Monday, September 29, 2008

Singapore, China Tianjin Ground Breaking News

A breaking news from The Straits Times Singapore mentioning ground breaking of the Tianjin Project.
"The development of the city will be overseen by the Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-City Investment and Development Company, a 50-50 joint venture between a Chinese consortium led by Tianjin TEDA Investment Holding Company and a Singapore group led by the Keppel Group."
"Work will now begin on the first 4 sq km plot, an area roughly the size of Jurong East Town in Singapore. The start-up area will be developed in three stages over the next three to five years. "
"And within 15 years, at a cost of around 50 billion yuan (S$10 billion), the eco-city will spread across a 30 sq km site. About 350,000 people will eventually live in the township, which is intended to show how eco-friendly living can be balanced with vibrant economic activity.
" to find out more...
Passage from http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/World/Story/STIStory_283867.html

Sunday, September 28, 2008

UNESCO's World Heritage List~ Melaka & George Town, Malaysia

Thanks for YTL group of Malaysia, I tend to have an opportunity visiting the Hotel Majestic Melaka for a day's trip with introduction from Donnovan, a historian. There are lots of activities you can enjoy in Melaka. to find out more...
A piece of great news that Melaka had been listed in UNESCO's World Heritage list since July 2008.
"Melaka and George Town, historic cities of the Straits of Malacca (Malaysia) have developed over 500 years of trading and cultural exchanges between East and West in the Straits of Malacca. The influences of Asia and Europe have endowed the towns with a specific multicultural heritage that is both tangible and intangible. With its government buildings, churches, squares and fortifications, Melaka demonstrates the early stages of this history originating in the 15th-century Malay sultanate and the Portuguese and Dutch periods beginning in the early 16th century. Featuring residential and commercial buildings, George Town represents the British era from the end of the 18th century. The two towns constitute a unique architectural and cultural townscape without parallel anywhere in East and Southeast Asia." [1] to find out more...

Passage[1] from http://whc.unesco.org/en/news/450

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Piranesi talk by sketchup camp


Piranesi video provided by sketchup camp for your learning pleasure. to find out more...

Thursday, September 18, 2008

Google Sketchup style builder

A very useful video clip for your review on sketchup style building. You can scan you own lines in and build your own style now.

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Tianjin Master Planning by Perkins & Will

Just found out Perkins and Will was doing Tianjin project too~!!
"Perkins+Will was initially retained to provide concept design services for a high-end residential condominium tower in the Heping neighborhood of Tianjin. The project consisted of one building as part of a ten building master plan development. The tower planning concept was for full floor or duplex units. Upon completion of this phase, Perkins+Will was further retained to design within the same development five additional condominium towers, a community building, central landscaped park, and underground parking. The project covers 1.2 million square feet."to find out more...

Monday, September 08, 2008

Singapore ArchiFest 2008 - Architour

"This year’s Architours 08, held in conjunction with Archifest 08, aims to once again make Singaporean Architecture easily accessible to the general public through guided tours held through 3 weekends of in the month of October. In keeping with the overall theme of Man + Environment, the tours will be split up into 4 distinctly themed routes, each dealing with a different aspect of Singaporean Architecture presented in a fun and engaging way." to find out more...
Passage & Image from http://www.sistic.com.sg/portal/dt?desktop.suid=uid=authlessanonymous_sistic,ou=People,o=portal,
dc=sistic,dc=com,dc=sg#seatAnchor

Sunday, September 07, 2008

Free Architectural Courses

"If you have a computer or an iPod, you can go to college for free. Hundreds of colleges and universities around the world offer free downloads of popular courses and lectures in architecture, urban design, and engineering.

Yes, there are drawbacks. You can't chat with the professors or classmates. You can't earn credits or work toward a degree. But you'll get the same lecture notes and assignments as "live" students. In some cases, you can even download free audio files and videos." to find out more...

Passage from http://architecture.about.com/od/schools/tp/freecourses.htm

Saturday, September 06, 2008

Sustainable design overview from Gerard Lee Architects

"So how does sustainable or "green" design apply to your home? What is "green" design? Just doing a simple search on the internet will result in hundreds of thousands of references. All similar to a certain extent and yet different. Reading through some of them will make you realise that when it comes to "green" design, many experts and or architects who specialize in sustainable design differ in what they call "green" design.
For some, it means using natural materials, or waste products, utilizing the natural resources for fuel, lighting, recycling water and avoiding certain materials like steel studs that use high embodied energy through it's production. For others, it means that metal studs are good because they are an easily recycled material. Some designers follow the path of LEED as a guideline for the "greening" of buildings. Others say it's skewed to accomodate certain building product manufacturers and loosely terms many materials as "green". Still others say any type of process that accomodates different forms of sustainable design or building practices are good for the environment and therefore, better than nothing. " to find out more...


Passage & Image from http://www.gleearchitects.com/sustainablefaq.htm