By the Numbers

66
The total number of skyscrapers China is expected to add in the next six years, DOUBLING ITS COLLECTION FROM 75 TO 141. India, the world’s second most populous nation, currently has two skyscrapers but will ADD 14 MORE IN THE NEXT FIVE YEARS.

1.4 billion
An Irish artist built an apartment made of bricks that include the SHREDDED REMAINS OF €1.4 BILLION he borrowed from Ireland’s national mint. Frank Buckley built the apartment in the lobby of a Dublin office building, which has remained vacant since its completion four years ago. “People were pouring billions into buildings now worth nothing,” says Buckley. “I WANTED TO CREATE SOMETHING FROM NOTHING.”

3,654
In feet, the proposed height of a NEW BUSINESS TOWER ON THE KHAZAR ISLANDS, a chain of 41 artificial islands in the Caspian Sea that also will include hotels and apartment buildings. The tower would be 27% TALLER than the current skyscraper champ, the BURJ KHALIFA IN DUBAI. Construction on the islands is set to begin at the end of 2013.

21,000
Number of NEW CONSTRUCTION JOBS created in January 2012, according to the Labor Department.

12
In years, the PEAK-TO-PEAK RECOVERY period for the cement industry. BY 2017, CEMENT CONSUMPTION IS EXPECTED TO REACH LEVELS LAST RECORDED IN 2005, according to the Portland Cement Association. A number of factors, including a reduction in office vacancy rates and high unemployment, contribute to the lengthy recovery period.

5
Total number of TEMPORARY LOADING BAYS being constructed at ONE WORLD TRADE CENTER. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey revealed that the loading dock under the trade center will not be accessible for tenants to move their equipment into the 104-story tower when it opens. A TEMPORARY TRAIN STATION for the Port Authority is blocking access to the underground loading area.

0
Amount being charged by FRANK GEHRY for his work on the Culver City, Calif., home for the Jazz Bakery. Plans call for a two-story building with the main 250-seat concert room upstairs and a small black-box theater on the ground floor. THE FOOTPRINT OF THE BUILDING MEASURES ONE-SEVENTH OF AN ACRE.

1.3
In trillions, the GLOBAL REVENUE predicted from the CONSTRUCTION OF ZERO-ENERGY BUILDINGS over the next 23 years. The figure will reach almost $690 MILLION BY 2020 and $1.3 TRILLION BY 2035, according to a report published by Pike Research.

2,000
Total number of PV panels to be installed on the FIRST NET-ZERO SCHOOL in the northeast U.S. Located in the Rossville neighborhood in Staten Island, N.Y., PS 62 is slated to cost between $55-58 million, and will open in September 2015.

35
Current percentage of CONTRACTORS THAT ARE CURRENTLY USING BIM, up 8% from 2011, according the 2012 Construction Industry Hiring and Business Outlook conducted by the Associated General Contractors. 47% of survey respondents expect BIM usage to increase in 2012, depending on the market segment. +

This course defines the elements of hospital campus access that are essential to promoting the efficient, stress-free movement of patients, staff, family, and visitors. Campus access elements include signage and wayfinding, parking facilities, transportation demand management, shuttle buses, curb access, valet parking management, roadways, and pedestrian walkways.

For glass openings, how big is too big?

Advances in glazing materials and glass building systems offer a seemingly unlimited horizon for not only glass performance, but also for the size and extent of these light, transparent forms. Both for enclosures and for indoor environments, novel products and assemblies allow for more glass and less opaque structure—often in places that previously limited their use.

The Forge in London is deploying industrialized, kit-of-parts construction. Images: Courtesy of Bryden Wood

Architects | May 3, 2022

A U.K.-based design firm flaunts industrialized construction as it expands into U.S.

Bryden Wood wants to set up a network for manufactured components for repeatable building types.

Codes and Standards | May 3, 2022

American Institute of Steel Construction updates environmental product declarations

The American Institute of Steel Construction has released updated environmental product declarations (EPDs) “to help designers and building owners design more environmentally friendly buildings and bridges,” according to an AISC news release.

Education Facilities | May 2, 2022

Texas School for the Deaf campus gateway enhances sense of belonging for deaf community

The recently completed Texas School for the Deaf Administration and Welcome Center and Early Learning Center, at the state’s oldest continuously operating public school, was designed to foster a sense of belonging for the deaf community.

Codes and Standards | May 2, 2022

Developer Hines, engineer MKA develop free embodied carbon reduction guide

Real estate management and investment firm Hines has released the Hines Embodied Carbon Reduction Guide. The free guide, produced with Magnusson Klemencic Associates (MKA), is the result of a two-year effort, relying on MKA’s industry-leading knowledge of carbon accounting and involvement in programs such as the Embodied Carbon in Construction Calculator (EC3) Tool.

Building Team | May 2, 2022

HED and VAI announce merger to bring strategic expertise and drive community impact in Dallas

HED (Harley Ellis Devereaux), a leading national architecture and engineering firm, today announced a merger with award-winning, Dallas-based VAI Architects Incorporated (VAI).