to take charge of the Thames Gateway development and dirty his hands in the sticky and pragmatic business of regeneration is telling. He maybe more comfortable with battling terrorism than debating dwellings per hectare...

Timespam.(Brief Article)
February 7, 2003... 1983 Croydon Design Guide published. 2003 The learned society shows its support for prefabrication. 2023 Green Car proved theoretically possible.

Atkins stalks 100 staff.(WS Atkins PLC recruiting architects, technicians)(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Atkins Architects is to respond to working on the "world's biggest transport project" by recruiting 100 architects and technicians. The recruitment drive started this week for staff who will work on the upgrade of London Underground under...

Rafael Moneo wins RIBA Gold Medal.(Royal Institute of British Architects, 2003 Royal Gold Medal for architecture)(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Eight years after seeing his designs for the Tate Modern rejected, Rafael Moneo has finally won the approval of the UK arts establishment by scooping the 2003 Royal Gold Medal for architecture. The Madrid-based architect is the latest in a...

Achtung Gehry! Architect accused of consorting with U2 competition judge.(Frank Gehry alleged to have met U2 band members, Adam Clayton on judging panel)
February 14, 2003... Dublin authorities are to investigate allegations that Frank Gehry met a judge for a competition he is entering to design a landmark tower in Dublin which would include a recording studio for megastar rock band U2. The Dublin Docklands...

Tributes paid to Ian Davidson. (News).(Obituary)
February 14, 2003... Tributes poured in this week following the sudden death of Ian Davidson, partner of Lifschutz Davidson and a prominent figure at the RIBA and the Architects Registration Board. Ian Davidson died of a heart attack at his London home last...

'A loss beyond measure'. (News).(Brief Article)(Obituary)
February 14, 2003... What can you say when someone you saw that morning is gone in the evening? writes Marco Goldschmied. Taken in the prime of his life with all the energy and directness of a young man and the wisdom and tact of an elder statesman. I first...

Brits left off Mies prize shortlist. (News).( British projects, Mies van der Rohe Foundation prize)(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... No British projects have been shortlisted for the prestigious Mies van der Rohe prize for European architecture in 2003, BD learnt this week. A jury, which included David Chippeffield, Deyan Sudjic and Alejandro Zaera-Polo, was unable to...

Car charge threat to Farrell plan.(Terry Farrell construction project)(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... The launch of congestion charging in central London on Monday is likely to thwart architect Terry Farrell's bid to transform a two mile stretch of road in north London into the capital's Champs Elysees, transport experts told BD this week. ...

Design shortfall in green spaces pledge. (News).(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Government plans to clear derelict housing and brownfield sites in the north of England and replace them with public green spaces could be compromised by a lack of design influence and a shortage of funds, BD has learnt. Creation of a...

Rogers and Alsop to join anti-war march. (News).(Richard Rogers and Will Alsop )(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Richard Rogers and Will Alsop will tomorrow join an expected crowd of over half a million on the march through London in opposition to war against Iraq. Today, Rogers was the leading signatory to a full-page advertisement in the Guardian,...

New RIBA/Arb insurance row: architect's suspension over PII reignites long-running feud. (News).
February 14, 2003... A fresh row has erupted between the RIBA and the Architects Registration Board after the RIBA accused Arb of "highly questionable" use of its powers in suspending an architect for failing to provide proof of professional indemnity insurance...

Bluewater man at Gateway. (News).(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... The architect behind Bluewater, the out-of-town Kent shopping centre which attracts 30 million shopping visits a year, has been put in charge of one of the government's flagship housing programmes in the Thames Gateway. Eric Kuhne's first...

Key sector workers reject Skyhouse plan. (News).(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Key sector workers have rejected the London Eye architect's proposal to house them in 50-storey tower blocks as a way of solving London's housing crisis, research showed this week. Research by Mori for Marks Barfield Architects showed that...

East/Sergison Bates Woolwich win. (News).(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... A collaboration of East architects and Sergison Bates has beaten stiff competition and landed a commission to develop a new masterplan for Woolwich town centre in south-east London, BD learnt this week. The collective beat competition from...

Market loss. (News).(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... A 15-year battle to save half of Spitalfields market in east London from demolition came to an end last week as the bulldozers finally rolled in. The space on the western side of the market will now make way for a new Norman Foster-designed...

Deep end support. (News).(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... A new report claims that the majority of local residents are against plans to demolish Leeds International Swimming Pool, and redevelop the land and build another pool three miles away. The report by the Leeds International Pool Campaign says...

Reading masterplan. (News).(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Planning and regeneration consultant Roger Tym & Partners and urban designer Doyle Tym Design are to masterplan redevelopment of area around Reading station which will include a new transport interchange.

Harbour masters. (News).(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Form Design Group has won planning approval for the first phase of a [pounds sterling]35 million waterside redevelopment at Sutton Harbour in Plymouth. The first building is a [pounds sterling]5.5 million mixed-use scheme of 37 apartments and...

