JTS engineering blog

Please join us:  JTS Engineering Srl Team! — At the 4th annual edition of the Verona Green Building Expo- (5-7 of May).  Our super cool stand will be located among the coordinated (and quite creative)  Green Building Council Italia neighborhood- number D8.3 (across from the bar).

We will be exhibiting some of our projects and stressing the importance of sustainable building design and engineering.

For more information or to enter our guest list please give us a call! +39 045 630 5869  or email to info@jts.vr.it

See you there!

Greenbuilding, the international exhibition and conference on energy efficiency and sustainable architecture, constitutes a major appointment for anyone interested in shifting architecture and building in the direction of efficiency and technological innovation.

The event, now in its fourth year, represents a showcase of market excellence for promoting low-carbon construction, a key element for respecting the Kyoto Protocol, in the context of the latest building trends internationally.

Greenbuilding, as well as presenting its customary exhibition of novelties in sustainable and ecological living, offers four technology focus areas: these themed spaces are dedicated to particularly topical subjects in order to enhance exchange between exhibitors and visitors. They will cover lighting & domotics, architecture in wood, geothermal energy and professional software.

Illuminazioni is back for Greenbuilding 2010: a biennial appointment dedicated to excellence in construction. A specially created showroom space featuring a unique layout to put on show the best technologies, applications and innovative materials for energy efficiency and sustainable architecture.

Alongside the exhibition event, Greenbuilding proposes a rich programme of conferences, seminars, courses and special events to give trade professionals a valuable update on emerging issues in construction.

The event will be held in conjunction with Solarexpo, one of the most important trade fairs dedicated to renewable energy globally.

blogged by: Jake Shea

The 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games set a new standard for sustainable buildings, with several receiving LEED certification and the 2012 London games are poised to eclipse that mark. The 2016 summer games in Rio, seeking to be the first zero-carbon footprint games, may go even further in the green race based on this entry from Swiss architects RAFAA Architecture and Design.

The Solar City Tower is a solar power plant that by day produces energy for Rio de Janeiro as well as the Olympic village and a pumped seawater storage system to generate power at night.

A special feature of the building is the urban waterfall, which on special occasions will be created by pumping water over the edges of the building to be a ‘symbol of the forces of nature,’ according to Rafael Schmidt of RAFAA.

The tower can be accessed is through an urban plaza and amphitheater 60 meters above sea level, which can be used for social gatherings and events. A cafeteria and shop are on the Atlantic Ocean side of the 105-meter tower, behind the waterfall, and will have ‘spectacular views,’ according to the architects. The top floor has an observation deck with 360-degree views of Rio and the ocean while the 90.5 level has a retractable bungee platform for thrill-seekers.

blogged by: Jake Shea

Situated on the edge of the naturally purified waters of the South Lake in Miya County, South Lake Recreational Retail Center is an expansive multi-facility, featuring extensive retail outlets and numerous recreational activities. The centre hopes to bring additional year-round tourism to the town, as well as serving many local residents.

South Lake Recreational Retail Center was designed specifically to take advantage of the scenic surroundings and create a direct connection between a public space and the nearby lake. As the water travels through the constructed wetlands at the North Lake, continues through the meandering waterway of Central Park and onwards through the wetland park and wildlife habitat, it is intensely cleansed and fortified; by the time it reaches the South Lake it is crystal clear. Studio Shift have utilised this process in their design, including a rental facility where visitors can rent various watercraft, which are then launched directly from the rental store into a neighbouring private channel. There is also a small restaurant and cafe at the terminus of the pier, with both indoor and outdoor seating to take full advantage of the waterside location.

