Paris apartment of Ivan Miplera

Visiting Paris apartment of Ivan Miplera, creative director at Diane von Fürstenberg, is like a visit to a parallel woprld – it gives you a strange impression of space and it has been equipped by the designer itself.

Having been inherited, the apartment is situated on one of the side streets of Paris near Canal Saint-Martin. It was built in the late XIX century and it was in a general good condition. The biography of the place states that for a while the apartment belonged to a circus school.

”I wanted it to look chic and modern, but quite unusual – surreal.” says the owner.

The huge black cube with faceted surfaces hides the kitchen area.

“I like modernism, so, I wanted to have a modern apartment – he explains. – But I don’t like the cold materials associated with this style. So I chose hand-made, warm and luxurious things. My apartment is a cozy and quaint little nest where I can escape from the bustle of Paris.”

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Posted in: Architects,Architecture,art,Engineering,furniture,Homes,photos,صور,مجلات,مقالات

Hydropower financing:current trends and key issues

Hydropower financing:current trends and key issues


 

 

In the late 2000s the power sector in many countries experienced a major revolution. The old vertically-integrated, nationally owned power utilities were unbundled and the concept of freestanding independent power generating companies (IPPs) was established. This trend was part of a wider process of encouraging more private participation in the ownership and development of infrastructure, including hydropower and multi-purpose water projects. With this arrangement most projects were developed using the BOOT model (build-own-operate-transfer) under which a special purpose private company finances the scheme (usually on a non-recourse basis) and assumes virtually all of the project risks. In return it owns the infrastructure for the duration of the concession.

While this formula worked well for the thermal power sector, it quickly became apparent that the situation is more complicated when it comes to major water resources projects. In general the experience with projects such as large hydropower schemes has not been favourable, with many MOUs being signed between governments and prospective private developers, but few schemes actually reaching the construction stage. In many cases the main problem has been an inability to finance the project.

A number of Case Studies have been undertaken by the author. Although each is different, it is possible to detect certain overriding issues which dominate the private financing scene. They are:

1. RISKS dominate the availability and cost of finance, and are tending to migrate back to the public sector.
2. TARIFFS tend to be higher (than the public sector alternative) due to high soft costs, the layering of risk, and heavy debt service obligations.
3. FINANCIAL viability tends to compete with wider economic considerations, and it can distort the optimisation.
4. The PUBLIC SECTOR has yet to find a workable model for attracting private participation.

Faced with these problems, there is an increasing tendency to move towards something that is often referred to as a “Pubic-Private Partnership” – although this term has no clear definition and can mean different things to different people. The objective is to move towards come half-way project structure that preserves the best of both the traditional public sector model and the perceived benefits of private sector participation through a BOOT type of arrangement.

The structuring of a project (in terms of ownership, risk sharing, etc.) is often dominated by financing considerations. There is no single generic solution that can be applied to all projects, but the paper will discuss some of the key issues that arise in selecting the most appropriate financing model for a particular project.

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arch-ahmed elfeky / free hand

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Living in the Endless City

Living in the Endless City

June 9, 2011

p. 70-71: Mumbai. From Living in the Endless City (Phaidon Press, $69.96, June 2011), copyright Jehangir Sorabjee, courtesy of Phaidon.

Phaidon’s new monograph Living in the Endless City is an urgent study on the city of the 21st century, with the three of the world’s fastest growing cities as its focus: Sao Paolo, Istanbul, and Mumbai.

The companion piece to 2008′s The Endless City, the book collects and analyzes relevant data from each studied city and compares this information to the six other metropolises—New York, Shanghai, London, Mexico City, Johannesburg, and Berlin—studied in the previous book.

Click through to find out more about The Endless City, and congratulate our winner, Felipe Calderon.

p. 172-173: Sao Paulo. From Living in the Endless City (Phaidon Press, $69.96, June 2011), copyright Tuca Vieira; courtesy of Phaidon.

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Gift Guide by Budget

Gift Guide by Budget

December 2, 2010

‘Tis the season to be jolly, and by jolly we do mean generous. Even if you’re broke as a joke, it behooves you to show appreciation to the people in your life. Especially if those people are architects.

