May 10 2012
May 10th, 2012Posted by Ashley Roberts
When the opportunity arose six months ago to blog for Global Site Plans, I jumped at the chance. At the time I had recently finished a Diploma in Architecture at a University in the United Kingdom and was brimming with enthusiasm and ideas about the world of architecture, but was desperately struggling to find a [...]
April 26 2012
April 26th, 2012Posted by Ashley Roberts
It is almost guaranteed that at some point every Architect across the United Kingdom has despaired at them. Building regulations regarding the access to and use of buildings, otherwise known as Approved Document M are more often than not, at the least, a minor annoyance, if not a full blown architectural headache. With a continuous [...]
April 12 2012
April 12th, 2012Posted by Ashley Roberts
It is pretty well acknowledged that the Internet has changed the world, with easy, universal access to information and instant communication across the planet. But how has it impacted the daily life of an architect? Has it changed the way they work? And is the full potential of the Internet being utilised? Habits are changing. [...]
March 27 2012
March 27th, 2012Posted by Ashley Roberts
Modern art finally has a place to call home in Nottingham, United Kingdom. Opened in November 2009, Nottingham Contemporary, designed by architects Caruso St John has proved to be very popular; attracting just under 300,000 visitors through the doors in its first year. But what is it that visitors actually go to visit? Do they [...]
March 13 2012
March 13th, 2012Posted by Ashley Roberts
Are you interested in sustainability, but not sure where to get the latest information, sample products, and meet like-minded people? The upcoming Ecobuild conference in London, United Kingdom could be just the event for you. Ecobuild is, put simply, the place to go to update your environmental expertise and put yourself ahead of the competition [...]
February 28 2012
February 28th, 2012Posted by Ashley Roberts
Times are hard. There are very few places in the world unaffected by the economic downturn. And nowhere has this impact been felt more harshly than the construction industry, which has left a generation of architecture graduates trapped in limbo, struggling to get a foothold in the industry. In the United Kingdom the Royal Institute [...]
February 14 2012
February 14th, 2012Posted by Ashley Roberts
Something very strange is happening in Liverpool, England. In a remarkable piece of urban planning one of the most recognisable areas of the city has been changed forever by one piece of modern design. Is this beneficial to Liverpool, or has this attempt at contemporary architecture within a historically sensitive setting ruined a section of [...]
January 31 2012
January 31st, 2012Posted by Ashley Roberts
Brownfield sites prime for building. Derelict architecture crying out to be regenerated. Both are common sites up and down the United Kingdom, but why? With a long standing housing shortage only predicted to get worse, what are we doing to utilise these potentially valuable resources? The value of the land on which they sit is [...]
January 17 2012
January 17th, 2012Posted by Ashley Roberts
With the United Kingdom committed to producing 20% of its electricity from renewable sources by the year 2020, there seems to be an acceptance within the general public that sustainability has become a key issue in everyday life. But with around 50% of planning applications for new wind farms rejected in 2010, is the country [...]
January 03 2012
January 3rd, 2012Posted by Ashley Roberts
The Code for Sustainable Homes is an environmental impact rating used in the United Kingdom to raise standards of house design. Essentially a tick box exercise, new developments are scored against a series of criteria, with the total points gained determining their rating, from the low scoring Level 1 to ‘zero-carbon’ Level 6. Since 2010, [...]