The complex consists of three buildings, (a recreational retail store, an equipment rental structure and a restaurant facility), conceptually carved from one solid entity and reconnected by a public plaza. Locally sourced materials were used in the construction of the stone-clad facade, yet the main aesthetic highlight in terms of architectural development is arguably a glass-clad void which houses outdoor climbing surfaces. Within an outer glass-clad void is inserted another faceted, conical void, all contained within the solid mass of the building’s general structure. The edge of the south-facing plaza is designed to slope gently into the waters of the South Lake, allowing visitors to the centre to paddle or take a dip. The complete project is anticipated to be finished by summer 2012.

blogged by: Jake Shea

I am mesmerised. As far as I can see, in every direction, there are undulations, clad in grey carpet, glass, white metal, fragmentary views of a nondescript beyond. Everything is flow, without doors or steps, and other people appear as silhouettes on the many internal horizons that the building creates. It is like some filmic vision of the afterlife, possibly 1960s vintage. Except that here the eternal is calibrated by frequent, identical, impeccably precise Rolex clocks.

You can see the undulations as hills, perhaps a reference to the nearby Alps, and a representative of the architects describes the composition as “musical”. So the hills are alive, I think irreverently and irrelevantly, with the sound of music.

At which point Kazuyo Sejima descends a slope. She is slight and poised, dressed with playful elegance in a ruched black skirt, and is not really much like Julie Andrews.

Sejima is one half of Sanaa, a Japanese practice that is the latest recruit to the pantheon of Rems, Zahas, Gehrys and Herzogs, that is to say the band of architects who by some global critical consensus are considered the best in the world, and who are invited to compete against each other for the design of museums, concert halls and other cultural buildings in three or four continents. The mesmerising building is the £65m Rolex Learning Centre in the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL). It is their biggest and most spectacular work to date.

It can only be a matter of time before the Pritzker prize, the architectural Nobel worth $100,000 (£64,000) to the winner, is sent Sanaa’s way. Last year they designed the Serpentine Gallery‘s annual pavilion. This year Sejima has been invited to direct the Venice Architecture Biennale, whose president has described her, in terms that employ a curious sense of gender, as “one of the new masters of the new millennium”.

The interesting thing about the 54-year-old Sejima and her more pugnacious partner, Ryue Nishizawa, who is a decade younger, is that they are elusive. They have no manifesto or house style or signature: yes, they mostly use white metal, concrete and glass, but so do many other architects. They work ferociously hard: I have visited their Tokyo office at 9pm on a Saturday and seen their grey-faced staff gearing up for many hours’ work ahead. People use words about them such as “strong” and “brave”, and for Sejima to succeed in the masculine world of Japanese architecture she could be little else. But this work and courage is in the service of something undefined.

They are most comfortable when talking about their work. The Rolex Learning Centre is a new heart for a campus of 7,000 students and 4,000 research and academic staff, and includes a library, offices, bookshop, cafe, restaurant, laboratories, a 600-seat auditorium and a branch of Credit Suisse bank. Sanaa’s big idea is to make it into “one huge big room”, a 10,000 square metre territory where corridors are abolished and enclosures minimal.

“The main aim is to make a space for people to stay together,” says Sejima, “but where you can also have some privacy.” The design reflects their idea of “softening boundaries”. She opposes “programmes that say a room is a place to learn and a corridor is a place to relax. I do not think that is a way to learn. Sometimes, activities become continuous. You might have a coffee outside the classroom and change your opinion.”

The role of architecture is to suggest ways to use the space, rather than to prescribe. Nishizawa pushes the analogy with landscape: “When people find valleys, they tend to settle there and build villages. When they find a hill, they like to build a beautiful cafe on the hill. When they find slopes, they cover them in terraces.” In the same way, they think their artificial hills will prompt different kinds of occupation: “We hope students can find nice places for themselves.”

What they have come up with in Lausanne is the work of an age of smoothness and flow. It is a place without the darkness of old libraries, a place where abundant knowledge can be accessed without friction or fear. If you could live inside an iPad it would look something like this. It is a playground, a hippie utopia adapted for future masters of a technological universe – for the college it serves trains people to make ever more brilliant software, or watches, or medical procedures, in the future. This is why the centre’s sponsor, Rolex, is interested in imprinting its brand. It means that it can acquire the best students for itself.

