Friday 24 December 2010
Thursday 23 December 2010
10 facts about The Shard, London Bridge and construction progress
As we come up to christmas, everyone involved and everyone watching construction of the Shard at London Bridge should be proud of the progress made on what is due to become the tallest building in Europe. Here are 10 facts about the project so far.
- The project team has achieved an outstanding one million hours without incurring a RIDDOR accident for which a small celebration was held on site for operatives attended by Irvine Sellar (Sellar Properties), Gareth Lewis and MP Simon Hughes.
- So far more than 3,500 glass panels have been fitted to the building.
- At the beginning of December, The Shard became the tallest building in the UK at a height of 244m with the core topped out, surpassing One Canada Square at Canary Wharf.
- Construction has included London's largest ever continuous concrete pour at 5,500 cu metres which was delivered and poured over a 36 hour period
- Architect Renzo Piano is one of the world's best known architects having worked with Richard Rogers and on projects such as the Pompidou Centre in Paris and the New York Times building. The Shard is Piano's first UK commission.
- The site incorporates the UK's tallest construction crane at 255 metres.
- The Shard becoming the UK's tallest building was marked by London Mayor Boris Johnson visiting the top of the building.
- The Shard will become one of the tallest hotel buildings in the world outside of Dubai once completed, by virtue of the Shangri La hotel.
- The Shard is part of a £2bn investment in the regeneration of the area around London Bridge which includes London Bridge station and London Bridge Place, a 17 storey building for which work is already underway.
- Once completed the entire project will provide permanent employment for over 12,500 people.
Wednesday 22 December 2010
10 Largest Stadia in London and New York
London and New York City boast some of the best and most modern sporting venues in the world having four stadiums with capacities of over 80,000. Wembley Stadium and the New Meadowlands stadium are the two most expensive stadiums in the world costing around $1.6 billion dollars each to build.
1. Wembley Stadium, London - 90,000 capacity
Home of the England National Football Team but also a multi use venue.
2. New Meadowlands Stadium, New York City - 82,566 capacity
Joint venture between the New York Jets and New York Giants (American football)
3. Twickenham Stadium, London - 82,000 capacity
Home of the England National Rugby Team
4. Olympic Stadium, London - 80,000 capacity
Venue for 2012 olympic games - completion 2011
5. Emirates Stadium, London - 60,355 capacity
Home of Arsenal FC (soccer)
6. Yankees Stadium, New York City - 52,325 capacity, includes standing
Home of the New York Yankees (baseball)
7. Stamford Bridge, London - 41,841 capacity
Home of Chelsea FC (soccer)
8. Citi Field, New York City - 41,800 capacity
Home of the New York Mets (baseball)
9. White Hart Lane, London - 36,310
Home of Tottenham Hotspur FC (soccer)
10. The Boleyn Ground, London - 35,303
Home of West Ham United FC (soccer)
Tuesday 21 December 2010
London and New York Stock Exchanges/NASDAQ
Trading volumes on the London Stock Exchange, NYSE and the NASDAQ fell away by 53.9%, 36.6% and 42.9% respectively in 2009. Despite this, and despite the fact that emerging exchanges such as Shenzhen in China grew by more than 123%, the NYSE easily remains the worlds largest stock exchange in terms of trading volumes and by market capitalization the NYSE, NASDAQ and LSE populate three out of the five largest exchanges in the world. Here are some facts on three of the world's best known stock exchanges (year to date December 2009, data from International Federation of Stock Exchanges)
New York Stock Exchange
New York Stock Exchange
- Founded in 1817
- market capitalization $11,670bn (£7,537bn)
- 2,326 listed companies
- Value of share trading $17,521,119bn (£11,374,415bn)
- World's largest stock exchange
London Stock Exchange
- Founded in 1801
- market capitalization $2,681bn (£1,732bn)
- 2,713 listed companies
- value of share trading $1,771,811bn (£1,150,408bn)
- Largest stock exchange in Europe
NASDAQ
- Founded 1971
- market capitalization $3,295bn (£2,128bn)
- 2,807 listed companies
- value of share trading $13,608,077bn (£8,835,773bn)
- Largest electronic screen based equity securities trading market in the United States
Monday 20 December 2010
Goldman Sachs New World Headquarters, 200 West Street, New York City
Statistics- Completed late 2009
- Height 740ft (230m)
- 44 floors
- 53 elevators
- 2,100,000 sq ft
- Architect Pei Cobb Freed & Partner
Henry Cobb had lived and worked in Manhattan for 60 years before he got to design his first project on the Island, the understated Goldman Sachs New World Headquarters, at the age of 79. The building has quietly risen onto the skyline in the shadows of the World Trade Center site largely unnoticed and though the bank now occupies the entire building, it's name does not appear anywhere on the tower. Perhaps, this speaks volumes about the Goldman Sachs business model that an investment banking behemoth is able to rake in profits and success without having to take advantage of organic marketing that comes with the opening of a new world headquarters but much more on client relations, client service and network.
