Sheffield city council has unveiled plans for a £480m retail quarter to transform the city centre. The ambitious plan designed by Leonard Design Architects comprises 900,000 sq ft of mixed-use accommodation. This will predominantly by retail and leisure led, but also includes over 200,000 sq ft of residential and office Continue Reading
Go-ahead for £27m Royal Opera House revamp
Westminster City Council has approved a £27m scheme to ‘open up’ the Royal Opera House in London. Construction manager Rise will oversee the project which has been designed by architect Stanton Williams in collaboration with Arup. The plans make the entrances and street-level public spaces of the Royal Opera House Continue Reading
Flashing hi-vis vests to improve site safety
Flashing hi-ves vests are being developed to warn workers of potential dangers on sites. The SmartVest contains strips of LED lights which flash different colours to warn workers of particular hazards. The vests have been developed by software specialist 3Squared and link-up to its site management system. Workers will be Continue Reading
Necessity of Rock Salt in the winter and Profitable Handling Practices
Each winter the demand for de-icing products spikes significantly as winter is harsher each year. Two of the most common de-icing products are brown and white gritting rock salt. Both products are effective in managing the buildup of ice on roads and pavements and both can be easily spread. In Continue Reading
Fresh wave of invoice fraud hits contractor
Main contractor Speller Metcalfe has been hit by a fresh wave of con-artists attempting to trick clients into sending payments to fraudster bank accounts. In the last week swindlers have written to two housing association clients telling them to amend the firm’s bank details for payments. The builder has issued a warning Continue Reading
The Housing Crisis, a Potential Answer and the Complex World of Drains
It seems that hardly a day goes by without the news featuring a significant proportion of column space to the ongoing housing crises within the UK. Such a crisis in then only emphasised when we consider a few facts and figures. According statistics referenced by the BBC and CBI only Continue Reading
Purchasing a building survey: what are you paying for?
Auction houses for cheap property is an attractive proposition for those who are looking to build their property portfolio. Transparency is integral and never more so than from your building survey. It seems that this element of purchasing property has long since suffered from a vague and often misunderstood purpose. Continue Reading
Line marking – there is a right way!
While some reports say we are finally seeing the light in between the trees out of recession times, others would disagree and still see heavy public and private sector cuts, meaning the recession is still very much among us. When hiring contractors to provide a service, it is important to do Continue Reading
The UK’s first Eco-Town
Production has started into building the UK’s first Eco-Town which will be situated in North West Bicester, Oxfordshire. The project which will see up to 6,000 sustainable homes being built is part of a long term eco-friendly drive known as the “Exemplar”. The initial construction involves the production of 33 Continue Reading
5 things to look out for when buying an older property
With the UK pushing ahead full force with housing developments up and down the country to meet the ever growing demand, it seems that architecture has become somewhat homogeneous. For many, such a landscape of properties serve only to blend into a pool of choices that are all depressingly the Continue Reading