Last week the government unveiled a massive planning shake-up. An independent planning commission will replace big planning inquiries. This will streamline eight current planning regimes covering schemes like electricity generation, power lines, airports and reservoirs. (more…)
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Last week I visited Civils 2007 at its new venue in Earls Court, London. Autodesk were demonstrating their AutoCAD Civil 3D software which is a great tool for impressing clients with design proposals. This type of 3D presentation is becoming an essential element in winning contracts. They were also conducting a survey which showed that sustainability is now a major priority for professionals working in civil engineering and is an integral part of the supply chains of the modern built environment. (more…)
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We begin Buildingtalk with the first in a new series where I will be putting industry issues under the spotlight. This week Neil Schofield, head of sustainable development at Worcester Bosch and Andy Jones, MD of warm edge spacer supplier Edgetech discuss ‘Energy Efficiency‘, comparing and contrasting how different sectors deal with them. (more…)
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The Queen has opened a transformed St Pancras International Station, the new rail terminal for Eurostar that cost GBP 800m. The front of the station, Sir George Gilbert Scott’s neo-Gothic masterpiece, will open as a five-star hotel in 2009. St Pancras is today celebrated as one of the finest examples of Victorian architecture and engineering, but it could easily have been demolished in the 1960’s but for protests from the likes of poet laureate John Betjeman, co-founder of the Victorian Society. (more…)
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The UK is experiencing one of the biggest investments in education and skills infrastructure since the 1960s. For example, the Government’s ‘Building Schools for the Future’ aims to rebuild or renew every one of England’s 3,500 state secondary schools by 2020 and the growth of the Academy Programme looks set to continue. With all this in mind, there is an interesting exhibition, ‘London’s Learning’, now on at The Building Centre, which highlights current and future examples of education and learning environments. (more…)
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Buildingtalk and this Editor's Blog are edited by Howard Chapman
Howard Chapman is a freelance writer who has worked for a number of years in design and marketing, particularly within the construction industry. As a publisher he has launched magazines in the manufacturing and exporting sectors of industry. His focus now is in the developing e-magazine sector, both in construction and engineering.
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