The building is also an alternative reality in an area of the world that specialises in such things. Underground, not far away, Cern’s Large Hadron Collider is applying colossal power to the pursuit of the esoteric. The International Olympic Committee, with its idealised view of world harmony, is based in Lausanne. The Blue Brain Project, which is constructing a computer simulation of the mammalian brain, is being run by the EPFL’s Brain and Mind Institute. Inside the learning centre you feel as if familiar things – hills, valleys, sky, inside, outside, natural, artificial – have been rearranged in a strange and wondrous way.

It verges on the spooky and there are also times when more mundane reality impinges in awkward ways. Sanaa and local authorities didn’t see eye to eye on the best ways to achieve disabled access, with the result that some awkward ramps intrude on the flow, along with raised strips to help blind people find fire exits. Prosaic facts of construction, like curves that are a bit lumpy, get in the way.

But it is still an astonishing place. It is also a place which, for all its otherworldliness, reinstates your sense of yourself. The slopes, like real hills, require you to exercise your body. The point of the building is the importance of physical rather than virtual proximity. When pressed, Sanaa eventually come up with the elusive thing for which they fight so hard: “Our focus is always to find different relationships.” It sounds flat and yet its realisation in the learning centre is anything but.

blogged by: Jake Shea

Il Presidente di JTS Renato Simoncelli è lieto di comunicare l’ottenimento, insieme al gruppo di lavoro assemblato da Habitech, dei finanziamenti necessari allo sviluppo del progetto “Architettura della performance”.

“Mi sento di ringraziare Habitech per la fiducia concessa alla nostra azienda, abbiamo sempre creduto al perseguimento della sostenibilità e l’utilizzo della tecnologia in diverse forme, tra le quali rientra a pieno titolo questo blog. Questi sono piccoli passi verso il nostro obbiettivo che è quello di arrivare ad essere una delle aziende leader nel settore della progettazione, volutamente trascuro di aggiungere l’aggettivo sostenibile, perché per noi è stato e resterà l’unico modo di fare progettazione. Ringrazio inoltre i numerosi ( ormai più di 3000 al mese) visitatori italiani e non che passano dal nostro blog permettendoci di veicolare così la nostra filosofia e il nostro credo, proprio a testimoniare questo duro lavoro arriva puntuale la lettera del Ministero dello Sviluppo ad Habitech che conferma l’ottenimento dei finanziamenti da parte del Progetto Made in Italy.”

Grazie a tutti.        Renato Simoncelli

Architettura della performance
“Nuove tecnologie per il Made in Italy”
“Progetti di innovazione industriale”
“Industria 2015”
Proposta di legge per la nuova politica industriale
Ministero dello Sviluppo Economico
Novembre 2009

Il progetto

“Made in Italy – Architettura della performance”

L’idea di progetto prevede la realizzazione all’estero di un prototipo di sopraelevazione su un edificio esistente, attraverso l’utilizzo della tecnologia a pannelli di legno strutturali XLam (Cross-Lam), autonomo dal punta di vista energetico e composto di moduli innovativi, comprensivo delle relative piattaforme tecnologiche e degli strumenti di gestione. L’obiettivo è sviluppare un centro promozionale e di vendita dove saranno esposti prototipi, parziali o in scala, dei “modelli” di “sopraelevazione” progettati dalla filiera di aziende partner. Il centro intende da un lato fornire informazioni, consulenze e formazione, dall’altro giocare un ruolo strategico nell’acquisire contratti, sviluppare accordi commerciali e/o di joint venture e nel vendere specifiche competenze e prodotti.
Il principale approccio che si vuole esplorare è quello di aggiungere valore al sistema delle competenze artigianali dell’edilizia italiana (e delle attività collegate), coniugando in modo esplicito e sinergico il design del Made in Italy alle prestazioni ambientali, di sostenibilità e di sicurezza.