The design of the building had to take consideration of preserving riverfront views from the World Financial Center and Cobb managed to convince Goldman executives that work stations would fit more efficiently into a curved shape as an alternative to designing a wedge shaped building to fit the brief. The building is also designed to provide tenants with the ability to easily move workstations around with an underfloor air system that makes it possible for workers to control the temperature in their own airspace. Another feature for Goldman employees is what Cobb calls a living room around which the rest of the building is designed on floors 10 to 12 which features dining, meeting and exercise areas linked by a sky lobby and a three floor staircase.
During construction, there were two incidents that delayed construction, the first of which saw a 7 ton load falling onto two park trailers and injuring an architect, Robert Woo, who may never walk again. The second involved a piece of steel falling into a nearby baseball field where children were playing. Although no one was injured, this delayed construction when the site was temporarily shut down before the first employees moved into the building in October 2009.
The design of the building had to take consideration of preserving riverfront views from the World Financial Center and Cobb managed to convince Goldman executives that work stations would fit more efficiently into a curved shape as an alternative to designing a wedge shaped building to fit the brief. The building is also designed to provide tenants with the ability to easily move workstations around with an underfloor air system that makes it possible for workers to control the temperature in their own airspace. Another feature for Goldman employees is what Cobb calls a living room around which the rest of the building is designed on floors 10 to 12 which features dining, meeting and exercise areas linked by a sky lobby and a three floor staircase.
During construction, there were two incidents that delayed construction, the first of which saw a 7 ton load falling onto two park trailers and injuring an architect, Robert Woo, who may never walk again. The second involved a piece of steel falling into a nearby baseball field where children were playing. Although no one was injured, this delayed construction when the site was temporarily shut down before the first employees moved into the building in October 2009.
Sunday 19 December 2010
Saturday 18 December 2010
Friday 17 December 2010
Thursday 16 December 2010
The Chrysler Building, New York City, Art Deco Masterpiece
Statistics
- Constructed 1928-1930
- Height to spire - 318.9m (1,046ft)
- 77 floors
- Floor area 1,1950,000 sq ft (111,000 sq m)
- 32 elevators
- Designed by architect William Van Alen
The Chrysler Building is arguably the most endearing and distinctive buildings in New York City and after 80 years remains a favourite of many New Yorkers and skyscraper enthusiasts. It's original design drew inspiration from machine technology for the ornamental detail and architect William Van Alen incorporated abstract images of cars whilst dramatically drawing the observer to eight streamlined eagle head gargoyles which point out in four opposing directions across the city. The original design for the crown, which was supposed to be a sparkling glass crown, was said to be too costly. This boggles the mind when you consider that instead the Chrysler is capped with the most instantly recognisable and adored art deco crown in the world today which, along with the gargoyles, is able to send the observer off into the sci -fi world of Gotham City and superheroes.
