Fourth interpretation of the MINI Living Urban Cabin concept presented at the architecture exhibition China House Vision draws on traditional Beijing forms of housing as well as developing innovative ideas for maximum quality of living within a minimum space. MINI presents the latest MINI LIVING Urban Cabin at the interdisciplinary
Planning permission to develop a new multi million pound Engineering building at the University of the West of England (UWE) Bristol has been granted to AHR. The plans were approved by the South Gloucestershire Council and a 8,500 sqm building that will accommodate up to 1,600 people will be built
The Government has announced a new plan to tackle homelessness with the help of Totally Modular. The number of people sleeping rough in the UK has risen every year for the last seven years and now stands at over 4,500 each night, with many more individuals and families in hotel
ABL UK Limited, a manufacturer and distributor of power modules, monitor arms, CPU holders and cable management products has announced plans to expand into Europe by attracting new distributors in Northern and South East Europe. The company, which is based in Wellingborough, intends to launch its expansion programme by exhibiting
A significant investment has been made by one of Scotland’s largest independent plant hire firms, Jarvie Plant, in its fleet of hire equipment with the addition of telehandlers, rotating telescoping handlers (rotos), access platforms and industrial forklifts. Available throughout the company’s depot network, all of the new machines can be
To launch a series of Construction Careers Weeks taking place in Manchester, Birmingham and London this September and October, the winner of a national competition to design a campaign to encourage young people to consider a career in construction, as well as diversify the sector, has been announced. Built Environment
Fourth interpretation of the MINI Living Urban Cabin concept presented at the architecture exhibition China House Vision draws on traditional Beijing forms of housing as well as developing innovative ideas for maximum quality of living within a minimum space. MINI presents the latest MINI LIVING Urban Cabin at the interdisciplinary architecture exhibition China House Vision in Beijing from 21 September to 4 November 2018. The micro-apartment concept was developed in cooperation with local architect Dayong Sun. The Urban Cabin in Beijing is now the fourth interpretation of the concept developed by MINI LIVING last year. The Urban Cabin provides temporary living space with a high degree of flexibility and lots of possibilities – on a surface area of just 15 m2. One particular design focus is the local identity and culture of the specific location in each case. After stops in London, New York City and Los Angeles, the latest source of inspiration is Beijing. The central theme of the project is to explore how space can be used in an innovative way to create a new sense of community and maximum quality of living on a minimum surface area. In order to achieve this, the MINI LIVING Urban Cabin Beijing re-interprets traditional forms of urban living in China, thereby stimulating dialogue with community life in the city. MINI Living started in 2016 and is dedicated to developing novel residential concepts for urban conurbations worldwide. Developments in big cities such as space shortage and price increases are taken into account, as well as the desire for flexibility, local identity and communal interaction. In order to address these diverse aspects, the project takes the “creative use of space” principle as developed for the classic Mini in the field of automotive design and applies it to the residential context. MINI Living Urban Cabin Beijing: visionary format with historical roots. Every MINI Living Urban Cabin consists of three formal elements. The living and sleeping sections on one side of the micro-apartment and the kitchen and bathroom on the other side are designed by the MINI Living Design Team. The third section is defined by MINI as an experiential space with the character of an installation: for each cabin, a local architects’ bureau is invited to fill out this space. The theme selected always has to be relevant to the specific location. In Beijing this experiential space was developed in collaboration with local architect Dayong Sun. He has created an open area of encounter as a homage to the courtyards of the traditional hutongs. Golden, telescope-like mirrors are mounted above this interactive space, reflecting the immediate environment but also the broader urban context. A swing at the centre of the space provides a playful shift in the viewer’s perspective. The storage and seating facilities positioned around the Urban Cabin are designed in geometrical shapes reminiscent of traditional Chinese tangram puzzles, also acting as an attractive feature for contemplation. Dayong Sun’s design is inspired by the hutongs common in Beijing’s more traditional districts. A hallmark feature of the city’s architectural history, these residences are made up of courtyard buildings and passageways that are particularly appreciated for the combination of private withdrawal spaces and communal living areas which they offer. This model is now gradually disappearing from the urban landscape as a result of demographic change. The MINI LIVING Urban Cabin in Beijing echoes the underlying principle of hutong while at the same time translating it to the modern age. Global network of creative residential solutions. MINI Living is focused on forward-looking stimuli for a style of residential architecture that focuses on human beings and their need for individuality, flexibility and community. “Each MINI Living Urban Cabin creates maximum quality of living within a very limited space in a specific situational context”, explains Oke Hauser, Creative Lead MINI Living. “The result is a global network of creative residential solutions in which people all over the world feel at home, while at the same time providing a public space for innovative forms of co-living”. With their individual basic format and elaboration, the various interpretations of the MINI Living Urban Cabin concept demonstrate the creative possibilities offered by micro-apartments. This has made them the forerunner to the first co-living project in China, which is to be opened in Shanghai in 2019. Here MINI is collaborating with Chinese project developer NOVA Property Investment Co. to convert an unused industrial complex in the Jing’An district into a multi-dimensional facility consisting of apartments and work spaces as well as cultural and leisure facilities. In addition to the creative use of space, the concept offers residents maximum flexibility with residential units of varying sizes and a vibrant urban neighbourhood. This creative combination of personal privacy and opportunities for communal interaction is supplemented with an extensive range of digitally bookable services, thereby establishing a whole new level of living quality in the urban setting of a modern city.