Cos’è il bando “Made in Italy – Industria 2015”?
“Industria 2015” è il disegno di legge sulla nuova politica industriale, varato dal Governo Italiano il 22.09.2006, le cui previsioni sono state recepite dalla Finanziaria 2007. All’interno di “Industria 2015”, l’obiettivo dei “Progetti di innovazione industriale” è quello di incrementare la competitività del sistema delle PMI italiane, salvaguardandone la presenza sui mercati internazionali. “Architettura della performance” è la proposta di progetto presentata da un gruppo di soggetti, facenti capo ad Habitech – Distretto Tecnologico Trentino, per il bando relativo ai programmi di ricerca, sviluppo e innovazione, per il bando 2008 “Nuove tecnologie per il Made in Italy”, lanciato nell’ambito di “Industria 2015”.

I partner
Il gruppo di soggetti proponenti comprende, oltre ad Habitech,
10 aziende, molte delle quali socie del Distretto: Areatecnica, Artuso Legnami, Baunatur, Distretto Tecnologico Trentino, ELIMP, Fanti Davide, Interplay Software, JTS Engineering, Martinatti Costruzioni, Moratelli Impiantistica, Trentina Calore;
5 CENTRI DI RICERCA: CNR-IVALSA, Fondazione Bruno Kessler, Green Building Council Italia, Politecnico di Milano – Dipartimento INDACO, Università degli Studii di Trento – Facoltà di Ingegneria.
per maggiori informazioni: carlo.battisti@dttn.it

————————————————————————-
Areatecnica http://www.areatecnica.org
Artuso Legnami http://www.artusolegnami.it
Baunatur
ELIMP http://www.elimp.net
Fanti Davide http://www.fantilegnami.it
Interplay Software http://www.ipsoft.it
JTS Engineering http://www.jts.vr.it
Martinatti Costruzioni http://www.martinatti.it
Moratelli Impiantistica http://www.moratelli.eu
Trentina Calore http://www.trentinacalore.it
CNR-IVALSA http://www.ivalsa.cnr.it
Fondazione Bruno Kessler http://www.fbk.eu
Green Building Council Italia http://www.gbcitalia.org
Politecnico di Milano | Dipartimento INDACO http://www.design.polimi.it
Università degli Studi di Trento | Facoltà di Ingegneria Civile
http://portale.unitn.it/cl/civile

A questo link viene riportata la lettera del Ministero

La notizia sul sito del Ministero dello Sviluppo

_____________________________________________________________________

JTS GAIN  MINISTRY OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT FUNDS

JTS c.e.o. Renato Simoncelli is proud to communicate that the company with the Team assembled by Habitech obtains the  government funds for the ambitious project “Performance Architecture”.

“I feel to thank Habitech for trusting us, we’ve always believed  in sustainability and technology in different ways, this blog can prove that. These are little steps in order to reach our goal, which is to bring our company to a leader position in the design field. I didn’t use adjective “sustainable” after design because we believe that it has to be the same thing. I want to thank also all blog visitors (now 3000 per month) that permit us to convey our philosophy and motto all around the world. The letter that Habitech received from the Ministry of Development is the proof of how JTS has always been committed to the quest for sustainability and technology.”

Thank you all.          Renato Simoncelli

Here a description of the  project “Performance Architecture”

Performance Architecture
“New technologies for the Made in Italy”
“Industrial innovation projects”
“Industry 2015”
draft law on new industrial politic
Ministry of Economic Development
November 2009

—————————-
The project

“Made in Italy – Performance Architecture”

The project issue is the realization outside Italy of a prototype for heightening  an existing building using structural wood X-lam (Cross-Lam) panel technology. The buildings have to be energy independent and composed by innovative modules, upgraded with technological platforms and management systems. Our target is to create a promotional and sales center  where will be exposed prototypes or heightening models projected by  our companies inside the team. The Center wants to give information, consultancy and training  and by the way  to stipulate new contracts, develop commercial synergies and/or Joint venture, in order to sell specific knowledge and products. Our goal is to add value to Italian construction manufacture (and related activities) joining  Made in Italy Design with high energy performances, sustainability and safety tightly.