The Chrysler Building was the tallest building in the world when it was completed until it was surpassed by the Empire State Building. It does however remain the world's tallest steel supported brick building and was built on the site of the city's largest beer brewery, the Bloomingdale Brewery. Initially it was intended to be an office development by real estate developer and former New York State Senator William H.Reynolds who sold the building to Chrysler as a result of the economic downturn before the building was redesigned. In other words, the Chrysler as we know it is a relic of the Great Depression, perhaps that is why the gargoyles were incorporated - historically they were used to scare off harmful spirits.The Chrysler building's design pushed boundaries when it was designed and for many it is a building which has style that has still not been surpassed even in today's skyscraper abundant world. This is summed up wonderfully by the cheek of Chrysler, who it was reported instructed his builders to make sure they built the highest toilet in Manhattan so that he was "able to sit on his porcelain throne and shit on Henry Ford and the rest of the world. "
Wednesday 15 December 2010
The Top 10 Hotels in London and New York City
The top ten hotels in London and New York City as assessed by readers of Institutional Investor magazine. This means that the survey has been produced from the opinions of some of the toughest hotel guests to keep happy - Senior Financial Executives.
1. Mandarin Oriental, New York City
2. Ritz-Carlton, New York City
3. Four Seasons, New York City
4. Carlyle, New York City
5. Ritz, London
6. Plaza Athenee, New York City
7. Peninsula, New York City
8. Mandarin Oriental, London
9. London NYC, New York City
10. Claridge's, London
1. Mandarin Oriental, New York City
2. Ritz-Carlton, New York City
3. Four Seasons, New York City
4. Carlyle, New York City
5. Ritz, London
6. Plaza Athenee, New York City
7. Peninsula, New York City
8. Mandarin Oriental, London
9. London NYC, New York City
10. Claridge's, London
Tuesday 14 December 2010
WSP appointed lead design consultant for London Bridge Station redevelopment
WSP Group have been appointed as lead design consultant for the project which will be the cornerstone of the Thameslink improvement project. The redevelopment of London Bridge Station will involve increasing the through platform numbers from 6 to 9 whilst ensuring the station is in full use and with minimum disruption to passengers.
WSP is also the designer for the Shard and 25 London Bridge Place for which Mace is the main contractor and has involved Mace on the station design with international architects Grimshaw and Chapman Taylor to provide the expertise to ensure that the station fully integrates into the local environment.
Dave Darnell, WSP Rail Sector Director said, "We are delighted to be appointed for the design of London Bridge Station and look forward to working with Network Rail to transform the station into a flagship transport interchange, providing additional capacity and seamless connection between not only Thameslink and other overground train services, but also the Underground and London buses."
WSP is also the designer for the Shard and 25 London Bridge Place for which Mace is the main contractor and has involved Mace on the station design with international architects Grimshaw and Chapman Taylor to provide the expertise to ensure that the station fully integrates into the local environment.
Dave Darnell, WSP Rail Sector Director said, "We are delighted to be appointed for the design of London Bridge Station and look forward to working with Network Rail to transform the station into a flagship transport interchange, providing additional capacity and seamless connection between not only Thameslink and other overground train services, but also the Underground and London buses."
London, New York City, The Global Financial Centres Index and the top ten Global Financial Centres
In 2005 Z/Yen set up the Global Financial Centres Index to help society's understanding and use of finance over the long term and increase our knowledge of financial centres. Cities are subjected to rigorous analysis by survey results. It was noted in the 2010 edition of the Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI 8) that
1. There remains no significant difference between London and New York City in the GFCI 8. Respondents continue to believe that these centres work together for mutual benefit.
2. Hong Kong (in third place) is now within ten points of London and New York (having been 84 points behind in March 2009). Ten points on a scale of 1,000 is not significant and that Hong Kong has joined London and New York as a genuinely global financial centre. Singapore may well join this trio soon.
The Global Financial Centres index is assessed on people, business environment, market access, infrastructure and general competitiveness. The top ten Global Financial Centres for 2010 (GFCI 8) are as follows -
1. London, England
2. New York City, USA
3. Hong Kong
4. Singapore
5. Tokyo, Japan
6. Shanghai, People's Republic of China
7. Chicago, USA
8. Zurich, Switzerland
9. Geneva, Switzerland
10 Sydney, Australia
Industry sector sub-indices are also created using only the questionnaire responses from respondents working in the relative industry sectors. Below shows the position of London and New York City in each of these sub-indices although it should be noted that Wealth Management and Private Banking is relatively new and should be viewed with caution as the sample size was smaller.