We’ve sorted through the entire internet to bring you a selection of design-minded gifts, organized by budget, from grad student (-$) to starchitect ($$). Follow along after the jump, and to see all our best gift picks, check our Svpply page.

GRAD SCHOOL (-$)

Stainless steel Sharpie markers ($6.47 each). A virtually indestructible version of everyone’s favorite sketching instrument.

Crumpled Tyvek city map by Emanuele Pizzolorusso (€12,00). Impossible to destroy, even while doing the requite architecture-sightseeing backpack trip across Europe/Asia/South America.

Evil People in Modernist Homes in Popular Films booklet by Benjamin Critton at Printed Matter ($10). Self-explanatory, though if you’d like an explanation, please read on here.

1/100 city model by Naoki Terada from MoMA ($18). GIVEAWAY: We have one set depicting a Tokyo street scene to send to a lucky reader. Comment below and enter your name to win!

FIRST-YEAR INTERN ($)

Gold wide-angle Superheadz camera from Four Corner Store ($30). Wide angle is the best angle when it comes to shooting buildings. And $30 for bling ain’t bad.

Snap Circuits Alternative Energy Kit ($45.18 at Amazon.com). Everything a budding contractor needs to learn doorbells, car alarms, sirens, and more, but with a LEED-approved focus on alternative energy.

Floating magazine rack from The Future Perfect ($60). A sleek way to save clips of inspirational projects and profiles written about your grad school professors.

JUNIOR DESIGNER ($)

Hermitage Random Geometry wallpaper ($128 a roll). Fractals? Geometry? Do you even have to ask?

Limited-edition “Urban Growth Strategy” print by Brooklyn architect Olalekan Jeyifous on Etsy ($124).Architects love maps, almost as much as they love addressing problems with urban planning. GIVEAWAY:Jeyifous is giving us one print from his Etsy shop for a lucky reader. Comment below for a chance to win!

Alessi Adagio Thermo Insulated Jug by Alessi ($146). Sleek lines and bold materiality. If only facades were always so cooperative.

PARTNER ($$)

Naef Bauhaus building blocks at The Lollipop Shoppe (£99.00). Self-made men (and women) have a penchant for revisiting the heady days of their youth.

Ace Hotel Pendleton elk blanket ($275). Roman & Williams vintage-referencing yet design-forward interiors for Ace hotel group are being mimicked across fashion, food, and lifestyle. Get in on it with an exclusive Pendleton blanket design.

Enclosed bed by Metrofarm — price upon request. Like building blocks, but larger and cozier. We love customizable space.

Emerson Dollhouse from Brinca Dāda ($329). It’s got six rooms, and finished to stunning detail with mitered-glass corners, two fireplaces, sliding glass doors, solar panels, and recessed LED lights.

STARCHITECT ($$)

Modernist Cuisine ($475 on Amazon.com pre-order). Financed by Microsoft billionaire Nathan Myhrvold, this six-volume set is way more than a simple cookbook, it’s a manual for the true perfectionist. Check out a full spread here.

Buckminster Fuller Geodesic Home model, circa 1960 (roughly $7,500). This one was sold at auction, but what architect aficionado isn’t a sucker for Bucky and models?

Jean-Paul Gaultier for Roche Bobois ‘chariot’ chair — price upon request. The Fountainhead meets Post-Modernism in the squirmiest possible rendition.

Bonus quote! “Almost all the pieces in this collection have wheels because I wanted people to be able to move each item from one room to another. I feel that it is good that when you’re at home, you are able to move things that you love. It’s even better when you are in a chair, like my Ben-Hur chair, you can move around your home in your chair. I don’t do roller skates but I can roll around in my chair.”

Norman Foster refurbished Dymaxion car (priceless). And Lord Foster

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GIVEAWAY: Cassina Sale Preview + Chairs

GIVEAWAY: Cassina Sale Preview + Chairs

June 21, 2011

Design conglomerate Poltrona Frau Group (comprising Cassina, Cappellini, and flagship brand Poltrona Frau) is having a warehouse sale, and you’re invited. Well, fifty of you are. If you’re in the New York area, we’re offering up entree into a massively discounted sale happening this week, from Friday June 24 through June 26

In addition, one lucky winner will receive a free chair from the sale. 