Jewish architect loses discrimination case: designer was dropped from Qatar project after client said he was 'not acceptable'. (News).
February 14, 2003... A Jewish architect who sued his former practice for racial discrimination after he was taken off a [pounds sterling]250-million project in a Muslim state has lost his case. Ira Fagin of London was employed by HLW International as project...

Rogers' design indicators slated. (News).(construction tsar Peter Rogers sees proposal criticized)(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Architects rubbished a proposal from construction tsar Peter Rogers this week that would force practices to give potential clients performance figures for their last five projects. Rogers, brother of architect Richard Rogers and chairman of...

Big firms spurning smaller design & build hospital bids. (News).(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Big players are shunning bids to design & build packages of smaller hospital buildings currently out to tender because they do not believe they are worth their while, a major bidder has said. Michael Davis, managing director of the Catalyst...

Reform should happen in Davidson's name. (Comment & Analysis).(Brief Article)(Column)
February 14, 2003... Next week Arb will sit without perhaps its sharpest and most committed member--Ian Davidson. Like the rest of the profession, it will struggle to fill the hole he leaves behind. This is all the more true since it is about to tackle one of his...

Letters.(Letter to the Editor)
February 14, 2003... Swingeing sixties From Jim Scott, London Architects' visions for new ways of living are so captivating that it always seems churlish to express a note of caution. And yet one has to when faced with pure rhetoric instead of reasoned...

Timespam.
February 14, 2003... 1943 London Eye prototype rejected on safety grounds. 2003 New space standards prompt cat-swinging trials. 2043 Cabe's remit extends to a galaxy far, far away.

Separation anxiety: the biggest scandal of PPP is that it is being used to build religiously segregated schools in Scotland. (Comment & Analysis).
February 14, 2003... The one spark of life in the Scottish architecture policy is in education and the Scottish Executive ran a three-day workshop on "Improving Scotland's Schools" last month. Of course, one obvious solution is to not procure school buildings by...

Thompson wins. (Concrete Boots).
February 14, 2003... There are no UK architects in this week's 2003 RIBA honorary fellowships, which includes characters such as the Transport for London commissioner Bob Kiley and engineer Alan Baxter as well as international maestros Stephen Holl and Toyo Ito....

Bank account. (Concrete Boots).(qualities of the late Ian Davidson are recalled)(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... The response to Ian Davidson's death this week reflected his enormous impact on the profession and on the people he met. Ken Shuttleworth of Foster's was one of many who remembered his relentless sense of right and wrong. He recalled that...

Adjaye, fare well. (Concrete Boots).(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... It's Valentine's Day and love is in the air. The Guardian, it seems, has fallen in love with architect David Adjaye. Last weekend's six-page profile of Adjaye gushed to the point of embarrassment. The opening paragraph set the theme for the...

Holyrood ills. (Concrete Boots).(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... The website for Holyrood Magazine (holyroodmag.com) has no content and merely carries the message: "This site is currently under construction." Remind you of any other Holyrood sites?

Frame of reference. (Concrete Boots).(prospective World Trade Center site architects wear distinctive eye glasses)(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... "Daniel Libeskind's glasses are out of control!" Such is the New York Times' level-headed coverage of the competition to design a new building for the World Trade Centre site. Never afraid to shirk the big questions, the NYT asks: "Why do...

Prescott's quarry: there are real fears of a public services shortfall at Eastern Quarry, Kent, the first new town this century. (Comment & Analysis).
February 14, 2003... It is not only John Prescott who has recognised the "phenomenal" amount of investment in infrastructure required to extend London eastwards, along the widening banks of the Thames. Drinkers at Ye Olde Coach & Horses pub on the precipice of...

Upper case: this house by and for Richard Horden in Poole, Dorset, takes its cue from those of Craig Elwood in California, but its details reveal an interest in aerodynamics and lightweight architecture. (Building Study).
February 14, 2003... Poole is, in a way, an English version of the Hollywood Hills. In the slopes around Poole Harbour, wealthy homeowners have built dream homes, mostly in the knee-jerk vernacular that is encouraged in the south of England. But there is some...

Fine figures: artist Julian Opie talks to Catherine Croft about how his work decorating building facades allows him to push his ideas in new directions. (Culture).
February 14, 2003... With three major projects on building facades unveiled this month and more to follow, you might think that the artist Julian Opie is in an excellent position to consider that old question, "What makes for a good collaboration between artist and...

Liquid news: Latent Utopias tackles liquid architecture, but needs to relate it to the real world. (Culture).
February 14, 2003... Latent Utopias, held at Landes-museum Joanneum in Graz, Austria and which kicked off Graz Cultural Capital of Europe 2003, is an exhibition that inspires but frustrates. Prototypes of hybrid architecture mix with studies of a more abstract...

Diary.(Calendar)
February 14, 2003... LECTURES TUESDAY * Will Alsop, the importance of doing nothing. Venue Sheffield Hallam University. Adsetts Lecture Theatre, City Campus, Sheffield, 4pm. Cost Free. Details 0114225 3553. * Miassimiliano Fuksas, No limits....