Planning permission to develop a new multi million pound Engineering building at the University of the West of England (UWE) Bristol has been granted to AHR. The plans were approved by the South Gloucestershire Council and a 8,500 sqm building that will accommodate up to 1,600 people will be built at the University’s main Frenchay Campus. “We are delighted to have received planning permission for this exciting project at UWE Bristol. The building’s expansive use of natural light, combining circulation with social learning spaces will promote openness and encourage an inclusive educational experience for a diverse range of student engineers. We are looking forward to delivering upon the University’s vision for 21st century, problem-based engineering,” said Gary Overton, AHR Director. The low energy, naturally ventilated building, created by AHR in collaboration with engineers Hydrock, provides long-term flexibility for the University, while also being designed to BREEAM Excellent standard. One of the biggest challenges faced by AHR for this building was to accommodate the large number of workshops requiring ground floor access. The issue was overcame by stepping the floors back around a central atrium, which provides natural ventilation and consistent north light, delivered through a vast 1,000 sqm saw tooth roof supported on a glulam timber structure. The central project spaces follow a vertical hierarchy, from heavy workshops and ‘making’ space on the ground floor, up to laboratories and ‘design’ space, and culminating in individual ‘touchdown’ space for quiet study at the top of the atrium. This project for UWE Bristol is not the first one for AHR, as the company had previously been involved in several projects across the University’s Frenchay Campus, Glenside Campus and Bower Ashton Campus.
The Government has announced a new plan to tackle homelessness with the help of Totally Modular. The number of people sleeping rough in the UK has risen every year for the last seven years and now stands at over 4,500 each night, with many more individuals and families in hotel and B&B accommodation. A solution to the need for suitable housing has been pioneered by innovative construction company Totally Modular. The company has developed a new method of construction in which complete homes, designed around a steel frame, are built in a factory then simply transported to site, craned into position and quickly connected up to water, waste and utility supplies. Houses can be created in a range of sizes and formats, from single occupancy units to large family homes. Houses can be detached, semi detached or terraced, while the units can also be used to form multi-storey blocks for multiple occupancy. Totally Modular’s single-person micro home is an ideal solution for both homelessness recovery projects and the lack of low cost housing in general. This is the smallest unit Totally Modular manufactures, built from the same high-quality materials as the larger houses, it has a range of roof and cladding options, allowing each one to be matched to its surroundings. Significantly, they can be delivered and installed using a lorry-mounted crane and can also be stacked to make apartment buildings. Internally the Totally Modular micro home is light and airy. It has a double bedroom at one end, kitchenette/living room at the other and a fully fitted bathroom in the middle. Like all Totally Modular solutions, it is Eco Pack ready, meaning you can easily add electric eco heating, solar PV and battery, so can be heated and run for about £30 a year. Designed to help address the housing crisis via affordable housing, Totally Modular’s Micro Living Modular homes are fast to build and, because they do not require conventional foundations, they work well on brownfield sites. They can also be located on sloping sites, in back gardens, inner-city infill opportunities and other sites that would not be suitable for conventional construction. They are also suitable for use by on-site workers, in remote locations and even off-grid.