Comment below with the chair you’d most like to win. First fifty commenters get to attend the exclusive pre-sale at Poltrona Frau, and one winner selected at random will win the chair of his/her choice.

Got it? Now check them out below and comment away:

Poltrona Frau: Dezza Armchair by Gio Ponti

Cappellini: Stitch Chair by Adam Goodrum

Cassina: LC2 Armchair by Le Corbusier, Pierre Jenneret, & Charlotte Perriand

Please note: the items that will be given away will be the same model as pictured but they may not be in the same colors/finishes. One entry per person allowed. Pickup in New York at the warehouse sale is required.

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Wonders of the World 2006

Michael Ficeto/Hearst Corporation

Hearst Building

New York

Foster & Partners

Hearst Corp.'s new 46-story headquarters is a wonder of green building. The structure's grid-like frame required 20% less steel than would be used for a similar conventional perimeter frame. Sensors control lighting, dimming, or turning off interior electric lights when natural light is available. For most of the year, a state-of-the-art HVAC system uses outdoor air for cooling and ventilation. As a result, the energy used and carbon dioxide emissions are slashed to 22% less than an average office building of comparable size in New York. 

 Wonders of the World 2006

Apple Store (Fifth Avenue)

New York
Bohlin Cywinski Jackson's

Just as Apple strives to outdo itself with every product release, each new retail space seems to overshadow the last. The store that opened this year on Fifth Avenue—a 32-foot-tall glass cube that beckons consumers down a glass staircase to a subterranean computer heaven—ups the ante on its predecessors. And, of course, it comes with genius service and a well-engineered retail experience—lots of hands-on stations, for instance—to leave the typical big-box retail experience in the dust.

Tom Bonner

Glenn House

Santa Monica, Calif.
Ray Kappe

It waters itself. It powers itself. This ultra-energy-efficient house is the first home in the country to be given "platinum" status in the U.S. Green Building Council's influential LEED rating system.

Katsuhisa Kida

National Assembly for Wales

Cardiff, Wales
Richard Rogers

The Senedd—the National Assembly's new home—is remarkable on several levels: Constructed of local, renewable materials and employing natural ventilation s

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The Top 5 Engineering Projects of 2009

The Top 5 Engineering Projects of 2009
The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) has announced five finalists for the group's annual Outstanding Civil Engineering Achievement (OCEA) award. Previous OCEA winners have included the World Trade Center, the Trans-Alaska Pipeline and other high-profile megaprojects, as well as a range of lesser-known bridges, roadways and restored or relocated buildings. The 2010 OCEA winner will be announced at an award ceremony in the Washington, D.C., area on March 25th, but out of 28 entries, here are the five that scored the highest with the jury (of which, for full disclosure, I was a member). Although these represent the jury's overall favorite projects, based on innovation in construction and materials, public benefit, impact on the physical environment, and other judging criteria, they are listed here in alphabetical order, not by score or personal preference.

Central Link Section 710Seattle, Wash.

The Emerald Mole boring machine.


Whether or not you're a believer in the universal benefits of public transit, this project deserves respect. To build a passenger rail station in the Beacon Hill area, south of downtown Seattle, contractors had to create the largest and deepest soft-ground sequential excavation method (SEM) tunnels in North America. SEM refers to the practice of digging a tunnel in sections, supporting each segment as you go. The pair of mile-long tunnels—part of a 14-mile light-rail project—were nearly twice the depth and diameter of previous such projects, running under a 352-feet-high hill. When initial test shafts found a surprisingly large amount of fine sand, engineers quickly rearranged the design and path of the tunnels, pioneering new construction techniques that should benefit future SEM projects in soft soils. The final result is inherently unassuming—the Beacon Hill station is 160 feet underground, accessible in 20 seconds by elevator—so the 642-ton, 330-feet-long earth-pressure-balancing tunnel-boring machine that dug the tunnels will have to stand testament to this nimble and literally ground-breaking project.




Concordia University Wisconsin Lakeshore Environmental Enhancement and Education ProjectMequon, Wis.