Cox brings shopping out of the shadows in Leith. (Showcase).(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Major refurbishment of a busy Edinburgh shopping centre has literally brought shoppers out of the shadows- with help from Cox Building Products. Edinburgh architects CDA were contracted to mastermind the [pounds sterling]3.5 million...

Edgemere for Yuill Homes farm development. (Showcase).
February 14, 2003... White House Farm at Long Newton, Stockton-on-Tees is a luxury residential development designed and built by national developers, Yuill Homes. Marlay's Edgemere interlocking slates have been specified in Smooth Grey for the roofs of nearly half...

Stability, DPC's and ratcheting of parapets. (Showcase).(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Parapet walls in which the DPC is built into both skins literally separate the upper masonry from that below the DPC level. when the parapet becomes saturated with rain, expansion of the masonry can prejudice the structural continuity. The DPC...

Lighting up the precinct. (Showcase).
February 14, 2003... The latest addition to Andy Thorntons' expanding range of street lighting and furniture is the NEW Precinct lighting collection, a family of external luminaries designed by the company to provide a wide range of lighting performance....

DuPont get tough with Tyvek[R] FRAMEWRAP. (Showcase).
February 14, 2003... DuPont Tyvek[K] introduce a brand new product from their range of breather membranes especially designed for timber frame housing. Tyvek[k] FRAMEWRAP is a strong, innovative spunbonded polypropylene breather membrane for walls, which has just...

No ceiling on heating success for SPC. (Showcase).
February 14, 2003... Two very different types of ceiling-mounted heating units will take centre-stage at S&P coil Products' stand at the Glasgow HEVAR show in March. As well as choosing the Show for the Scottish launch of Tile Vector - its new concealed...

Siberian larch cladding--a life expectancy of 150 years. (Profile Panels).
February 14, 2003... Siberian Larch, a beautiful, natural timber cladding product as tough as the hardwoods like English Oak but with aesthetic appeal of cedar is now available from Vincent Timber, one of the UK's most knowledgeable and experienced timber cladding...

GA perforated aluminium enters the fashion world. (Profile Panels).
February 14, 2003... Gooding Aluminium's innovative range of perforated sheet with its totally versatility in texture, style and from so impressed Lee Rigg - designer at Christopher Pratts Contracts that the he wanted this unique product to be used extensively in...

Eden keep the frost from the floor with Osma underfloor heating. (Profile Panels).
February 14, 2003... At The Eden Project in Cornwall an innovative new use of underfloor heating has been discovered. In the new remotely located toilet block OSMA Underfloor Heating has been used to provide nominal frost protection to the structure and to...

Arresting Barriers & Cloakface Cavibarriers to avoid structural damp problems. (Profile Panels).
February 14, 2003... Type Q Arresting Barriers is the term applied to water controlling DPC profiles incorporated within cavity walls. The function of these barriers is to invisibly arrest and reduce water-wash from an area of cavity wall above a given feature or...

The solution to Part L (1) of the Building Regulations. (Profile Panels).
February 14, 2003... * The new part L (1) of the Building Regulations require that all new homes must contain a minimum of three low energy light points. * Prime Light introduce their new pendant; a simple solution that meets these new regulations Main benefits...

New member of Steel Window Association. (Profile Panels).
February 14, 2003... Mike Honour Windows Ltd, of Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire, is the latest member of the Steel Window Association. With over 30 years experience in the window industry, the company manufactures and installs traditionally made steel...

New air curtain for large entrances and doorways. (Profile Panels).
February 14, 2003... The Swedish company Frisco AB is launching a new range of air curtains for large entrances and doorways. The new AD300/400 range offers improved performance and substantially lower sound levels. When correctly installed, air curtains improve...

Lennox unveils new European chiller ranges. (Profile Panels).
February 14, 2003... Further developing, its ability to compete on a pan-European scale Lennox has launched three new chiller ranges. The unveiling of EcoLean [TM], EcoLogic [TM] and EcoMax [TM] is part of long-term strategy to build a product portfolio able to...

New generation of robust Rockwool roofing. (Profile Panels).
February 14, 2003... For premier flat roofing system solutions, the launch of the new generation Rockwool insulation boards -- Hardrock Dual Density (DD) -- offers building owners, roofing designers and contractors a fivefold advantage in one specification. The...

Sandtoft 20/20 tiles make a statement at city retail park. (Profile Panels).(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... Character and distinction are not always superlatives attached to new retail developments but such is the case with a retail developments but such is the case with a retail park with a difference taking shape in Lincoln. While steel clad...

Thermalite blocks out sound. (Profile Panels).(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... The Government is to introduce new requirements to Part E Resistance to the passage of sound' which will come into force on the 1 July 2003. Along with the new requirement will be the introduction of a revised Approved Document E that will...

The Greenwich Millennium foam. (Profile Panels).(Compriband Ltd.)(Brief Article)
February 14, 2003... High performance foam sealing tapes supplied by Compriband Ltd. have been used to provide weather sealing solutions in one of the new residential phases of the high profile Greenwich Millennium Village development. Associated with the...