Photo of the day: Concorde at the Intrepid Sea Air & Space Museum in New York City

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.

Photo of the day: Eurostar trains at King's Cross station, London

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)

Photo of the day: Central Park, New York City from the air

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

• 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

Photo of the day: The Gherkin, London

New high quality animated rendering of the new World Trade Center, Wall Street Journal

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.

Photo of the day: QE2 and QM2 departing New York City

The Ritz Hotel, London

WTC Memorial Pool Construction Progress

Photo of the day: The City, London

Photo of the day: New York Stock Exchange

Photo of the day: St.Paul's Cathedral, London

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. "

Photo of the day: Air Force One and The Statue of Liberty

New W Hotel, Leicester Square, London opens early 2011

Photo of the day: O2 Arena, London and the Prime Meridian Line

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

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."

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)

Photo of the day: Trafalgar Square at night

BD Online - Lloyds Building set to be listed next year

http://www.bdonline.co.uk/news/lloyd%E2%80%99s-building-set-to-be-listed-next-year/5010215.article?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

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.

Photo of the day: Beekman Place, New York City by Frank Gehry

Dynamic Shard Christmas Tree lights

Photo of the day: Land Securities Piccadilly Circus lights, London

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

Photo of the day: Hearst Tower, New York City

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.

http://www.barnabu.co.uk/page/4/?s=models

Photo of the day: Bank of England

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.

3D New York City with Google Earth

Photo of the day: Midtown Manhattan

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.

The future of urban transport is coming to London's Heathrow airport with the roll out of the Urban Light Transit system (ULtra)

Photo of the day: Buckingham Palace with the Union Jack projected onto it

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)

Photo of the day: The Rockefeller Center christmas tree 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.

Photo of the day: Heron Tower, London

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 -

World Trade Center Construction Update

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.

Photo of the day: Bishopsgate, London

Synchro Professional 4D Construction Simulation AVI: The Shard, London

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)

www.danielnyc.com

2. Per Se, New York City(10)

www.perseny.com

3. Le Bernardin, New York City(15)

www.le-bernardin.com

4. Momofoku Ssam Bar, New York City(26)

www.momofuku.com

5. St.John, London(43)

www.stjohnrestaurant.co.uk

6. Hibiscus, London(49)

www.hibiscusrestaurant.co.uk

7. Eleven Madison Park, New York City(50)

www.elevenmadisonpark.com

8. Jean Georges, New York City(52)

www.jean-georges.com

9. Marcus Wareing at The Berkeley, London(58)

www.the-berkeley.co.uk

10. Zuma, London(66)

www.zumarestaurant.com

Photo of the day: Times Square at night

Photo of the day: Westminster snow

A look at the cabs of New York and London

The cabs of New 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 operated 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 Limousine Commission to become the exclusive manufacturer of New York's 13,000 yellow cabs starting 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.

Photo of the day: Canary Wharf at dusk

London and New York top world's best department stores

The Global Department Store Summit(GDSS) was held in New York this year from 10-11 June. Participants included top executives from over 280 stores worldwide with Selfridges in London taking the title of world's best department store followed by Bloomingdales in New York City. Lane Crawford in Hong Kong came in third. Criteria which were assessed included strength of brand, innovation, in store experience, customer service and financial results.

Selfridges

Harry Gordon Selfridge founded Selfridges and is widely credited with coining the expression "the customer is always right". Techniques for marketing at Selfridges are techniques that were adopted by department stores all over the world such as placing the highly profitable perfume counters at the front of the store in the middle. Unusual and interesting exhibits were also features which attracted shoppers to come back to the shop. In 1909, Louis Bleriot's monoplane was exhibited in Selfridges after it's first cross channel flight. Innovation in bold marketing is epitomised by Selfridges world famous window displays which have been pored over by photographers for generations and published in many magazines worldwide including Vogue, Design Week, Harpers Bazaar and the New York Times. 1-27 April 1925 saw the first public demonstration of the television which was given from the first floor of Selfridges by John Logie Baird. Selfridges stores are also known for their architectural excellence and the London flagship store was designed by Chicago architect Daniel Burnham who also designed the Marshall Fields department store in Chicago.