This is one of the smallest of the projects submitted to the jury, but also one of the smartest. Concordia University Wisconsin (CUW) asked engineers to counter an eroding shoreline—some 20,000 tons of sediment lost annually—while also increasing public lake-front access. The $7.6 million project stabilized a 130-feet-high, 2300-feet-long bluff along the eastern shore of Lake Michigan, with protective features that appear completely natural. Boulders strategically placed in the water serve as armor stones, breaking up the power of incoming waves, while a perched wetland area absorbs storm water. Without looking at before-and-after photos, it would be easy to assume this area was always naturally reinforced, and not the work of extensive 3D CAD and hydraulic computer modeling, water-tank testing and careful placement of 100,000 tons of rock, stone, and plants.








Metropolitan Water District of Southern California Arrowhead TunnelsHemet, Calif.

Water is a big deal in Southern California, where demand for it continues to climb, and experts fear a major earthquake could trigger a dangerous shortage of drinking water. The 2009 OCEA winner Orange County's Groundwater Replenishing System helped tackle the first part of that equation, increasing supply by purifying wastewater. The Arrowhead Tunnels are designed to boost supply and also to prepare for the worst. The combined 9.6 miles of tunnels can provide six months of emergency water for some 15 million residents. The impetus for this section of the 44-mile-long Inland Feeder project was also its biggest challenge—the tunnels run east of the San Andreas fault, and through 20 fault zones. Similar to the Seattle project, this one required new drilling techniques, including the use of probe holes to assess ground conditions ahead of the huge tunnel-boring machines (TBM). Thanks to the new probing system, as well as the use of strain gauges to actively monitor tunnel pressure, the TBMs were able to dig faster, with fewer stops and starts. The real test of the tunnels will be their ability to stand up to a quake and support the local populace during the aftermath. But for now, this complex and difficult project appears to be $500 million dollars well spent.




Sutong BridgeJiangsu Province, China

Like it or not, the current home of the state-of-the-art civil engineering megaproject is China, where the Shanghai Financial Center has recently become the second-tallest building on the planet. Even more visible, though, is the Sutong Bridge, which at 1088 meters (3570 feet) is the world's longest cable-stayed bridge, and the first whose main span exceeds 1000 meters. Engineering "firsts," though expensive and the cause of national pride, can be short on purpose, aesthetics or real innovation. The Sutong is another story: This stunning bridge replaces a cumbersome and potentially dangerous 4-hour ferry ride between Nantong and Shanghai with a 1-hour drive, and the project utilizes a new kind of zinc-galvanized-steel strand that reduces the diameter of its cables, cutting wind drag. Building a bridge in the Yangtze River meant breaking another record—at 120 meters, the Sutong has the deepest foundation of any cable-stayed bridge. As for whether the concrete and steel bridge towers needed to be 300 meters—breaking yet another record—sometimes the most responsible engineers can get a little carried away.






Utah State Capitol Seismic Base Isolation and RestorationSalt Lake City, Utah


When the Utah State Capitol building, located several hundred feet from an active fault capable of a magnitude 7.3 earthquake, failed seismic evaluations, state authorities had two choices. Either replace the entire building, at a cost of up to $1 billion, or figure out a way to reinforce and base-isolate—making the building essentially float on its foundations—an architectural masterpiece that's more than a century old. The latter meant tackling one of the biggest and most delicate base-isolation projects to date. Because of the nature of the structure and the age of its concrete, the foundations would have to be pulled out without raising or lowering the 132-million-pound-building by more than 1/16th of an inch. Ultimately, contractors surgically installed 265 base isolators, while reinforcing the iconic dome and other structural elements. The project cost a comparatively modest $212 million, and turned what was a disaster waiting to happen into one of the most earthquake-resistant buildings in the country.

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Posted in: Projects,Top 10,مجلات,مشاريع

Top Construction Companies in India

Top Construction Companies in India



Here is the list of top construction companies in India on the basis of their tie-ups with their international counterparts, technological advancements, generating money from the market to trigger their expansion plans and for establishing an entire township in the wastelands and making it the hottest commercial destination.







