Opinion 鈥� Page 376
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Comment
All publicity is good
The essence of 星空传媒鈥檚 editorial in the 9 May edition (page 3) is that the Prince of Wales鈥� intervention into the quality of design of the built environment, is a good thing. Up to a point
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Comment
Not just any old wood
Regarding our timber study for the Wood Window Alliance (24 April, page 69), it is important to realise that the negative value for embodied carbon was based on the knowledge that the timber would be sustainably sourced from a well-managed forest, and that in the future, most of it would ...
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CommentIn the pink
There鈥檚 a healthy glow over construction this week, from red-flag-waving anti-monarchists, creatively priced vino and the coy blushes of Chinese officials. Oh, and some football team or other
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CommentThe meme machine: What do you think is normal?
Disputes arise when parties feel that things have strayed too far from the norm. They find that terribly upsetting. Why? Well, there鈥檚 a theory that explains that...
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Comment
Talk first, procure later: Competitive dialogue
Engaged on a major project? Here鈥檚 a message from the Office of Government Commerce: engage with business and identify your needs before embarking on procurement
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CommentHealing the healthy
In the second of his series on the deadly sins of architecture, Robert Adam tackles conceit, which takes the bizarre form of designers pretending be members of the medical profession
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Comment星空传媒 buys a pint... for Mace graduates
At what moment do you realise that you鈥檙e losing your youth?
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CommentWe should listen to the cynics
We鈥檝e heard a lot in the past week or so about people who follow the letter of the rules but not their spirit. Rather too much, in fact
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Comment
Latest official figures reveal extent of the house building challenge
The release of the first quarter 2009 house building figures for England will most likely provide a bit of everything for commentators, pundits and truth spinners.Chances are there are reasons to be more cheerful and reasons to be more depressed than you were after reading them.But for my money what ...
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Comment
Figures show more Eastern Europeans are giving up on the UK
The post credit crunch squeeze on the UK economy does appear to be encouraging more Eastern Europeans to call it a day and return home according to the latest information produced by the official statisticians at ONS.This does fit with the anecdotal evidence which suggests that the weak pound and ...
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Comment
Inflation fell more than expected in April
The rate of inflation measured on the consumer prices index (CPI) fell sharply in April from 2.9% to 2.4%.This should be seen as good news for those operating in the housing market as a persistence of over target inflation may have hastened the time when interest rates return to more ...
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Comment
Is everyone being too positive?
Apparently, slowing negative is now the new positive. Contraction is pass茅. The only problem is, that the evidence doesn't appear to suggest that.Just two examples, of many recently, spring to mind.The latest Key Purchasing Managers Index for construction from the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS) rose from 30.9 ...
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Comment
Report shows 10-fold increase in 2008 in unsold new homes in London
The more you scratch the available data on residential development the more astounding seems the transformation in market conditions over 2008.I was invited to be the editor of The Red Book for this year's edition. For those not familiar with the book it is produced annually and provides analysis and ...
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Comment
And this year's new optimism is...
Everything becomes this year's new black at some point.Nothing is ever simply itself anymore. That's fine in a postmodern culture of moral relativism that is accepting of a laid back usage of language and grammar. I'm fairly relaxed about that.But there comes a point when it all gets a bit ...
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CommentWe can't afford cheap and nasty
The recession is turning us, and our politicians, into mean, short-sighted people. And this is exactly the right way to make sure it lasts a long, long time
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CommentWonders & blunders
Tom Foulkes salutes Hadrian鈥檚 2,000-year-old Pantheon in Rome, but quietly hopes the brutalist Southbank Centre has a somewhat shorter lifespan
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CommentVoices from the abyss
As the recession drags on, we hear the sound of lamentation from losing Crossrail bidders, wailing from architects鈥� competition lists and saucy ad libs from property professionals
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Comment
Overcoming overload
I read with interest Cedric Sloan鈥檚 article in 星空传媒 on 1 May (page 33). He draws attention to the information that is provided with most invitations to submit a tender. One of the points he makes is that far too much information is provided