Asset Management - London (1), New York (2)
Banking - New York (1), London (3)
Government & Regulatory - New York (1), London (2)
Insurance - New York (3), London (5)
Professional Services - London (1), New York (2)
Wealth Management/Private Banking - London (1), New York (3)
1. There remains no significant difference between London and New York City in the GFCI 8. Respondents continue to believe that these centres work together for mutual benefit.
2. Hong Kong (in third place) is now within ten points of London and New York (having been 84 points behind in March 2009). Ten points on a scale of 1,000 is not significant and that Hong Kong has joined London and New York as a genuinely global financial centre. Singapore may well join this trio soon.
The Global Financial Centres index is assessed on people, business environment, market access, infrastructure and general competitiveness. The top ten Global Financial Centres for 2010 (GFCI 8) are as follows -
1. London, England
2. New York City, USA
3. Hong Kong
4. Singapore
5. Tokyo, Japan
6. Shanghai, People's Republic of China
7. Chicago, USA
8. Zurich, Switzerland
9. Geneva, Switzerland
10 Sydney, Australia
Industry sector sub-indices are also created using only the questionnaire responses from respondents working in the relative industry sectors. Below shows the position of London and New York City in each of these sub-indices although it should be noted that Wealth Management and Private Banking is relatively new and should be viewed with caution as the sample size was smaller.
Asset Management - London (1), New York (2)
Banking - New York (1), London (3)
Government & Regulatory - New York (1), London (2)
Insurance - New York (3), London (5)
Professional Services - London (1), New York (2)
Wealth Management/Private Banking - London (1), New York (3)
Sunday 12 December 2010
Top Architectural Practices: Rogers Stirk Harbour & Partners
Rogers Stirk Harbour & Partners is headed up by Richard Rogers, an architect who co-founded Team 4 in 1963 along with Su Brumwell, Wendy Cheeseman and Norman Foster who Rogers met at the Yale School of Architecture. Roger's pedigree is second to none within the industry and his early career saw him collaborating with Renzo Piano, the architect behind The Shard, after Team 4 had dissolved. Roger's career was catapulted into the limelight when he won the design competition for the Pompidou Centre in Paris, noted for having many of the building services on the outside of the building to create extra space inside, which is a feature which was later seen on the Lloyds Building in London. The Lloyds building design was the subject of critical acclaim and disdain which made the Richard Rogers Partnership one of the most recognised and distinctive brands in modern architecture, synonymous with cutting edge design.
The market was perhaps standoffish about Rogers bold designs and it is said that he was not awarded any commissions for two years after the Lloyds building design was released. If Rogers needed any reassurance that he is amongst the A list of architects, it lies in the fact that he was commissioned to design one of the towers that will stand on the site of the World Trade Center, 175 Greenwich Street, a 1240ft (378m) tower that resembles some of Rogers bolder architectural designs with visible trusses but with a softer delivery and the utilities on the inside of the building!
A lot of Rogers commissions are in London as opposed to New York City including the Millenium Dome (02 Arena), the Terminal 5 building at Heathrow Airport which is the largest free standing building in the UK, the new extension to the British museum and Paternoster Square near to St.Paul's Cathedral which was devastated by the blitz in World War 2. Rogers influence on architecture across every industry is recognized by a list of awards which have included the RIBA Gold Medal in 1985, the Thomas Jefferson Medal in 1999, the Sterling Prize in 2006 and 2009 and the Pritzker Prize in 2007 which is documented in this short videoclip.
The market was perhaps standoffish about Rogers bold designs and it is said that he was not awarded any commissions for two years after the Lloyds building design was released. If Rogers needed any reassurance that he is amongst the A list of architects, it lies in the fact that he was commissioned to design one of the towers that will stand on the site of the World Trade Center, 175 Greenwich Street, a 1240ft (378m) tower that resembles some of Rogers bolder architectural designs with visible trusses but with a softer delivery and the utilities on the inside of the building!
A lot of Rogers commissions are in London as opposed to New York City including the Millenium Dome (02 Arena), the Terminal 5 building at Heathrow Airport which is the largest free standing building in the UK, the new extension to the British museum and Paternoster Square near to St.Paul's Cathedral which was devastated by the blitz in World War 2. Rogers influence on architecture across every industry is recognized by a list of awards which have included the RIBA Gold Medal in 1985, the Thomas Jefferson Medal in 1999, the Sterling Prize in 2006 and 2009 and the Pritzker Prize in 2007 which is documented in this short videoclip.
