A freestanding luffing jib tower crane has been increased in height to 105 metres by Bennetts Cranes on a luxury residential development in Fulham, London. This is understood to be the tallest freestanding luffing jib crane in operation in the UK currently, meaning it is not tied to the building.
Network Homes has received planning permission for the next stage of a major development at Northwick Park Hospital in Northwest London. Brent Council’s planning committee granted outline permission for the scheme on 29 March, which will see a total of up to 1,600 new homes, as well as the student
The housing market in Australia has experienced a bumpy ride over the past year, as have most industries dealing with the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic. However, data from September 2020 suggests a strong recovery in 2021. The economics team of Westpac has forecast house prices bottoming out at a
A freestanding luffing jib tower crane has been increased in height to 105 metres by Bennetts Cranes on a luxury residential development in Fulham, London. This is understood to be the tallest freestanding luffing jib crane in operation in the UK currently, meaning it is not tied to the building. Bennetts, a specialist tower crane company based in Gloucestershire, erected the Raimondi LR 213 tower crane in August 2020 at Chelsea Creek, where a selection of Manhattan, one-, two- and three-bedroom homes is being built by St George, part of Berkeley Group. The height is not extraordinary for a crane, with tower cranes that are tied to buildings going to much greater heights than this. However, the crane is unique at this height because it is freestanding and a luffing jib crane. Typical freestanding luffing jib cranes would be between 30 – 60 metres tall for residential developments, with some occasionally reaching 70 metres or more. There are currently none known to be operating in the UK freestanding at over 100 metres. Between 3 – 4 April, a team from Bennetts Cranes used a 1,000 tonne mobile crane to add mast sections and increase the height of the LR 213 from 55 metres to 105 metres. The crane has base towers that are 4.6 metres square (more than double the typical freestanding crane tower of around 2 metres) to withstand the forces at such a height. Edward Seager, Managing Director of Bennetts Cranes, said: “When you double the height of a tower crane, the forces don’t just double, they square, so one of the ways to counteract that is to use a much wider tower base to spread the forces and make it more stable. This base, which is concreted into the ground, is extremely strong and has been brought in specifically for this job. He added: “We were pleased to increase the height of the crane to its final height of 105 metres over the Easter weekend, with good weather, enabling us to complete it within two days.” There has been a steady trend towards using taller freestanding cranes in recent years, driven by changes in cladding systems. Tying cranes to buildings can obstruct cladding being applied and some developers want to attach them during the build without having crane ties in the way. Mr Seager said: “Freestanding cranes can also provide more flexibility on site, and result in a quicker build time because you don’t need to climb the crane and tie it to the building. There are positives and negatives on both sides, because freestanding cranes are typically more expensive as they need to be reinforced to withstand forces, but the hire time can be reduced with a more efficient build.” The LR 213 is working on site with two further cranes including a LR 273, one of Raimondi’s newest luffing jib cranes with an 18 tonne maximum load capacity, and a 10 tonne capacity hydraulic Raimondi LRH174.
Network Homes has received planning permission for the next stage of a major development at Northwick Park Hospital in Northwest London. Brent Council’s planning committee granted outline permission for the scheme on 29 March, which will see a total of up to 1,600 new homes, as well as the student facilities, commercial space, and a replacement nursery across 19 buildings on the site. 40 per cent of the homes are for affordable tenures including Shared Ownership, London Living Rent, Intermediate Rent and London Affordable Rent. Planning for a new access road and for phase one of development for 654 homes was granted in December. The overall transformation of Northwick park is being delivered through a partnership between Network Homes, London North West Hospitals NHS Trust, Brent Council and the University of Westminster through a One Public Estate (OPE) project. This is an established national programme delivered by the Cabinet Office and the Local Government Association (LGA), which encourages public sector organisations to use their property assets together to create economic growth, deliver new jobs and homes, improve public services and operate more efficiently. The plans will see Northwick Park turned into a landmark destination with new high-quality homes, a modernised university hospital, improved infrastructure, and transport connections, as well as improved public spaces and enhanced facilities for education and employment. David Gooch, Network Homes Executive Director of Development, said “We’re delighted to have received outline planning permission from Brent Council and we are working hard with our Project Partners to get the development at Northwick Park underway starting with the new road. Our Development will bring much needed affordable homes, jobs and improved infrastructure. Network look forward to continuing our partnership with Brent Council, London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust and the University of Westminster to develop the area and deliver new high-quality homes.” Bhupinder Singh Chawla, Partner at architects PRP, said: “The overall transformation of the collective sites at Northwick Park demonstrates the success that can be achieved through good and meaningful collaboration between different landholders and a motivated design team. This collective and collaborative approach together with placemaking as the focus of the design proposals has meant a shared and strategic vision for the entire area. The masterplan is made up of different character areas that respond to the varying edges and contexts of the site. A variety of typologies from apartments, maisonettes, key worker homes and mews houses add further diversity. The masterplan also provides educational, sports leisure and commercial facilities and is supported further by a strong approach to the public realm and amenity on the site which all help to create an individual identity for this new place and destination.”
The housing market in Australia has experienced a bumpy ride over the past year, as have most industries dealing with the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic. However, data from September 2020 suggests a strong recovery in 2021. The economics team of Westpac has forecast house prices bottoming out at a fall of 2.3% by June 2021, compared to earlier predictions of a 10% slump over the same time period. Between June 2021 and the middle of 2023, experts are now expecting a national average rise of 7.5% per year, or 15% in total. These gains will be led by certain areas including Perth and Brisbane, while some major cities including Melbourne are expected to decline further than average over the coming months. Michael Akkawi is an entrepreneurial property developer with a focus on addressing the housing shortage. Akkawi’s work is known for its attention to detail and unique aesthetics, delivering lifestyle solutions to the housing market. Information shared in January 2021 showed that some regions of Australia were already experiencing a boom in house prices. The median house price for Sydney reached $1.2 million and Melbourne also reached record highs. This is despite the recession triggered by the response to COVID-19 and the fact that many urban professionals have chosen to relocate to more affordable coastal areas. Six out of eight capital city markets in Australia reached record highs for house prices in December 2020. While Perth and Darwin did not break any records, house prices still rose in both cities. With more professionals working from home, there has been an exodus towards coastal properties with scenic locations. The knock-on effect of this is that house prices in these typically more affordable areas are also on the rise as demand increases and stock levels remain low. An interest rate cut in November 2020 has been partially responsible for increased demand across the Australian housing market, with rates cut to an all-time low of 0.1% for cash rate. This helped to drive demand, with access to cheaper credit making mortgage payments for more expensive properties more affordable to many. Experts from Westpac have stated that the sustained low rates will push up average house prices from shore to shore, coupled with fiscal support from state and federal governments and ongoing regulatory support.
