skyscapesblog.com

New Landmark Canada Water Tower gets the go ahead

Ian — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 08:30:58 +0000

You may already know about the huge redevelopment of Canada Water in South East London. As a design centre piece for the scheme, Glen Howells has finalised the design for a trademark tower to complement the housing scheme being developed by Barratt homes.

Phase A of the development will see 688 new homes added to the area as well as four low rise blocks and Howells 27 storey tower. The building will front onto Surrey Quays road just near the underground station. It will feature as part of the design shifting planes of glazing with vertical columns running over up the length of the tower.

The Okhta Centre Tower

Ian — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 16:27:13 +0000

Regardless of the public outcry at plans to build a skyscraper in Russia’s former imperial capital St Petersburg, the go ahead for the project has finally been given the green light. The proposed tower will be 1,322 feet tall and is to be named the Okhta Centre.

The tower will be visable from St Petersburg’s historic centre and is designed by a Scottish architectural company. Plans are for the building to house the headquarters of Gazprom Neft.

St Petersburg is commonly thought of as one of the world’s most beautiful cities but development may impact on its world heritage status.

The Millennium Dome (Now known as the O2 Arena)

Hayley — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 16:22:42 +0000

The Millennium Dome is the largest of its type in the world. The concept of the exhibition arena opened to the public on the 1st of January 2000 (hence the name) and is located on the Greenwich Peninsula.

In its early career the dome was classed as a flop by the press and general public because a use for it could not be found after the millennium. It took until 2005 when the dome was rebadged the O2 arena that a useful purpose could be found for it. It underwent extensive redevelopment into an indoor arena and exhibition space and was opened to the public on the 24th of July 2007 with a concert performed by rock band Bon Jovi.

The palace and houses of Westminster

Ian — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 16:20:49 +0000

The Houses of Parliament is an iconic building in the heart of London that is easily recognisable as one of London’s most eye catching buildings. The site is actually the Palace of Westminster which is a royal palace that used to be the residence of the kings of England. The extensive building comprises of 1200 rooms, 100 stairwells, and over two miles of corridors. Amongst these is Westminster Hall which is now used for ceremonial events.

The Palace of Westminster was the residence of the kings of England between the 11th century and the 14th century. By the end of the 14th century all aspects of the court of England was located in the palace.

The Palace of Westminster has several towers, the biggest being 323 feet tall and home to the Parliamentary archives. At the north end of the Palace is the famous Big Ben, it is 316 feet tall and a must see on any visit to London.

The Globe Theatre

Hayley — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 08:29:22 +0000

Over the next few posts we are going to Focus on London primarily and have a look at the different types of architecture over the ages and discuss pivitol changes in architecture style and the buildings that defined the age.

It goes without saying that one of the most iconic buildings in London’s history is the Globe Theatre, where many of William Shakespeare’s were acted out for the first time. It was built in 1599 to house The King’s Men, Shakespeare’s own theatre company. The thatch caught light in 1613 during a performance of Henry VII and the theatre was badly damaged. It was completely destroyed in 1643 during the English Civil War.

The concept of rebuilding the Globe was the conceptual idea of American actor and Director Sam Wanamaker. He founded the Shakespeare Globe Trust in 1970 and in 1987 building work began on a site on the south bank of the Thames not far from where the original Globe was situated. In 1993 the construction of the actual theatre began and building was completed in 1997.

The theatre stages many shows and events throughout the year and is a must visit on any trip to London.

My Favourite Tower – Blackpool Tower

Hayley — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 08:38:56 +0000

It’s a easy decision for me as I’m from Blackpool so it’s something that I’ve grown up with from a young age. Opened on 14 May 1894 the tower was based on the Eiffel Tower. Standing at 158m (518ft 9 inches) the tower can be seen from most areas of Lancashire and even on a clear day from Liverpool and Manchester.

As well as the tower the building below is a large building with many areas including a circus, aquairum, resturants, At the top of the tower there is a walk of faith installed in 1998 which is a glass walkway that is 2 inches thick.

Work Starts On Lebanons Tallest Building

Hayley — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 08:16:20 +0000

The start of work is underway on the construction of the soon to be tallest tower in Lebanon. The name of the building will be Sama-Beirut and at compleition will be 200 metres tall.

The building will be in the Sodeco area near to the airport, the central district of the city and the marina. The tower is gong to also have a height boosting spire on top to increase the overall hight of the tower. It’s a mixed use tower with retail, offices and residentail from the tenth floor all the way to the top. The prices are expensive for an apartment starting at $1.5 million getting more expensive the further up the tower.

The aim is to finish the project by 2014.

Tallest buildings in France

Hayley — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 08:11:27 +0000

We all know that the tallest structure in France is the Eiffel Tower located in paris. At 324 meters tall the tower that was build in 1889 and there are no plans for any new builders to be constructed taller than the tower.

So what is the Tallest buildings in France well that’s the Tour Maine-Montparnasse at 210-metre (689 ft) it’s the second tallest structure in France. Constructed in 1969 to 1972 it’s also the 9th largest building in the E U.

In 1995 the building had the honour of being climbed by Tour Alain Robert a French free climber known as spider man. But the building isn’t the most pleasent of lookers and was voted by Virtualtourist as the second ugliest building in the world.

The Shard Skyscraper London

Hayley — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 16:36:09 +0000

Work on the Shard Skyscraper London started this month which will become one of the tallest buildings in eastern Europe. The building located at 32 London Bridge Street London will break the 1000 ft mark with the roof reaching 1,004 ft and the antenna 1,017 ft. The building will have 87 floors.

The building is due to be finishing in 2012 after architects Renzo Piano had to go through a gruelling planning application. The building will contain a hotel and offices to be let, London transport have agreed to be one of the many occupants. 5 cranes will be used to make the huge tower over it’s 2 and half year building process.

Lightning hits Beetham Tower Manchester

Hayley — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 16:23:55 +0000

When constructing large towers there are millions of points to take into consideration one of them is how to deal with lighting strikes. When lighting strikes a building the bold of electricity needs to get to the ground, using a lighting conductor (in the US the call it a lighting rod) you can get the electric down to the ground.

The lighting conductor is generally made out of copper or aluminium and will be the highest point on a building. From there the conductor will be connecting to many wires taking the electricity down to the ground. Those wires need to be not connected to other electrical wires otherwise a strike could break the electrics.

The Beetham Tower the largest building in Manchester, England was recently hit by a lighting strike 9:20am 30th July 2009. The event was captured by the local University.