Saturday 11 December 2010
Friday 10 December 2010
Freedom Tower construction update - December 2010
The following information was last updated on December 3, 2010, courtesy of GTAman9759 on youtube
- Facade installation began mid-November at 20th story
- Tower steel is now above floor 50
- Concrete is now being installed above floor 42
- Multiple cranes on site for steel and concrete installation
- Both the south and north cores are now being erected as the structure rises
- Cocoon safety system now in place around upper perimeter, to rise with structure
- Utility installation and tie-ins
- Crews are coordinating substructure construction while maintaining PATH service
- Facade installation began mid-November at 20th story
- Tower steel is now above floor 50
- Concrete is now being installed above floor 42
- Multiple cranes on site for steel and concrete installation
- Both the south and north cores are now being erected as the structure rises
- Cocoon safety system now in place around upper perimeter, to rise with structure
- Utility installation and tie-ins
- Crews are coordinating substructure construction while maintaining PATH service
Thursday 9 December 2010
City of London growth timeline
This barnabu google earth animation shows the 80 tallest buildings constructed in london from 1950 onwards in a timeline form. You may have to disable the 3d building settings on google earth if you have already installed it.
122 Leadenhall, The City, London. Cityscape Digital animation
This wonderful video shows how 122 Leadenhall in London will fit into it's surrounding once constructed.
Wednesday 8 December 2010
Tuesday 7 December 2010
20 Fenchurch Street, City of London
Statistics
- Estimated completion 2014
- Height 525ft (160m)
- 36 floors
- 94,000 sqm
- Architect Rafael Vinoly
On 19th October 2010 Land Securities and Canary Wharf Group announced the formation of a partnership to develop 20 Fenchurch Street which had been one of several larger city projects to be shelved due to the economic downturn. The site had already been cleared for construction before the project was halted and subsequently sold to the Partnership for £90.2m
Following the formation of the partnership construction was announced to begin immediately on the substructure to bring the building up to ground floor level by February 2012 and although there is little activity on site at the moment, Land Securities reaffirmed today that progress is on track as per their last press release.
The overall design of the building by New York City based architects Rafael Vinoly has courted controversy with it's top heavy shape which features a sky garden overlooking the River Thames on the top three floors although the publicly accessible observation deck will provide arguably the best views of Canary Wharf, the Shard, the West End and The City from a single 360 degree platform.
On the skyline, 20 Fenchurch Street has been criticised as being somewhat bizarre looking, however the important chords for the design of this building were more about contributing sensitively to the built environment at street level. According to the architect, the building form is drawn back from it's maximum possible footprint to mirror the city street pattern while simultaneously establishing a visual connection to the emerging cluster of high rises, receding from nearby historic buildings and opening views through the site to contribute meaningfully to the immediate public realm.
ULTra System for Heathrow Airport update
07/12/10: Ultra is fully operational but the airport does not want to open a new system during their busiest season so the public cannot ride it yet. Riders are restricted to airport workers although a date has not been set for public use.
Monday 6 December 2010
Crime rate summary in London and New York City 2010
London
Figures for 12 months to October 2010
- Murder - 119
- Rape - 3,159
- Robbery - 34,259
- Assault - 172,940
- Burglary - 89,385
- Motor vehicle crime - 99,842
New York City
Figures for the year to date upto 21st November 2010
- Murder - 476
- Rape - 1,249
- Robbery - 17,263
- Assault - 15,208
- Burglary - 16,549
- Grand Larceny - 33,377
- Grand Larceny Auto - 9,315
(Sources: NYPD statistics and Metropolitan Police statistics)
Average property prices in London and New York City - dated November 2010
As of 30th November 2010 the average for sale price of a property in London was £417,279 ($658,480) representing a 0.4% decline during the month.
As of 30th November 2010 the average for sale price of a property in New York City was $967,316 (£612,988) representing a 6.3% decline during the month.
