7 industry news
University of Westminster architecture researcher wins prestigious RIBA prize for third time
P
rofessor Jeremy Till, Dean of the School of Architecture and the Built Environment at
the University of Westminster, has won the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) President’s Award for Outstanding University-located Research for the third time in five years. Professor Till is the only person to have been awarded the prest- igious international award on three occasions. Professor Till’s 2011 winning
project, Spatial Agency, was con- ducted together with Dr Tatjana Schneider from the University of Sheffield and proposed alternative ways of approaching architecture. The research collected over 150 inspiring examples of how people have applied spatial intelligence
beyond designing a building alone. The case studies ranged from acti- vism to pedagogy, publications to networking, making stuff to making policy, showing that spatial agency can radically expand the normal boundaries of architecture. This third award establishes
Professor Till’s position as one of the world’s leading architectural resear- chers. Chosen from a shortlist of entries from the University of Cambridge, University of Nottingham, Queen’s University Belfast and The Bartlett, University College London, Till and Schneider’s project was based on work funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council. The RIBA judging panel praised the
winning project, saying: “Describing a series of case-study projects that
are marginal to the mainstream activ- ities of the architectural profession, unofficial and informal practices, this is a timely study; it raises issues that are vital for the future.” Professor Till said: “The term
‘spatial agency’, which came out of the project, has already been taken up in architectural circles, showing how ground-breaking research can have an impact on professional and cultural life, and confirming our view that the need to establish alternatives to mainstream practice has never been more pressing.” The project was documented in a
book, Spatial Agency, published by Routledge and a website, spatiala-
gency.net, which has received close to 200,000 unique visitors.
Hackney University Technical College becomes first of the Government’s 24 new UTC projects
B
AM Construction has been awarded the contract to deliver Hackney University Technical
College; London’s first ever UTC. The contractor will refurbish, fit
out and extend an existing building as well as creating additional space within the Hackney Community College campus, to create a state-of-the-art facility for the new UTC. The £2.4 million deal represents
the first of 24 UTC projects ann- ounced in the Budget earlier this year. The institutions offer 14-19 year olds a specialist course of study designed in partnership with employers, skills sector agencies and universities. Hackney, which will specialise in digital and health technologies, is part of a batch of three schemes procured through Partnerships for Schools’ academies framework. BAM will commence dialogue with
the other two UTCs in the batch – Greenwich and Southwark – early in the New Year. The contractor will start on site in
Hackney in February and will com- plete in time for UTC’s opening in September 2012. Pupils at secondary schools in the
Hackney area will be offered site visits during the construction phase.
BAM frameworks director Keith
Rayner said: “We are delighted to have secured the first UTC contract through the academies framework. “This shows we have understood
the unique aims of Hackney UTC and are able to support the college’s development of these aims. “We look forward to delivering an outstanding educational facility for
the area.” Annie Blackmore, appointed head
Teacher added: “The Hackney UTC is a really important development for young people in Hackney. BAM was appointed as they clearly demon- strated how they would deliver a state-of-the-art building that would match the high-end technology that the learners will use.”
Top marks for James Jones & Sons on product training course
J
ames Jones & Sons, Timber Systems Division are celebrating another successful Product
Training Course, which took place in October, at their factory in Forres, Scotland. The 1½ day intensive course has
received excellent feedback from par- ticipants, who came from four of James Jones’ key distributors – National Hickman, David Smith, North Yorkshire Timber, and Robinson Manufacturing Ltd. Marketing manager for James
Jones & Sons, Gillian McMillan, also took part: “It was obvious that everyone thor-
oughly enjoyed the experience. So many of these training events are sitting in a room listening to some- body talking for hours on end, but the practical aspects and test at the end of this course got everyone interact- ing. I think we will all take a lot of knowledge away with us.” James Jones incorporated a tour
of the plant, and a ‘build a floor’ session into the course, which proved to be a successful training method, with positive test results at the end of the course. Julie Malcolm, technical support coordinator with James Jones, organ- ised the training and was delighted with the outcome: “We like to set everyone a little test
at the end to see who’s been listen- ing, but also for a bit of fun. Overall the scores were very high, probably the best we’ve had over the years. Congratulations to Matt Wood of David Smith who took first prize and won a bottle of Benromach whisky and two whisky glasses!” James Jones would like to thank
everyone involved in the smooth running of the training course, partic- ularly Lynford Chambers and Stephen Stewart for their hard work in setting up and presenting.
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