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. +
Related Stories
| Dec 13, 2013
GRW acquires West Virginia design firm Chapman Technical Group
GRW is expanding its capabilities through the recent acquisition of Chapman Technical Group, a 36-person West Virginia-based firm.
| Dec 13, 2013
AIA, MIT issue joint report on impact of design on public health
The research looks at the health of eight U.S. cities and lays out a path for translating the research into meaningful findings for policy makers and urban planners.
| Dec 11, 2013
Wyndham unveils hotel prototype for its Hawthorn Suites chain
The extended-stay hotel prototype reduces development costs by 46% for franchisees and enhances the overall guest experience.
| Dec 10, 2013
16 great solutions for architects, engineers, and contractors
From a crowd-funded smart shovel to a why-didn’t-someone-do-this-sooner scheme for managing traffic in public restrooms, these ideas are noteworthy for creative problem-solving. Here are some of the most intriguing innovations the BD+C community has brought to our attention this year.
| Dec 9, 2013
Tips for designing higher education's newest building type: the learning commons
In this era of scaled-down budgets, maximized efficiencies, new learning methods and social media’s domination of face time, college and university campuses are gravitating toward a new space type: the learning commons.
| Dec 9, 2013
Does technology help or hinder innovation?
Whether digital technology will help or hinder workplace insights remains a topic of ongoing debate. FastCo.Design features insights from business scholars on both sides of the issue.
| Dec 6, 2013
French concert hall includes integrated musical elements [VIDEO]
La Métaphone, a concert hall in Ognies, France, is a 1,980-sm facility with the unique characteristic of being a structural musical instrument. The solar-powered building incorporates musical elements in its walls, which can be played by musicians inside or outside the facility.
| Dec 6, 2013
Goettsch Partners selected 2013 AIA Chicago Firm of the Year
Architecture firm Goettsch Partners (GP) has been named the 2013 Firm of the Year, as conferred by the Chicago chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA Chicago). The award is the highest honor a firm can receive from the chapter.
| Dec 5, 2013
Maximizing the impact of online marketing
Because most professional services firms exist to help their clients reduce risk and navigate an uncertain future, they tend to approach the world of online or digital marketing with some caution. Here are four tips for maximizing the impact of online marketing.
| Dec 5, 2013
Translating design intent from across the globe
I recently attended the Bentley User Conference in Vejle, Denmark. I attended the event primarily to get a sense for the challenges our Danish counterparts are experiencing in project delivery and digital communication. One story I heard was from a BIM manager with Henning Larsen Architects in Denmark, who told me about a project she’d recently completed overseas in the Middle East. She outlined two distinct challenges and offered some interesting solutions to those challenges.