What is  “Made in Italy – Industria 2015” contract notice?

“Industria 2015” is a draft law in new industrial politics, promoted by Italian government on 09.22.2006, which was included in 2007 government finance act. “Industria 2015” aim at improving competitiveness of small and medium sized enterprises on international markets. “Performance Architecture” is the project proposed by a companies team  leaded by Habitech – Distretto Tecnologico Trentino, for the research and development contract notice “ New technologies for the Made in Italy “ launched with “Industria 2015” initiative.

The partners
The group leaded by Habitech, is composed by 10 companies, most of them are Distretto Tecnologico Trentino partners

Areatecnica, Artuso Legnami, Baunatur, Distretto Tecnologico Trentino, ELIMP, Fanti Davide, Interplay Software, JTS Engineering, Martinatti Costruzioni, Moratelli Impiantistica, Trentina Calore;
5 RESEARCH CENTERS: CNR-IVALSA, Bruno Kessler Foundation, Green Building Council Italia, Politecnico di Milano – INDACO department, Università degli Studi di Trento – Facoltà di Ingegneria.

————————————————————————-
Areatecnica http://www.areatecnica.org
Artuso Legnami http://www.artusolegnami.it
Baunatur
ELIMP http://www.elimp.net
Fanti Davide http://www.fantilegnami.it
Interplay Software http://www.ipsoft.it
JTS Engineering http://www.jts.vr.it
Martinatti Costruzioni http://www.martinatti.it
Moratelli Impiantistica http://www.moratelli.eu
Trentina Calore http://www.trentinacalore.it
CNR-IVALSA http://www.ivalsa.cnr.it
Fondazione Bruno Kessler http://www.fbk.eu
Green Building Council Italia http://www.gbcitalia.org
Politecnico di Milano | Dipartimento INDACO http://www.design.polimi.it
Università degli Studi di Trento | Facoltà di Ingegneria Civile
http://portale.unitn.it/cl/civile

Officials broke ground Thursday on a much-delayed 22-acre development project that will bring the Nation Basketball Association New Jersey Nets to Brooklyn.

As protesters chanted and staged a mock funeral for the “soul” of Brooklyn, supporters enjoyed a lavish spread catered by developer Bruce Ratner.

“Today is a great day for Brooklyn and for the soul of Brooklyn, which is very much alive,” said Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, the biggest cheerleader of the Atlantic Yards project since it was announced in 2003.

Markowitz joined Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Gov. David Paterson and hundreds of others at a ceremonial groundbreaking for the $4.9 billion Barclays Center which has been delayed by lawsuits filed by residents fighting the use of eminent domain.

Forest City Ratner sold 20-year naming rights to British-based global financial services company Barclays PLC in 2007, and the arena will be called Barclays Center.

When Ratner proposed Atlantic Yards before the economic downturn, celebrity architect Frank Gehry was going to transform downtown Brooklyn with apartment buildings bearing his trademark undulating shapes.

But Gehry was fired because his designs were too expensive, and no new architect has been announced for the residential buildings. The latest renderings of the arena show a conventional dome, drawing criticism from opponents.

Supporters say Atlantic Yards will provide jobs and economic development.

“As the buildings rise on Atlantic Yards, the joblessness rate will fall right here in Brooklyn,” Paterson said, claiming the project would create 16,000 construction jobs and 5,500 permanent jobs.

The 18,000-seat arena is to open in 2012, and construction will begin on the first of 16 residential and office buildings in 2011.

Last December, Ratner’s Forest City Ratner Cos. finalized a deal to sell 80 percent of the Nets and 45 percent of the arena to Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov.

Prokhorov was not at the groundbreaking, but entertainer Jay-Z, an investor in the team, said, “We did it again, Brooklyn.”

