Refurbished office named ‘best of the best workplace’ in BCO awards

by • Architecture, News, Property, Workplace design

BCO best of best winner 2013A refurbished building which houses the manufacturer of the hi-tec GoreTex fabric range has been named the best of the best workplace in the British Council of Offices (BCO) annual awards. W. L. Gore’s Edinburgh headquarters was recognised for its transformation from a building which was no longer fit for purpose to a modern, green and inspirational workplace. National winners in the BCO 2013 awards include the Crystal in London for innovation; Birmingham City Council offices for fit out of workplace; Cannon Place in London for refurbished workplace; and Astellas in Chertsey and Nestle Product Technology Centre in York for projects up to 2,000m²

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Balfour Beatty appointed main contractor for St James’s Market scheme

by • Company news, News, Property

St James scheme appoints Balfour Beatty as main contractorThe Crown Estate and Oxford Properties have announced the completion of a joint venture agreement to finance the £320 million St James’s Market scheme around London’s Regent Street area. Balfour Beatty has been appointed as the main contractor, with work due to start on site in the next month. The St James’s Market scheme is set to deliver 210,000 ft2 of office and 50,000 ft2 of retail and restaurant space. Bob Clark, Managing Director of Balfour Beatty’s Major Projects division said: “As a global infrastructure group we will be bringing our experience in delivering high end commercial properties to the scheme and utilising our investment in 4D information modelling technology and modular construction capability to ensure perfect delivery.”

New microsite shares sustainability knowledge with the built environment

by • Company news, Environment, Property

New microsite shares sustainability expertise in the built environment

One of the biggest design and construction firms in the UK, BAM Construct UK, has launched a sustainability microsite to share its green building knowledge. The website is broken into six key performance indicators: sustainable design; carbon; resource efficiency; sourcing responsibly; community; and health and wellbeing. BAM Director of Sustainability Nitesh Magdani said: “The sustainability team at BAM includes a range of professionals from site managers and environmentalists to architects. We advise our teams on issues including sustainable design; waste and environmental management; community engagement; LEED and BREEAM certification; Post Occupancy Evaluations; and air quality issues.” More →

Planning permission granted for development at East London Crossrail site

by • Company news, Property

Poplar Business ParkPlanning permission has been granted for a mixed use scheme including 58,000 sq. ft. of office space at the Poplar Business Park next to the new Crossrail station just North of Canary Wharf in East London. Crossrail is the South East’s most important infrastructure project linking commuters in the Home Counties and Essex with central London and will complete in 2018. Jamie Hopkins, the CEO of developers Workspace claimed, “It is a significant redevelopment in an area that will be experiencing a lot of change over the coming years with the arrival of Crossrail at Canary Wharf.  Poplar Business Park will be a thriving residential and business location in the heart of one of London’s future hotspots.”

Growth forecast for the commercial architecture sector in RIBA survey

by • Architecture, News, Property

RIBA

The commercial architecture sector is forecast for steady growth throughout 2013 according to the latest Future Trends Survey by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). The survey, which uses an index to gauge workloads, reports that all sector forecasts remained in positive territory, with the workload balance figure for the commercial sector moving further into positive territory, (to +9). All categories of practices by size, and all the nations and regions in the UK, returned positive workload forecast balance figures in August 2013, suggesting that the sustained improvement in confidence levels is widespread and no longer confined to particular sectors and geographical locations. More →

If you are moving to new offices, make sure you can get rid of the old ones first

by • Facilities management, Property, Public Sector, Workplace design

Building 1000 - seemed like a good idea at the time

Building 1000 – seemed like a good idea at the time

One of the most common reasons for large organisations to move to new offices is a consolidation of an extensive and disparate estate that has developed over a long period of time. But what happens when the benefits of the move are scuppered because the organisation finds it impossible to get rid of its old buildings? That is the question facing Newham Borough Council as it emerges that it may have to quit the controversially swanky £110 million offices it moved to in 2010 and back into some of the 26 properties it left at the time and has struggled to unburden itself of since.