(source: Rightmove/Trovit)
Sunday 5 December 2010
Property prices in London and New York City
Since I am constantly monitoring the price of residential properties in London and New York City, I thought I may as well start posting entries for these figures. Obviously it adds a bit more curious content to the blog and hopefully won't detract too much from the core subject of the built environment, architecture and meaningful and meaningless stats on each city but the recipe will be the same as all other posts. That is to keep it brief and to the point so that people feel they can still get bite sized pieces of information here without taking up too much of their time.
Also, I'd like to extend a big thank you to everyone that comes to this blog. Although I blog for my own amusement, it's good to know that other people are reading, watching and coming back to these pages. I will be trying to keep the content varied and original and have added the 'photo of the day' posts to try and lure people back here with original photos of the built environment in London and New York City each day.
Also, I'd like to extend a big thank you to everyone that comes to this blog. Although I blog for my own amusement, it's good to know that other people are reading, watching and coming back to these pages. I will be trying to keep the content varied and original and have added the 'photo of the day' posts to try and lure people back here with original photos of the built environment in London and New York City each day.
Saturday 4 December 2010
Heron Tower, London - model display
As Heron Tower on London's Bishopsgate nears completion, these videos by model maker Kandor show how the building will look once completed -
Architectural models - Freedom Tower
This short video by Fox News illustrates the role that model makers play in the planning and public relations for new projects, specifically here, the Freedom Tower in New York City.
Friday 3 December 2010
The 10 best restaurants in London and New York City
The S.Pellegrino World's Best Restaurants for 2010 list has a number of entries from London and New York. Extracted into this list are the top 10 best restaurants in London and New York with the S.Pellegrino ranking in brackets.
1. Daniel, New York City(8)
2. Per Se, New York City(10)
3. Le Bernardin, New York City(15)
4. Momofoku Ssam Bar, New York City(26)
5. St.John, London(43)
6. Hibiscus, London(49)
7. Eleven Madison Park, New York City(50)
8. Jean Georges, New York City(52)
9. Marcus Wareing at The Berkeley, London(58)
10. Zuma, London(66)
Thursday 2 December 2010
Wednesday 1 December 2010
A look at the cabs of New York and London
The cabs of Ne
w York City, with their distinctive yellow paint, are a widely recognized icon of the city. There are more than 13,000 taxis operating in the city, with a number of taxicabs operate
d by private companies and licensed by the Taxi and Limousine Commission (TLC), a New York City government agency. In comparison, there are currently around 21,000 black cabs in London, licensed by the Public Carriage Office. The average cost of hailing a black cab in London will increase to £10.39 this year during the day and £14.15 at night, according to Transport for London (TFL). The fare rise, the lowest annual increase since 2004, aims to take into account the rise in average national earnings and will also help drivers cover rising operating costs, which include increases to insurance and fuel costs, it said.
In London, however, price increases are unlikely to deter people from taking the capitals black cabs. Last year the vehicles were voted the best cabs in the world in a survey for the website Hotels.com, despite also being voted the most expensive. London cabbies, who can spend up to four years studying the Knowledge, the infamous in-depth study of a number of pre-set London street routes, were voted the world's friendliest and knowledgeable taxi drivers. The Knowledge equips London cabbies with an in depth knowledge of London streets before they can drive a licensed cab.
Whilst LTI, which manufactures the traditional London cab is currently marketing the latest incarnation of it's famous taxi, the TX4 (below), New York has plans of it's own. Ford, Nissan and GM are all vying to be hailed as the builder of the "Taxi of Tomorrow." The auto giants were among the companies that submitted proposals to the City's Taxi and Limousi
ne Commission to become the exclusive manufacturer of New York's 13,000 yellow cabs startin
g in 2014. When City officials met with the manufacturers in January, officials said they wanted the new cab to be not only low emission, if not entirely electric, but to possess an iconic New York design, according to Crains New York business. The new cab should appear "small on the outside but large on the inside," one official said at the meeting. The current fleet is a mish mash of 16 different vehicle models, most notably the soon to be discontinued Ford Crown Victoria which makes up two thirds of New York cabs."Small on the outside but large on the inside", I could swear I have seen taxis like that somewhere else which makes me think that New York officials are following London's long established tradition with plans to introduce purpose built uniformly manufactured taxis that will be as iconic for New York as the black cabs are for London.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)