Norman Foster-designed warehouse, featured in James Bond film, joins UK heritage list

A yellow-roofed warehouse that featured in a James Bond film has been given listed status. The Spectrum building, formally the Renault Distribution Centre, in Swindon, was designed by Sir Norman Foster and features yellow steel 'umbrella masts' and a yellow roof around the single-storey glass-walled warehouse. Built in 1980, the building featured as the backdrop to scenes in the 1984 James Bond film, A View to a Kill. It has been given Grade II* listing.

Phase One of Richard Meier's Teacher's Village Opens in Newark

Balancing Meier’s familiar white metal panels with a rich, iron spot brick, the architects were careful to break down the massing of the contemporary buildings, not exceeding a height of 60 feet in front, in keeping with the Newark Living Downtown Plan.

Turning Down Projects and Tripling Revenue: One Firm’s Story

How does a firm make the jump from two to twelve employees in just a few years during a recession? How could they possibly triple their revenue between 2005 and 2013? That just doesn’t happen. MattParker, Business Manager at Vertical Arts Architecture admits it’s unusual and that surviving and thriving during a recession wasn’t exactly easy. They started with just 2 employees and a big dream—to be a premier high-end, multidisciplinary firm, able to provide clients with a full range of services. They wanted to meet and exceed the most discerning clients’ expectations and have Vertical Arts’ vision stamped on every aspect of production.

Since Vertical Arts opened its doors in ’05, they’ve been using ArchiOffice to handle billing and project management. They had fluctuations like everyone else during the roughest years of the recession, yet they’ve more than quadrupled their staff and have plans to expand even more in the coming years...

The AIA issues statement on federal government shut-down

It’s been 17 years since the federal government last experienced a shutdown. As federal agencies begin the process of shutting their doors and furloughing non-essential personnel, there are lots of questions about how it will affect all Americans, especially those who work with (and for) the federal government. If your projects receive federal funding, will they have to stop? If you are a federal contractor, what should you be doing? AIA President Mickey Jacob, FAIA, today issued the following statement on the partial federal government shutdown that began early this morning. “The AIA is a non-partisan professional association; we work with members of both political parties. And like most Americans, AIA members are extremely disillusioned with the current state of affairs in the nation’s capital. “The design and construction industry is slowly recovering from one of the worst economic crises in modern history. The last thing we need is the self-inflicted wound that can potentially further damage the economy. “We urge both political parties to set aside political divisions and put the “common good” of the American public first. That phrase is an anachronism in today’s political vernacular, but lawmakers ought to commit it to memory in coming weeks as the fight over the budget commences and the deadline to address the debt ceiling arrives. “We urge the public to ask their Congressional to refocus their d...

AA DLAB Visiting School 2013: Light Forest

Every year, London's Architectural Association School of Architecture (AA) hosts collaborative workshops that challenge an international group of student participants at different levels of architectural experience [...]. The AA DLAB VIsiting School 2013 marked its completion with the recent installment of its final prototype, "Light Forest." This year's workshop took place at AA London and AA Hooke Park from July 22-Aug.4.

Get Lectured: University of Virginia Fall '13

Here on Archinect we recently launched "Get Lectured", where we'll feature a school's lecture series--along with their snazzy posters--for the current season. Check back regularly to stay up-to-date and mark your calendars for any upcoming lectures you don't want to miss. Tuesday's featured lectures come from the University of Virginia School of Architecture. Want to share your school's lecture series? Send us your school's lecture series poster and details to connect@archinect.com. Listed below are Lecture events only. All events begin at 6:00 pm at Campbell Hall 153. Dates, locations and times are subject to change.

Apple patents Shanghai Apple Store's glass cylinder entryway; Steve Jobs co-credited as inventor

Like the flagship Fifth Avenue Apple Store in New York, the Shanghai cylinder is made almost entirely out of huge monolithic glass slabs, with only connecting joints fashioned out of metal. The Chinese build is more complex, however, as the specifications required the glass pieces required be curved to form arcs. These panels were then joined to create a circle and ultimately a cylinder.