The project will also include the Barclays Center soccer stadium, part of a sports building boom in the New York metropolitan area.

The officials spoke inside a tent at the groundbreaking site, while the protesters shouted and blew whistles outside.

“What they’re going to build is a money-losing arena, maybe one or two towers and acres and acres of parking,” said Daniel Goldstein, founder of the group Develop Don’t Destroy Brooklyn.

His wife, Shabnam Merchant, stood Thursday in front of their home, which has been seized by the state to make way for the project, although they have yet to leave. She held her 16-month-old daughter and a sign that said: “You’re celebrating? We live here.”

Supporters also say the project is a chance for Brooklyn to get a professional sports franchise for the first time since the Dodgers departed for Los Angeles after the 1957 season.

blogged by: Jake Shea

WHY  Wally-Hermes Yachts

WHY Wally-Hermès Yachts
all images courtesy Hermès

WHY Wally-Hermès Yachts is the new company created by french luxury brand
Hermès and monaco based yacht maker Wally, dedicated to a new lifestyle of living
on the sea.

“Designing a boat with a new concept is not a utopia. ”
At every turn the yacht offers maximum space, durability and cutting-edge technologies.
The exchange with Wally and Hermès was rooted deeply in terms of know how and sharing
the same philosophy of this new concept.

WHY Wally-Hermès Yachts

Hermès was involved in every step of the process from concept to realization, considering
both the outside and inside were just one of the many things.  As always just like with all
their designs they paid special attention to detail, developing the overall architecture
of the vessel evaluating issues of speed and spaciousness.

WHY- photovolatic panels which cover the roof surface

The boat is contained in a triangular hull measuring 58m x 38m. There is no superstructure.
The initial idea of this hull was confirmed by the ramform hull which they discovered,
redesigned and adapted to fit the concept of the wheel house that emerges from the silhouette
of the ship.  The interior of the yacht is fitted out with water resistant buffalo leather using
the calpinage technique.

The yacht which took years in the making has been tested in gotebourg, sweden,
in a specialised tank testing facility, to see how it would perform in big seas.
the outcome is that, in full swell, the bow moves a tiny bit and the stern stays
completely still.  Anchored, the boat creates a totally flat surface behind it, like an
olympic-size pool where you can swim in total peace.  On the bow, there’s a seawater
pool 25 metres long that follows the curve of the bow.

WHY – when sunlight is let in

The environmental and ecological advantages are a strong point of the boat WHY.
Different sources of energy are managed by a central computer.

The yacht is powered using a diesel electric engine.  A surface of the photovolatic
panels which measure approximately 900 square meters provide the solar electricity
generated which covers part of what is needed to subsist the boat.

An encounter,
… the concept was developed by president and CEO of Wally luca bassani antivari,
artistic director of Hermès, pierre-alexis dumas and design director of Hermès
gabriele pezzini.

A special WHY team has been built to reply to any needs.

http://www.why-yachts.com

‘everybody’s dream is to live on an island, in complete freedom, without constraint,
with the independence that only self-sufficiency can provide. a piece of land with
a beautiful villa partly fulfils this aspiration because it is static. a yacht offers the freedom
to move, but does not have the space of a property. WHY has it all: space, stability, movement,
independence, peace. WHY goes even further. this revolutionary concept of the moving island
is developed with the latest and most advanced sustainable technologies, recycling thermal
energy, as well as any organic and inorganic waste. the architecture of the whole project
fits perfectly in the environment – there are no excesses, nothing is superfluous, the impact
on the sea is minimum. a new and unique way to live on the sea while caring about it,
protecting it, and loving it. all this has always been my dream too, and when I met
pierre-alexis dumas I realised that this dream could come true thanks to the common values
and ethical principles we share.’
luca bassani antivari, president and CEO of Wally

