All Comment articles 鈥� Page 444
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How do I... assemble contract documents?
Assembling contract documents correctly is the secret to ensuring a smooth and dispute-free construction process, says John Hughes D鈥橝eth. And here鈥檚 how it鈥檚 done
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CommentDispute over loft extension: Just how annoyed am I?
When the Court of Appeal pondered the case of a spoilt view, the judges had to imagine themselves as ordinary, sensible members of the public and ask one simple question...
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The (un)luck of the Irish
If I had chosen this week for a relaxing break in some warmer winter weather in Cannes, I would be severely unimpressed by now.Not only has a large proportion of the town (and the bars and restaurants) been taken over by property types, but last night was the France vs ...
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House building looks set for growth in 2010
The latest Government house building numbers strongly suggest that a shade more than 100,000 homes will be built in England in 2009.This would represent a 40% drop on the peak year of 2007 and make 2009 a record peacetime low.There are hints of hope in the figures with the starts ...
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MAPIC: Europe's big five report a stagnant retail sector
As mentioned in my previous blog, the seminar on retail development in Europe鈥檚 big five this afternoon promised news of an 鈥渆normous development pipeline鈥�, something I would imagine translating into plenty of opportunities for the construction industry.Well, an enormous pipeline there might be but unfortunately the delegates from the UK, ...
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MAPIC dispatches: Argentina bids to join the BRIC pack
The mood so far at MAPIC is hopeful. Seminar and conferences titles are peppered with mention of 鈥渢he future鈥�, 鈥渓ooking ahead鈥�, 鈥渆merging markets鈥� and 鈥渟trong pipeline鈥�.It seems that for the retail market, like many others, things are finally starting to look up and while no one is predicting a massive ...
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Are expectations of inflation too low?
Inflation is now on the way up. That was to be expected. As Mervyn King, Governor of the Bank of England, keeps reminding us, we should expect inflation to be very volatile for some while.But, is it me or do the forecasts for inflation reaching a mini-peak at about 3% ...
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New Year stamp duty switchback will have little impact, says RICS
For those interested in what will happen when the stamp duty holiday comes to an end on December 31, the surveyors' body RICS has done a little bit of research among its members.Basically, the results seem to suggest that by and large the effect on property transactions will be muted ...
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Christmas sales come to the housing market
It's the run up to Christmas and we're in a recession - well if not technically, we're definitely suffering from the recession - so don't be surprised to see redundancies on the rise and asking prices for homes on the decline. It is the nature of things.And in this regard ...
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Stirring sentiments from No.10
The interior decor of No.10 (as you鈥檇 expect lots of chintz, 1980s uplighters, a few too many landscapes and Blackpool Ballroom-style chandeliers) might have offended the sensibilities of many of his uber design audience, but the message Gordon Brown delivered couldn鈥檛 have gone down better.鈥淏ritish design and architecture are ...
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Three simple rules
Further to your 鈥渋ncreasingly controversial鈥� safety blunders pictures 鈥� yes you should still publish it, but with the following rules: All the blunders need to be in the EU to prevent the 鈥渓et鈥檚 laugh at Johnny Foreigner鈥� school of blunderography. All the blunders should have a name of the contractor ...
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CommentHalf full, not half empty
At the British Council of Shopping Centres conference this week, the talk was of the shortage of retail space and the need to start building fairly soon to meet demand in four years鈥� time
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CommentHansom: As the nights draw in
We avoid the cold wind blasting a London office block and instead wrap up warm in a woolly JCB jumper and settle down before an Olympic fire to enjoy an architect-assessed Sunday roast. Perfect
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Electronic documents: Indecent disclosure
Showing the other side your electronic documents is far more expensive and dangerous than simply putting emails and Word documents on a memory stick
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Heated debate
The article revealing that the Zero Carbon Hub is suggesting an energy use figure of 30-45kWhr/m2/yr figure for the 2016 Code for Sustainable Homes indicates a lack of vision and seriousness on the part of this organisation (23 October, page 13)
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Public procurement: A fresh chance to challenge
Public bodies should tighten up their procurement systems, as the remedies directive will widen the scope for firms to contest their decisions
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Train the chain
Regarding Steven Morgan鈥檚 article (9 October, page 24) I heartily agree that clear lines of responsibility are crucial for a successful project
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Comment星空传媒 buys a pint 鈥� Environ
The Running Horse is an appropriately named place for an evening with environmental consultant Environ
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CommentBuyer beware: Richard Steer on low bidding by QSs
The trend of low bidding by quantity surveyors is unsustainable for those who do it, will harm the profession in the long run and offers a poor service to the client