More Focus 鈥� Page 262
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FeaturesSun, sea and sandcastles
The British seaside is back 鈥� after all, who wants to go abroad with summers like ours鈥�? To celebrate, we challenged some of our finest construction minds (plus sundry offspring) to a giant sandcastle building showdown. Roxane McMeeken and Katie Puckett commentate on the action.
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FeaturesWho guards the guards?: Arson and intimidation in Glasgow
Some security firms in Scotland don鈥檛 bother with tenders when they bid for work. Instead they make an offer you find difficult to refuse, and if you do, they apply a bit of muscle. But why do the authorities let it happen?
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FeaturesProcurement: Retail delivery
The successful fitting out of a major retail scheme owes a lot to effective retail delivery management. Simon Rawlinson and Nick Clare of Davis Langdon lift the lid on the processes involved
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FeaturesThe fixer: James Bulley, the Olympics鈥� troubleshooter
Ah, the London Olympics. Twenty-three venues, 15,000 athletes, 9 million visitors. What could possibly go wrong? It鈥檚 James Bulley鈥檚 job to plan for anything that does. So why is he looking so damned cool?
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FeaturesBlood, sweat and fixed gears: 精东影视鈥檚 cycling track day
When dozens of the industry鈥檚 most fanatical cyclists descended on a London velodrome for 精东影视鈥檚 inaugural Track Day, an afternoon of frenetic racing ensued 鈥� stirring memories of a certain sporting extravaganza held in the stadium 60 years earlier 鈥�
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Features
The tracker: The bumpy road
Despite wider financial turmoil, most industry sectors held their position this month 鈥� although cracks begin to show when the regions are examined more closely, says Experian Business Strategies
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FeaturesA fine winery: Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners鈥� Spanish project
In between its airport terminals and office towers, Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners manages to find time for the odd small but perfectly formed project. Martin Spring visits a wine factory in northern Spain
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FeaturesWates staff work on local community projects
Wates works with specialist waste expert Hippowaste on 鈥楪rants up for Grabs' initiative
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FeaturesFirst impressions: Projects by Hadid and Metropolitan Architects
Another 鈥楩irst Impression鈥� panellist, this time Michelle Sweeney, graduate from the School of Architecture at the University of Manchester, comments on five new schemes
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FeaturesWe were there 鈥� Construction鈥檚 Olympians tell their stories
Construction is full of people who鈥檝e lived the Olympic dream. As the Beijing Games kick off, eight of them tell Emily Wright about their years of training for moments of glory. Photography Michael Clement
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FeaturesA mighty wind 鈥� the government鈥檚 plans for wind farms
The government鈥檚 plan to build 3,000 offshore wind turbines with blades the length of football pitches will spark a new multibillion-pound industry 鈥� complete with thousands of jobs. Olivia Boyd explains how you can get involved
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FeaturesCountry focus: France
President Nicolas Sarkozy鈥檚 honeymoon period may be at an end, but France is weathering the credit crisis relatively well and the construction industry is still a bastion of the economy, reports Patrick Leniston of EC Harris
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FeaturesThe second coming 鈥� the Strategic Forum for Construction鈥檚 Nick Raynsford
As the Strategic Forum鈥檚 new chairman, Nick Raynsford is bent on getting the industry to comply with its targets, recently launched by his predecessor Mike Davies. But is the response likely to be any better than it was to Egan? Kate Wheal met them both to find out
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FeaturesAquifer thermal storage: DIG! A Dutch method of sorting out energy
M&E聽A Dutch method of storing all the energy required to heat and cool a building deep underground is coming to the UK. Stephen Kennett finds out how it works
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FeaturesThe alternatives: Cooling and heating
Seasonal heat storeAt Beaufort Court (right), the headquarters for Renewable Energy Systems, environmental engineer Max Fordham created a seasonal heat store. This consists of about 1,000m3 of water held in a 5m deep hole, which tapers from 18m2 at the surface to 8m2 at the base 鈥� this shape does ...
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Features
精东影视 pathology: Boilers
Boilers have a tendency to go wrong at the most inconvenient times. Peter Mayer of 精东影视 LifePlans discovers what the most common problems are, and how they can be avoided
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Features鈥楲ife is just one long series of crises and disappointments鈥�: Nick Clegg interview
But that doesn鈥檛 mean you don鈥檛 have to try to make it better. Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg thinks decentralised government, lower taxes and an end to 鈥榤essing around鈥� with construction might help.Portraits by Julian Anderson
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FeaturesCost model: Airport terminals
UK airport operators need to make substantial investments in infrastructure to prepare for continuing long-term demand for domestic and international flights. Simon Rawlinson of Davis Langdon reports
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FeaturesAs bad as it gets: 精东影视 the UK embassy in Harare
With violence, poverty, hyperinflation and disease halting work at every turn, how is it even possible to operate in Zimbabwe? Martin Spring asked those building a new UK embassy in its capital
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FeaturesGIA: Is this the UK鈥檚 grooviest building surveyor?
The butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker 鈥� if they鈥檙e after second careers, they could do worse than apply to become building surveyors at GIA. Alex Smith talks to seven employees who all have wildly different backgrounds. Photography by Steve Schofield