All Features articles – Page 632
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Features
The wow factor
Tom Wright designed a jaw-dropping hotel at Dubai's Jumeirah Beach. Now he's putting WS Atkins Architects on the map all around the world – even in the UK.
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Features
Culture shock
From 1 April, councils are legally obliged to procure on the basis of best value. This is great news for contractors – if councils are up to making the change. But are they?
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Features
Would you win in court?
Firms trying to avoid litigation would do well to embrace early neutral evaluation, a procedure that allows a judge to tell the parties who is likely to win long before they get to court.
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Features
Whole-life cost model
The government is set to spend £450m on new and refurbished PFI schools next year. To help firms thinking of bidding to prepare tenders, Citex details the occupancy costs of typical schools, together with case studies of new-build and refurbished institutions.
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Features
Scrutiny on the bounty
In the first of a series of columns designed to help small businesses run more efficiently, accountant Smith & Williamson examines the role of the external audit in cutting costs and improving management processes.
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Features
Was it Bill or was it Ben?
If housebuilding ends up wonky, who’s to blame? The person who takes on the work, of course. But just who is that? The main contractor, the subcontractor, the builder, the architect or the surveyor?
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Features
Appointments
ContractorsTaylor Woodrow has appointed Brian George non-executive director and non-executive chairman, and Denis MacDaid managing director.Weaver Construction has appointed Jeff Gale new contracts manager.The Higgins Group has appointed Gary Robins and Brian Mason construction directors.Lichfield-based construction firm Linford-Bridgeman has made Andrew Chamberlain masonry manager.Leisure contractor Multibuild has promoted Dean Johnston ...
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Features
The Appliance of science
London's Science Museum has a new eco-friendly way of generating electricity. But instead of being hidden in a dark basement, it's on show for all to see. How does it work?
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Features
What’s done is done
Once an adjudicator has made a decision on a case, it cannot be settled again by another adjudicator. That is, as long as the judge does not rule that they are substantially different disputes.
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Features
Case study 3: Regus business centres
Regus, the British market leader of serviced offices, proudly bills itself as the McDonald’s of the sector. Standardised brand image and instant availability are its selling points, with every building entrance and reception fronted by its half-crown logo. The company offers customers serviced offices within 24 hours for periods as ...
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Features
Case study 4: 288 Bishopsgate, City of London
In 1998, HQ Global Workplaces picked up a narrow sliver of land at the corner of the huge Spitalfields development at the eastern fringe of the City of London. With a footprint only 10.5 m deep, the site did not suit a conventional speculative office development, but could accommodate serviced ...
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Features
Case study 1: No 8 The Square, Stockley Park
No 8 The Square is hailed as the UK's first purpose-designed serviced office building, even though it is the fourth in a new generation of office buildings designed by Arup Associates at Stockley Park, the self-styled “leading business park in Europe”. As in the earlier three buildings, Arup Associates has ...
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Features
Case study 2: No 1 Cornhill, City of London
“If you compare the serviced office sector with the hotel industry, it generally provides a three- or four-star service. We offer a five-star service that’s distinctly different.” So says Vincent Wang, chief executive of the fledgeling serviced office operator Nexus Estates.Wang’s five-star service can be seen in all its glory ...
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Features
The right stuff
At last, the Human Rights Act has made its way into UK law. It may not be something many of us have to think about on an everyday basis, but by Jove, it's going to affect us all.
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Features
Take the wind out of your sales
Like it or not, every construction service a client buys must be sold. This means that construction professionals need effective selling skills – so, here's how to do it. Plus, a guide to marketing speak.
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Features
Value judgments
Adjudicators frequently find that they are being asked to make a judgment as to whether the value of an interim payment is reasonable. And it seems that, if the contract is silent, they're on their own on this one.
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Features
Modernism makes its mark on Walsall
West Midlands is home to £25m new gallery designed by Caruso St John.
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Features
Spotlight on lift installation
Lead timesLead times for bespoke lift installations remain unchanged at up to 38 weeks, but this figure is only for major installations. Smaller projects can take about 28 weeks, with lead times for standard lifts as low as 20-24 weeks. Although the overall lead time remains static, design periods have ...
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Features
The next generation
Graham Stirk may not have the celebrity status of Lord Rogers, but with three major projects under his belt, he is one of Richard Rogers Partnership's rising stars.
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Features
Find the leader
The Institute of Personnel and Development's Angela Baron on how to spot and nurture stars of the future.