Larsen & Toubro:It is India's biggest construction organization. Supported by its equally proficient allied sectors, the Engineering, Construction and Contracts Division of L&T provides EPC solutions on concept and expenses which could be incurred while performing engineering and infrastructure projects on large scale. L&T's ECC department carry out large scale projects entailing ground-breaking design and wide-ranging construction services ranging from procurement, furnishing, fitting, testing and commissioning. L&T is known for its excellence and timely deliverance. With an annual turnover of Rs 25,000 crore, L&T has more 12,000 skilled professional working for it.



DLF:DLF's chief business is to develop housing, marketable and retail properties. Currently it has undertaken the development of 70 million sq ft of housing projects which it intends to finish in the next three years. DLF has joined hands with Delhi Development Authority to develop townships in Amritsar, Pune, Gurgaon, Mumbai, Chennai and Goa. DLF has been the construction company behind different malls in Hyderabad, Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai, Amritsar, Ludhiana, Kochi and Chennai. The company is also developing 50-75 hotels along with Hilton Hotels and infrastructure and SEZ in India in collaboration with Laing O'Rourke (UK).



Tata Projects:Tata Projects registered an annual turnover of Rs 2,300 crore on July 1, 2007. With more than 1,500 professionals the company has emerged as one of the chief player in EPC projects. Over the last four years, it has attained a CAGR of 50 per cent which quadrupled its annual turnover of 2006-07. Tata Projects functions in concentrated divisions like broadcast and distribution, steel, power production, oil, gas and hydrocarbons and industrial infrastructure through its five strategic business units (SBU)



Gammon India:With an annual turnover of more than Rs 7,010 crore, Gammon India is famously known as 'Builders to the Nation'. It is the one and only construction firm in India to get an ISO 9001 authorization for its operational sectors in civil engineering and has successfully carried out diverse civil engineering operations some of which include constructing one of the longest river bridge in Asia at Patna across the Ganges and the longest bridge in India acro

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Itaipu Dam, Brazil

Itaipu Dam, Brazil
Wonder: Itaipu Dam
Country: Brazil
Region: Foz do Iguaçu
Visitable: Yes
About:

The Itaipu Dam is one of the largest operational hydroelectric power plant output of any dam in the world.

Wonder type: Civil Engineering Wonder National Wonder


The Itaipu Hydroelectric Power Plant is located on the Paraná River between Brazil and Paraguay. The Paraná River is the seventh largest river in the world and the second largest in South America. Itaipu Dam is the world’s largest hydroelectric power facility and it is a joint effort of the governments of Brazil and Paraguay.

The project ranges from Foz do Iguaçu, in Brazil, and Ciudad Del Este in Paraguay, in the south to Guaíra and Salto Del Guaíra in the north. The name Itaipu was taken from an isle that existed near the construction site. In the Guarani language, “Itaipu” means "the sound of a stone".

The Itaipu Reservoir is 170 km long with an area of 1.35 km2 and has a volume at maximum normal level of 29 billion tons of water. It consists of a series of various types of dams the height of the dam reaches 196 m, its length 7.76 km. The Powerhouse is located at the toe of the main Dam, most of it on the river bed and the rest on the Diversion Channel.

The main structure, a hollow, concrete gravity dam, has a powerhouse capable of generating 14,000 megawatts (MW) of electricity. The main powerhouse has 18 Francis turbines each with a rated power of 715 MW. The Spillway is located on the right bank, and it has 14 segmented sluice gates with a total discharge rate of 62,200 cubic meters per second.

The volumes of construction in Itaipu are also impressive. The volume of iron and steel utilized in the Dam structure would be enough to build 380 Eiffel Towers, and the volume of concrete used in Itaipu represents 15 times the volume utilized to build the Channel Tunnel between France and England.

The power plant is a major tourist attraction in the Foz do Iguacu area. More than nine million visitors from 162 countries have visited the structure since it was completed in 1991.
History

On June 22, 1966, the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Brazil, Juracy Magalhaes, and of Paraguay, Sapena Pastor, signed the "Act of Iguaçu ". A study was carried out under this Act that assessed the potential hydraulic resources of the Paraná River, which is jointly occupied by the two countries. In 1967, the Brazilian-Paraguayan Joint Technical Commission was established to carry out the study and the development of the Paraná River.