‘from the invention of the compass to block capitals, from the rudder to the first steps on
the moon, man discovers and pursues his dreams. with its feet on the ground and its head in
the stars, Hermès, since its creation in 1837, has grown, generation after generation, through
innovative projects, executed with high standards and an artisan spirit.I have always thrived on
the dreams of great visionaries like magellan, jules verne, saint-exupéry and paul klee. like theirs,
the path of Hermès is to pursue its dreams… excelling itself, learning, pushing ever further
the quest for excellence and the celebration of beauty in the world. a world we must protect.
today, Hermès steps into the marine world with Wally. we quickly recognised our common values,
the values of well-made, singular, functional, refined and elegant objects. this encounter was just
what we needed to inspire us to brave the open seas. together, with luca bassani antivari, we
hope to open a new path, to offera new lifestyle that is different, serene, contemplative and respectful
of the environment, moving slowly on the water, combining the pleasure of sailing and absolute
comfort. Wally Hermès Yachts – WHY – is the union of our dreams, the green path that carries
us away in its wake…’
pierre-alexis dumas, artistic director of Hermès

WHY Wally-Hermès Yachts

WHY – deck

‘over the course of your discussions coasting against the current,
how did you come up with the idea of a triangular hull?’

pierre-alexis dumas: my inspiration is still the greek caïque, roomy, generous and slow.
this eulogy to slowness is demonstrated in such a magnificent way.
a pared-down craft with nothing superfluous about it. we needed a stable hull in order
to hold the sea comfortably. the idea of a triangular hull, which doesn’t exist in the world
of leisure boating, came from the utilitarian merchant marine.

luca bassani antivari: I came across a picture of a supertanker while reading a professional
magazine. a cable-handling vessel, used in the geo-mining and seismological industry in
the north sea, invented by a norwegian naval engineer, roar ramde, and fully patented.
there was nothing new about this ship. it had been in use for twenty-five years.
as soon as I saw it, I picked up the phone and called my consultant naval architect,
mauro sculli. he looked in the RINA, the italian naval classification registry: never seen or heard
of before in the world of yachting! it was perfect. we had our hull. we bought exclusive rights
to the concept, patented strictly for yachting.

WHY – deck

‘did this new territory require you to come up with a new way to design a boat ?’

pierre-alexis dumas: WHY addresses the very real problem of consumption, which is
today exacerbated by the global context. we provide an answer in a field where clients
are responsible for setting an example, embracing a new ethic. what this market needs is
a boat designed with the environment in mind. this new way of moving on water must give
way to a new way of managing energy, its sources and uses, how to recycle it, etc.
the same goes for the choice of materials; we have to limit the effect on the environment.

gabriele pezzini: we didn’t design a boat, we gave shape to an idea. the sea is one of the last
spaces where people can indulge in absolute freedom. deciding to live on the sea means
rethinking everything that’s been done before. you need to start from scratch! for example,
we provide a real jogging track inspired by coastal paths running around the ship.
above all, we had to transpose and translate functions into forms, and vice versa, by merging
the viewpoints of Hermès and Wally.

‘what are the environmental and ecological advantages of WHY ?’

pierre-alexis dumas: ours requires less power at cruising speed than a boat of equal size.
its diesel-electric motorisation is the most efficient motorisation out there today,
and the surface of the photovoltaic panels, almost 900 square metres, covers part of what’s
needed to subsist on the boat! we’re also looking into a telescopic wind-turbine system
and a retractable mast with a computer-operated sail measuring over 200 square metres
that will produce at least 30 % of the energy used to propel the boat.

full size scale model rear

full size scale model front

pierre-alexis dumas, artistic director of Hermès

design director of Hermès gabriele pezzini

CEO of Wally luca bassani antivari

blogged by: Jake Shea

$75m USD theatre complex opens this week

The Grand Canal Square Theatre in Dublin is classic Daniel Libeskind: brave, full of life, dramatic lines and striking colour. It will no doubt immediately become a major landmark in the Irish capital. The 2,000- seat performance venue is the core of a wider, mixed-use complex comprising a pair of eight-floor commercial blocks, five-star hotel and residential block.

