More Focus – Page 486
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FeaturesNorthern light
Oldham's outlandish art gallery will form the centrepiece of a new cultural quarter, as part of the troubled city's ambitious regeneration plans. Martin Spring took a peek at Pringle Richards Sharrat's answer to Peckham Library.
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FeaturesAs hard as it gets
Zaha Hadid's Wolfsburg Science Centre is probably the most complicated structure humanity has ever tried to build. To get it right has required the harnessing of some great engineering minds and multiple software upgrades. Andy Pearson finds out how it will be done
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Features
Product innovation: Composite structural beams
Composite structural beams could revolutionise the way long-span structures such as stadiums or bridges are built. They are less than a quarter of the weight of traditional reinforced beams and have the same ultimate load capacity. Their light weight is also an advantage in situations where transporting and installing them ...
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The killer clients
Eganism is being threatened by a very different way of doing business, as blue-chip employers switch to 'reverse auction' tendering on the internet – a ruthless game in which the client picks off bidders until there is just one left.
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FeaturesIt's (still) a man's world
Equal opportunities initiatives come and go, but construction's career ladder remains steeper for women than men – if they manage to cling on at all after they've had children
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FeaturesWelcome to the videodrome
A startlingly different shopping experience is being offered to New Yorkers by cult fashion retailer Prada and architect Rem Koolhaas – but what were all the IT consultants for? Martin Spring tells all
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FeaturesGet shorter
Just a year ago, it seemed a string of skyscraper proposals were about to turn London into Chicago-on-Thames. Now, tall is out and once again the groundscraper is flavour of the month. Matthew Richards discovers that big offices are laying low
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Don't go KPI nuts
These days, there's a benchmarking tool for everything – except the effectiveness of benchmarking. And as key performance indicators cost more than peanuts to implement, how can companies work out which ones are truly key to their performance?
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Rules of the game
Partners who work together without a partnership agreement are asking for grief …
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Features
Five resources for working women
www.maternityalliance.org.uk has a vast store of information and guidance on maternity benefits and rights. It also deals with parental leave and has a section dedicated to up-and-coming employment legislation that affects women.www.womenback2work.co.uk offers women who've taken a career break advice, as well as publishing the experiences of those who've been ...
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FeaturesPalm stormers
Get drawings, cut paperwork or surf the net, all from a muddy ditch anywhere. As computers get faster, smaller and cheaper, some companies are holding the future in their hands. Thomas Lane explores the revolution in mobile computing
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Bright young thing
Ben Tanner, winner of the Sir Ian Dixon Scholarship, which gives the industry's bright lights a chance to research a topic of their choice, talks to Victoria Madine
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Appointments
ContractorsMidlands firm William Sapcote has appointed Phil Livesey senior project surveyor in Birmingham. He was previously a PQS with Mowlem.Gary Charnock (left) has joined Willmott Dixon as general foreman for the West Midlands. Wiltshier FM, the facilities management division of contractor Ballast, has appointed Robert Newton general manager. HousebuildersBellway Homes ...
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FeaturesChris Mellor
Some people might think AWG's admission that it paid £22m over the odds for contractor Morrison is a cause for embarrassment. But, as Victoria Madine discovered, the water group's chief executive isn't one of them.
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Meet the neighbours
With all eyes on the eurozone, it is easy to forget the possibilities in central and eastern Europe. Following on from our euro special, Victoria Madine discovers that these markets are about to become mainline stations on the European Union's gravy train
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FeaturesGreen and bright
The team behind the timber-clad, grass-roofed techno-home known as the Integer House is to make a start on raising the IQ and lowering the energy bills of the rest of the country’s housing stock.