Bloomingdales

Window displays also became a trademark of Bloomingdales with many imported European products used as a centrepiece to elaborate theatrical backgrounds. Another trademark is the small medium and large brown bags which have became a part of a shopping trip to Bloomingdales from 1973. Bloomingdales target market became the affluent young professional classes in New York and around the same time as the brown bag was brought into use, many expensive designers were supplying the store. Famously, in 1976 traffic was reversed on Lexington Avenue so that Queen Elizabeth II could exit her vehicle on the right hand side and enter the store through the main entrance.

Photo of the day: 1 World Trade Center under construction in New York City

Night shot of 1 World Trade Center under construction in New York City

11 Times Square, New York City

Statistics

• Completed 2010
• Height 600ft (183metres)
• 40 floors
• Architect
• 1.1 million sqft

The construction process of 11 Times Square was the first time in New York's history that a core was completed before the steel superstructure. The design features a sculptural composition of forms sheathed in various combinations of sheer glass curtain wall and unique "silk glass"panels. In keeping with the Times Square streetscape there are large-scale illuminated features including a 40' diameter iconic globe at the corner. 11 Times Square is LEED certified and is a state-of-the-art, environmentally responsible building with high performance glazed curtain walls which facilitate ample penetration of daylight, optimize views and provide excellent environmental control.

This compilation of stills shows the time lapse of the building's construction.

Photo of the day: Shard under construction in London

A wonderful angle of the Shard under construction from the end of October

Top Architectural Practices: Foster & Partners

Sir Norman Foster is arguably the closest anyone has ever come to achieving celebrity status in the world of modern architecture. Foster & Partners is a practice that was only founded in 1967 and has since been the lead architect on many world famous commissions with Sir Norman Foster himself being the spearhead of the PR campaign behind the firm. Foster gained a masters at the Yale School of Architecture before setting up an outfit called Team 4 with Richard Rogers, which quickly earned a reputation for high tech industrial design although by 1967, Team 4 dissolved and Foster went on to set up Foster Associates. The firm was kick started by the commission of The Willis Faber & Dumas building in Ipswich and today, many of the world's most famous buildings can be credited to the Foster portfolio. Similar to KPF, there are not many commissions in the world where Foster & Partners have not been considered for the design.

Completed in 2003, 30 St.Mary Axe, The Gherkin, is perhaps the most recognised work by Foster in London, being the first tall building in The City with ecological credentials using around half the power that a similar tower would typically use. London City Hall was a precursor to the Gherkin, sitting on the River Thames it's offset domes appearance might suggest it is related to The Gherkin, it's reduced surface area, simlar to the Gherkin, increasing it's energy efficiency.

In New York City, Foster's 597ft Hearst Tower was the voted the best skyscraper built in the world the year after the September 11th attacks on the city and was also the first new skyscraper to break ground after the event (click here for separate article on this tower). The Hearst Tower along with 200 Greenwich Street (click here for separate article on this tower), part of the redevelopment of the World Trade Center, both aimed to achieve the gold standard under the US Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Programme (LEED) and being involved in the World Trade Center project served to further cement Foster's position as one of the leading architects in the world today.

The Foster portfolio spans many different sectors and environments but outside of the realm of commercial office architecture, Foster & Partners design of the new Wembley Stadium in London reassured football fans across the world that no chances were being taken in turning the world's most famous football stadium into the best stadium in the world, at a record breaking cost of £798million ($1.26billion). For this money Foster & Partners delivered a stadium in which all 90,000 seats had more more leg room than there was in the royal box of the old stadium. For this, no one can deny Lord Foster the Knighthood he received from the Queen in 1990.