Libeskind describes his aim for the project, “To create a truly vibrant 24/7 community, commercial, retail, residential and cultural components must communicate in a fluid and transparent dialogue. For the Grand Canal project, I wanted to integrate the commercial buildings with the adjacent retail, residential and cultural components and with the public space by designing multi-storey glazed atria. Although both offices are designed in the same architectural language, each responds to the site in its own unique way. Two Grand Canal Square, which is adjacent to the new 2,000-seat theatre, opens up towards the Square, while 4 and 5 Grand Canal Square, in conjunction with the theatre, form a dramatic gateway to Grand Canal Harbour.”

Dublin, like the many contemporary performing spaces that go before it, is oriented around the water’s edge. Sydney undoubtedly started the trend but more recently, we have seen Snohetta’s Oslo opera house, HLT’s Copenhagen Opera house, Calatrava’s Tenerife Opera house, Foster’s Sage at Gateshead and Herzog De Meuron’s Elbe Philharmonic hall in Hamburg. Libeskind has unashamedly embraced the waterfront added more than a touch of drama with his iconic ‘red carpet’ leading from the entrance to the water’s edge.

Talking about the theatre itself, Libeskind expands, “The architectural concept of the theatre is based on stages: the stage of the theatre itself, the stage of the piazza, and the stage of the multiple-level theatre lobby above the piazza. The theatre becomes the main façade of a large public piazza that has a five-star hotel and residences on one side and an office building on the other.”

The developers, Chartered Land are clearly expecting the complex to attract a huge number of visitors and it will be supported by a full array of integrated transport links including a new four-lane bridge currently under construction.

VIEW FLOOR PLAN HERE (6 MB)

blogged by: Jake Shea

The proportions of this house have been dictated by the restraints of the site. A flood level two meters above natural ground and the 405m2 area of the site meant that this home had to be developed across three levels. Living occurs on the mid level and opens to both a rear deck and central courtyard deck to provide a connection to the outdoors where close proximity to the landscaped yard was not possible.

Opening up each of the floors with voids created a transparency unexpected in a building of three levels and ensured that a reference for scale was maintained. The transparency was further extended by the ability to glaze the entire front facade due to the privacy provided by the extra height from the street.

blogged by: Jake Shea

Base Architecture

The construction of a new, underground wing of the Museum of Fine Arts in Heroes’ Square will be one of the largest-scale cultural investments of the coming years. The museum’s new Heroes’ Square Visitor and Tourist Centre with a floor space exceeding 8,000 sq m will turn the museum into a visitor-centric modern institution in line with 21st-century expectations.

The objective of the investment of almost four billion forints (EURO 15million) financed by the European Union – and ready by 2011 according to plan – is not just to expand the museum but also to build one of the capital’s most important tourist centres in Heroes’ Square, which itself forms part of the World Heritage. In 2008 the museum and a jury found the plans in the design proposals competition by the Ybl prize-holder architect Tamás Karácsony to be the most suitable; thus, the new wing will be built in accordance with his concept.

As visitors expectations have changed over the past few decades, the museum wanted to reflect the need to provide an ‘experience centre’ rather than a simple ‘display and preservation’ space. The existing museum buildings, designed at the beginning of the last century, are unsuitable for satisfying these changed requirements.

Modern day expectations will be facilitated in the extension. Alongside a coffee shop, museum bookshop and 1,200 sq m seasonal exhibition space, the centre will also include a lecture hall, allowing the museum to cater to entertainment, conferences and scientific events. Tourists coming to Heroes’ Square will be able to obtain information at the tourist centre not only about the museum but also about Budapest and the region. According to the design for the extension, the tourist centre will be technically linked to buildings that may be later constructed beneath Heroes’ Square. Visitors will be able to observe the underground construction work being carried out.

blogged by: Jake Shea