It is essential for professionals to keep in touch and up-to-date with activities local, national and international.
The Challenges Associated with Developing Building Regulations ‘Contextualized’ for Emerging Economies.
This article delves into the intricate challenges and solutions for developing building regulations contextualized to emerging economies. Drawing on insights from the IBQC guidelines and interviews with Professor Alfred Omenya and Professor Kim Lovegrove, the piece explores economic constraints, institutional weaknesses, cultural factors, and environmental conditions affecting these regions. The article highlights three key paradigms in building practices—vernacular, informal, and engineered solutions—offering tailored regulatory approaches for each. It also discusses innovative strategies for disaster-resilient design, sustainable building practices, and the safe migration of citizens from informal to regulated settlements. It is written for policymakers, capacity builders, and stakeholders aiming to enhance building safety and quality in emerging economies. – Read Article
Developing Sustainable Construction Liability Allocation Laws: Victoria vs. New Zealand
Joint and several liability is a critical concept in New Zealand’s legal framework that has significant implications for local governments and construction professionals. This article delves into the nuances of joint and several liability, where a single party can be held responsible for the entire damage even if others are also at fault. We explore how this system places a disproportionate burden on local governments, leading to financial strain and increased taxes. By examining real-world impacts and comparing with alternative liability models, the article highlights the urgent need for reform to achieve a fairer and more balanced approach to liability in New Zealand’s construction industry. Through vivid illustrations and expert insights, readers will gain a comprehensive understanding of the challenges and potential solutions to this pressing issue. – Read Article
The longest job: Finishing Gaudí’s masterpiece, La Sagrada Família
How do you recreate the work of a genius out of nothing but rubble? And even if you can, how do you keep a construction project that was started in the 19th century from going off the rails? Daniel Gayne went to Barcelona to find out
Little was left in the workshops but shattered plaster.
It was the summer of 1936 and Catalonia was alight with revolutionary fervour. After a failed coup d’etat against the left-wing Republican government, Spain had fallen into civil war and Barcelona into the hands of the anarchists.
Across the city, churches were targeted as decades of accumulated resentment against clerical authoritarianism was unleashed – and the revolutionaries made no exception for the strange, half-finished church on the north-eastern edge of town, the final masterpiece of an architect once revered in Barcelona.
Antoni Gaudí had been dead for more than a decade but his disciples were carefully carrying out his vision based on the many models and drawings he had left, and it was these that the radicals targeted. – Read now
Does Roger De Haan’s Folkestone housing scheme deserve so much criticism?
Former Saga owner’s luxury Shoreline Crescent scheme has been completed following a string of headlines about its lack of affordable housing. Tom Lowe tours the building and is impressed by what he finds
It can be a tough world out there for billionaire philanthropists. Former Saga owner turned property developer Roger De Haan has certainly not had it easy of late.
Last summer, De Haan invited a group of journalists down from London to visit his new luxury housing scheme in Folkestone. The idea seems to have been to show off the first phase of a 1,000-home mixed-use development which will stretch for nearly a kilometre along the town’s beach front. – Read now
2027 IECC Commercial and Residential Scope and Intent Draft for Public Comment
The International Code Council Board of Directors has developed a draft scope and intent for the 2027 International Energy Conservation Code® (IECC®) based on feedback from the 2024 IECC appeals process. Accompanying this draft is a commentary provided by the Board of Directors on the revisions made to the scope and intent. The draft scope and commentary can be found at this link.
This draft will be open for public comment until Monday, August 19, 2024, at 11:59 pm Pacific Time. Public comment will be accepted through the following form. Following review and consideration of the public comments, the Board of Directors will then set the final scope and intent statements for the 2027 IECC.
We are now accepting applications for IECC Consensus Committee membership for the 2027 code development cycle. The application can be accessed through the following link. Applications will be accepted until Monday, August 19, 2024, at 11:59 pm Pacific Time. – Applications for subcommittee voting members will be open in the coming months.
ICC-ES Joins Industry Leaders in Signing the Traceability and Digitalisation Pledge
The pledge ushersgreater transparency and actionable changes in the Australian construction industry.
Brea, CA – ICC Evaluation Service (ICC-ES), the industry leader in building product evaluation, has proudly signed the Traceability and Digitalisation of Building Product Information pledge by the National Building Products Coalition. This comprehensive pledge marks a significant commitment to enhancing the traceability and digitalisation of building product information, fostering greater transparency, efficiency, and innovation in the Australian construction industry.
By joining this initiative, ICC-ES aligns with other forward-thinking organizations dedicated to advancing the quality and reliability of building products through comprehensive digital solutions. This pledge underscores the organization’s ongoing efforts to support safer, more sustainable, and better-documented building practices.
Meet Fern the diplodocus, star of a Natural History Museum garden redesign
The golden dinosaur is the main attraction in a garden makeover that looks set to inspire young ecologists, Mary Richards writes
Thanks to an inspiring redesign, the Natural History Museum’s grounds now provide a suitably theatrical setting for Alfred Waterhouse’s wonderful building, plus a new prehistoric-themed accessible entrance way.
Not only that, but the museum’s overlooked wildlife garden has been transformed into a living outdoor exhibit, where young people can enjoy practical lessons in biodiversity while museum scientists study urban nature using the latest technology. – Read more
Olly Watts of ES Global on the Paris Olympics: ‘Even if I say so myself, it’s magnificently iconic’
The Paris Olympics emphasises sustainability by utilising 95% existing and temporary venues, continuing the legacy of innovative designs pioneered by London 2012. Ben Flatman meets the CEO of a firm that supplies temporary structures including much of the Olympic climbing centre. – Read more
Boost for Universal Studios UK plans as local leaders tell Starmer to back project
Leaders of six local authorities have urged Keir Starmer to back plans to build the biggest theme park in Europe on a brownfield site in Bedfordshire.
Universal Destinations and Experiences (UDE) is currently preparing to submit a planning application for a UK branch of its Universal Studios theme park chain on a 476 acre former brickworks site in Stewartby.
It is envisaged as a direct competitor to and would be larger than Disneyland Paris, which is currently the most visited tourist attraction in Europe.
UDE is hoping to receive planning approval directly by the government through a special development order, which would be granted following consideration by the secretary of state for levelling up, housing and communities.
A letter sent to Starmer “collectively endorsing” the project has been signed by the chief executives and political leaders of Bedford borough, Central Bedfordshire, Luton borough, Milton Keynes City, North Northamptonshire, and West Northamptonshire councils. – Read more