On April, 26, 1973, the two governments of the states signed a treaty "for the development of the hydroelectric resources of the Paraná River" and founded ITAIPU Binacional (cooperation with the legal, administrative and financial capacities and technical responsibility to plan set up and operate the plant) in May, 17, 1974.

Itapu Dam

The construction work started in 1975, reaching its peak in 1978 with 30 000 people at work. Monthly on-site concrete production reached 338 000 m³. In total, 15 times the mass of concrete used for the "Euro Tunnel" was supplied.

It took almost three years for workers to carve a 1.3 mile long, 300 foot deep, 490 foot wide diversion channel for the river. Fifty million tons of earth and rock were removed in the process. Engineers chose a hollow gravity dam because it required 35 percent less concrete than a solid gravity dam. The hollow dam is still heavy and sturdy enough to resist the thrust of water entirely by its own weight.

Sometimes the dam can get blocked with mud and silt. It is expensive to clean the dam out. The mud and silt can cause diseases in the water in the reservoir. Unless the water in the reservoir is cleaned, people can get these diseases. The land behind the dam and reservoir had to be flooded. Much of this land was rainforest and the trees had to be cut down. Many parrots died because their homes in the trees were destroyed.

In 1982 the land behind the dam was flooded and within 14 days the reservoir was created. Unit 1 started to operate in December 1983. Electrical grid connection to Paraguay was established in March 1984, Brazil was connected 5 months later. In March 1991 the last Unit (No.18) was put into operation.

The magnitude of the project also can be demonstrated by the fact that in 1995 Itaipu alone provided 25% of the energy supply in Brazil and 78% in Paraguay.

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CN Tower, Canada

CN Tower, Canada
Wonder: CN Tower
Country: Canada
Region: Toronto
Visitable: Yes
About:

The CN Tower one of the largest engineering works of our time and tourism centre in the world more recognizable.

Wonder type: Civil Engineering Wonder National Wonder



The CN Tower is the World's Tallest Building and Free-Standing Structure and has the world's highest public observatory, although it is not considered to be a traditional building. At a height of 553.33m, it is an important telecommunications hub. It is almost twice as tall as the Eiffel Tower and more than three times the height of the Washington Monument

Located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada at the southern end of town to the north shore of Lake Ontario, the CN Tower is easily accessible from many major streets and highways. It was erected as a communications and tourist tower.

The CN Tower consists of a main hexagonal hollow pillar of concrete containing the elevators, stairwells and power and plumbing connections. To the main pillar are attached the broadcast antenna and the two main visitors area. The main pillar has three supporting legs giving it the appearance of a camera tripod.



Some floors of the Main Level are open to the public. At 342 m is the Glass Floor and Outdoor

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Dubai’s Pentominium To Be World’s Tallest Residential Tower

Dubai – The Astonishing Place For Civil Engineers

To amaze the engineering fraternity, Dubai is back with a project which would test the engineering limits. As per some news, Trident International Holdings have given a project to Arabian Construction Company to build world’’s tallest residential tower the ”Pentominium” in Dubai Marina.

The estimated cost of this project is staggering 400 million dollars and the builders believe that once this will finish, Dubai would again prove his superiority in civil engineering field. Professionals all over the world are really looking forward for this project as it would change the way people think about residential buildings.

Salient features of Pentominium

 

 

. It would be second tallest building[124 floor] in world after Burj Dubai.

2. The height of this building would be 618 metres.

3. The total built-up area will be 170,000 square metres.

4. Construction duration is expected to take 48 months.

5. The Pentominium will be the tallest all-residential building.

6. It is designed by architects Aedas.

7. Each living space will have its own foyer and smart biometric access control.

8. Every apartment will consist of either a half or a whole floor (more than 600 m²)

If the builders are to be believed, then these would be the most luxurious apartments in the world having 24*7 butler service, option to use high end luxury vehicles on rent, sailing trips on Yachts and all the accessories you can think of too have a king size life. The top floors will have private theater, cigar lounge, sky lounge, business center, sky pool, health clubs, squash courts and a banqueting hall.

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