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RICS launches guidance for small businesses on managing property assets

by • Facilities management, News, Property

RICS launches guidance for small businesses on managing propertyProperty costs – such as business rates and rent – are one of the most significant expenses incurred by SMEs and failure to take professional advice on how to manage them can cost businesses thousands of pounds. RICS has launched a guide to help small businesses take better control of their finances through managing their property assets differently. The Small Business Property Guide, which is free of charge for business owners, covers all aspects of the property process. It has been endorsed by the Federation of Small Businesses, the British Retail Consortium and the Association of Town and City Management. The guide includes advice on; finding the right premises; business rates; tax allowances on property; and valuations.

Government unveils BIM initiative for SMEs as survey reveals small business concerns

by • Architecture, Facilities management, Property

BIM1The Cabinet Office has unveiled a new initiative which aims to promote the practice of Business Information Modelling (BIM) amongst smaller businesses in the UK construction industry. At the launch of the  Construction Industry Council’s dreadfully named BIM4SME forum, Cabinet Office Minister Chloe Smith reiterated the Government’s commitment to use BIM on all Government construction projects by 2016. However new research from the Institution of Structural Engineers has revealed the problems facing small businesses in using BIM, including the fact that two thirds think the Government stance on BIM makes it harder for them to win work and three quarters believe it presents them with major cost challenges.

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Plans for a new high rise office development in City of London unveiled

by • Architecture, News, Property

Plans for a new high rise office development in City of London unveiled

DBOX for Henderson Global Investors and MAKE

Plans for a new high rise office development in the City of London have been unveiled by Henderson Global Investors. Designed by Make architectural practice, the high buildings at 40 Leadenhall Street, EC3 will vary in height between 7 and 34 office storeys, with two additional basement levels, a roof level plant, and café and restaurant uses at ground floor level.  The total size of the building is 910,000 sq ft, split between 890,000 sq ft office and c. 20,000 sq ft retail. A grade II listed building at 19-21 Billiter Street, built in 1865, will be restored and integrated in the proposed scheme, which it is estimated will create 390 construction jobs, with around 7,000 people expected to work in the completed building. More →

Winners announced for outstanding leadership in sustainable buildings awards

by • Environment, News, Property

City Green Court

City Green Court building in Prague

British Land, Spanish city Vitoria-Gasteiz and the City Green Court building in Prague, Czech Republic, have clinched the top spots in the inaugural World Green Building Council Leadership Awards – Europe Region. The awards, which were announced to coincide with World Green Building Week 2013 – honour leadership and best practice in green building policy, construction projects and corporate initiatives. British Land won the category for Business Leadership in Sustainability; Vitoria-Gasteiz picked up the award for Leadership in City Policy for Green Building award; and office building City Green Court, topped the Leadership in Building Design and Performance category for its sustainability features. More →

World Green Building week launches with a breath of fresh air

by • Environment, Facilities management, News, Property

World Green building week launches with a breath of fresh airMaking sustainability sexy is a tall order. Look up the topic “green building” and you’ll invariably come across in depth descriptions of energy saving schemes and achieving a BREEAM rating. All these considerations are of course very important, but they make it difficult to engage building occupants. With the theme “Greener buildings, better places, healthier people”, World Green Building Week, which begins today (16-20 September), should do just that, by concentrating on the tangible benefits to building occupants of a green office. Paul King, Chief Executive of UK-GBC, said: “We often hear about the environmental and financial benefits of green buildings, but less attention is paid to the impact on those who live and work in them.” More →

Value of offices and property rental income across the UK hit two year high

by • News, Property

Manchester Media CityThe value of commercial real estate in the UK rose for the fourth consecutive month during August, led by increases in the average value of offices, according to a report from Investment Property Databank (IPD). The average value of offices, warehouses, retail and industrial rose by a 0.4 percent across the country. Office buildings rose by 0.6 percent during the month while total return, which combines changes in real estate values and rental income, was 0.9 percent, to reach the highest level since March 2011. The report claims the upturn is down to the wider economic upturn and persistent  low interest rates which incentivise investors to acquire high income generating assets. The report also notes that investors are looking to acquire more property outside of London as the economic recovery spreads across the UK. More →

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