ABL UK Limited, a manufacturer and distributor of power modules, monitor arms, CPU holders and cable management products has announced plans to expand into Europe by attracting new distributors in Northern and South East Europe. The company, which is based in Wellingborough, intends to launch its expansion programme by exhibiting at ORGATEC 2018, an international industry event taking place in Cologne, Germany which attracts over 50,000 visitors and 600 exhibitors from around the world. ABL was established in 2003 as a UK distributor of power modules and ergonomic accessories to the office furniture industry and has continuously developed its own range of power modules. These are produced in its dedicated manufacturing facility in Central Europe which is ISO accredited. So far in 2018, ABL has already supplied in excess of 1,000,000 sockets to UK based furniture manufacturers, office fit-out companies, wholesalers and architects. Orgatec 2018 is held to allow suppliers to display the latest innovations in workplace environments. The theme for 2018 is “culture@work” and will focus on developments that encourage new ways of working, such as diversity, collaboration and trust. Commenting on the expansion, Paul McKenzie, ABL-UK Managing Director said, “Having established ourselves in the UK market, now is the ideal time to leverage off the presence of our central Europe manufacturing facility and the reputation we have developed in the UK to expand. Orgatec is an international exhibition which will allow us to showcase our manufacturing and distribution expertise to attract new distributors/partners eager to expand highly profitable new markets in Northern and South East Europe.” Orgatec is taking place in Cologne, Germany at “Koelnmesse” Exhibition centre between 23-27 October. ABL is exhibiting on Stand H047 in Hall 11.2.
A significant investment has been made by one of Scotland’s largest independent plant hire firms, Jarvie Plant, in its fleet of hire equipment with the addition of telehandlers, rotating telescoping handlers (rotos), access platforms and industrial forklifts. Available throughout the company’s depot network, all of the new machines can be found in nine locations across Scotland and the North West of England. The Manitou 6m (MT625); 11m (MT1135); 18m (MT1840) and Roto’s MRT2550+ have all been added as well as 7m, 14m and 17m loadalls from JCB. “Telehandlers are such versatile machines that we often find them in high demand, so we have constantly grown our portfolio of them. Rotos are becoming increasingly popular because of the savings they offer over traditional cranes effectively comprising three machines in one – telehandler, crane and access platform,” explained business development director, David Jarvie. “Their minimal set up time increases productivity on a construction site and they come equipped with a range of safety features, such as sensors for load placement, height and slew restriction. With a wide range of attachments, clients can reduce their need for other machines such as access platforms, telehandlers and cranes,” he added. New to the range are also some specialist items, such as the 10m VJR access platform and 2.5T diesel yard forklifts. Both offer benefits for internal warehousing access and both internal and external loading on compact yards. Jarvie Plant is also looking to the future with an investment in a wider range of pallet fork trucks and personnel lift platforms for the growing industrial and warehousing sector. “Retailers are widely investing in supporting their online sales through logistics and distribution warehouses. It’s an area we can only see expanding as consumer demand increases and our machines will be crucial to supporting that growth,” concluded Mr Jarvie.
To launch a series of Construction Careers Weeks taking place in Manchester, Birmingham and London this September and October, the winner of a national competition to design a campaign to encourage young people to consider a career in construction, as well as diversify the sector, has been announced. Built Environment Skills in Schools (BESS) – the organisation behind Construction Careers Week – teamed up with One Minute Briefs, a user-generated social media content community that challenges people to create an advertising concept in only one minute in response to a one sentence brief. In total, over 80 designs were submitted in 24 hours to BESS’ challenge to: “Create posters to inspire the next generation of construction workers to address the skills shortage and make the sector more diverse for #ConstructionCareersWeek.” The campaign generated 1,800 social media engagements and reached over 41,000 people online. The entries were whittled down to a shortlist of 13 and the winner – Yellow is the New Black, by David Felton was chosen as the winner by BESS. Kathryn Lennon Johnson, founder of BESS, said: “We were so impressed by the creativity that came from all the entries to our One Minute Brief challenge, and it was difficult to choose just one winner. The skills shortage in the construction industry is a major issues – and something we need as many people as possible to be aware of. Collaborating with One Minute Briefs gave us the opportunity to not only generate some amazing ads, but it also gave us a platform to communicate to people across the UK what we’re trying to achieve with Construction Careers Week. “We’ll show the designs to the students we meet during Construction Careers Weeks in Manchester, Birmingham and London to start conversations and challenge their perceptions of what a career is like in the sector.” Manchester Construction Careers Week starts 24 September, focusing on diversity and gender, with the Inspire Summit at the Bridgewater Hall on 25 September a key date. In Birmingham, the careers week starts 8 October, focusing on the future of construction and tech, with a number of activities taking place at UK Construction Week at the NEC Wednesday 10 October. Finally, London Construction Careers Week will take place from 15 October and focus on past, present and future. Additional activities will take place at London Build Thursday 25 October. For more information, visit the BESS website.
