Will Coronavirus Affect Your Construction Project?

Dear AIA UK members and friends,

Please see this timely article from chapter sponsors Beale & Co, regarding the legal implications of the potential coronavirus pandemic.  

Don’t forget, if you have any legal questions, Beale & Co offers a free legal help line for AIA UK members.  Tel: +44 (0) 20 7469 0400 (please quote “AIA UK Helpline”) Email: aiauk@beale-law.com

It seems only a matter of time before COVID-19, or “Coronavirus”, is officially declared a ‘pandemic’ by the World Health Organisation. The absence of the ‘pandemic’ label so far, however, has not in any way lessened the seriousness of the disease’s impact on business around the world.

Construction could be one of the sectors hit hardest by Coronavirus and if you participate in any capacity in major construction projects, particularly if your operations cross national boundaries, the chances are that you will soon begin to feel the fallout as potential disruption to project performance produces fertile ground for disputes.

Here Antony Smith and Nadir Hasan outline the basic contractual principles that you should bear in mind and what to check in your insurances.

Click HERE to read full article.

Free Registration for 2020 AIA National Convention

New AIA members receive complimentary registration to A’20, the AIA Conference on Architecture 2020 from May 14-16, 2020 in Los Angeles.

Offer is valid for first-time architect, associate, and international associate members who join AIA June 9, 2019 through May 16, 2020 and former members whose memberships have lapsed for five years or more who rejoin AIA June 9, 2019 through May 16, 2020. 

Former members whose memberships lapsed for four years or less, local and national allied or affiliate members, and associate members who change status to architect membership are not eligible for this offer. 

This offer is not transferable and is a one-time offer. This offer is not related to any other local or state AIA component recruitment, dues, or assessment requirements. Membership dues must be active to receive free conference registration.

Vote in the 2020 USA Elections

As you know, 2020 is an election year in the USA.  Living in the UK does not affect your right to vote but may take a bit of planning.  If you are already registered to vote in your home state, you need to contact your local election board and ask for an absentee ballot.  This must be done for each year that you plan to vote. If you aren’t registered to vote, or you’re not sure, go to www.votefromabroad.org  to register and request your ballot for 2020.  As we saw from the last presidential election, every vote counts.  It is important to exercise your right to vote!

2019 BUILDING TOURS REVISITED – What is in store for 2020?

Hugo Road from the inside..

It can only be assumed that a strong affinity for buildings is intrinsically imprinted on the psyche of all those who become architects. What else could entice so many AIA UK members to the Chapter’s annual series of building tours?  But then - add to that underlying psyche - the rather blatantly obvious point that building tours are simply the easiest, most enjoyable way of earning Continuing Education credits and the popularity of building tours can be fully appreciated.

In 2019, the building tour series was somewhat curtailed by circumstances outside the Chapter’s control. As planning for the upcoming summer season begins, the question arises – what is in store for 2020? 

Last year’s building tours came from three sources. One source was AIA Design Award winners; another was the pool of iconic UK architects; and another - perhaps under used – was the AIA UK membership.  One can only hope that this year a member’s project also becomes a Design Award winner or perhaps an icon, but - in any event - the field is wide open and ALL buildings have a chance at making the grade.

If you have any ideas for a building tour; if you have contacts that would facilitate access to an interesting project; if your firm has recently completed a quality project; let us know via chapterexecutive@aiauk.org and we can consider your contribution to the year’s agenda.  Planning for the summer season will start in February.

18 Jul 2019 - Coal Drops Yard by Heatherwick Studio

Reimagining two disused Victorian structures, this project transformed buildings never designed for public use into a new retail destination and publicly accessible space. The roofs of both structures were in need of significant repair, providing an opportunity to create a unique moment – a ‘kissing point’ where the two roofs stretch to meet each other, forming a new upper storey and a sheltered double-height space beneath that can host performances. 

Marrying crafted elements with precision engineering, the design comprehensively yet sensitively restored the buildings and yard to provide a wide range of unit sizes to cater to a changing sector.  CES Credits = 1.5 HSW.

12 Jul 2019 - 4 Pancras Square by Eric Parry Architects

4 Pancras Square forms the keystone of this new public space at King’s Cross and cements the success of a new urban quarter. The quality and robustness of this project was developed following the success of the client’s preceding office buildings, within a backdrop of a changing market, more flexible user requirements and a much sharper focus on sustainability and user well-being.

The building – which won a Commendation at the 2019 AIA UK Design Awards - consists of ten storeys of office above ground, an office reception & cafe, retail units at ground and lower ground floors, and two levels of basement, a total of 305,000 ft2 GEA. A weathering (corten) steel exoskeleton characterises the building and gives a strong identity for Universal Music the building’s anchor tenant. A vierendeel truss at the first floor allows the transfer of structure to widely-spaced ground floor columns that open up the ground floor. CES Credits = 1.5 HSW.

15 May 2019 - Hugo Road by Robert Rhodes Architecture + Interiors

Hugo Road is an award winning (Finalist, AJ 2018 Retrofit Awards; Finalist, Sunday Times 2018 Home Extension of the Year; Long List, 2019 New London Architecture Don’t Move, Improve) project designed by AIA UK’s past President, Robert Rhodes.  

It challenges the traditional layout of the terraced house. By moving the entrance, circulation and services spaces into a slender, two-storey side extension, the house was released the house from its Victorian formality.  The new diagram shifted the focus of the house to the garden level and freed the raised ground floor to provide much needed private space.  CES Credits = 1.5 HSW

Written by: Lorraine King AIA

AIA UK Amended Mission Statement + Future Goals

Climate Change by Creative Mania from the Noun Project

The AIA UK Board met on October 12 for its annual Strategic Planning session to review the chapter’s current initiatives and plan for its future. The board has voted to approve proposed amendments to the chapter’s mission statement to include wording that incorporates current thinking on diversity and inclusion, as well as climate change, as follows:

AIA UK Mission Statement

To serve members and the architectural community of the UK by:

• providing relevant and innovative educational opportunities;

• promoting ethical and inclusive practices in the architectural industry;

• promoting good design in all aspects of the built environment;

• advocating on behalf of the profession in the context of our position in the local community;

• acting as a liaison between AIA jurisdictions and local UK organisations;

• facilitating interaction and communication between members, other professionals and industry leaders; and,

• leading and supporting the adoption of progressive initiatives that address the urgent challenge of climate change.

The mission statement can be downloaded from the AIA UK website, here.

Following a rousing debate and considered deliberation at the November board meeting, the board has also agreed key short and long-term goals that expand upon its 2019 focus on equity, diversity and inclusion, as well as a forthcoming focus on addressing climate change.  These goals include: 

• Perform an annual audit of the integration of diversity and inclusion in the chapter's programming and outreach to measure alignment with the chapter's mission and identify opportunities for improvement.  At the January 2019 AGM, the chapter announced a focus on equity, diversity and inclusion with three key aims; you can read more about this initiative on our blog. By measuring performance, the board aims to hold itself accountable to this initiative in the years to come. Results of each annual audit will be announced at the AGM.

• Integrate sustainability into the Design Awards. We recognize that the industry can no longer turn a blind eye to the role it plays in affecting climate change. The Design Awards, which celebrates excellence in design will now also look to celebrate those projects that make efforts to go beyond business as usual in sustainable practice.  Details of the implementation of this initiative will be released during the call for submissions for the 2020 Design Awards.

• Streamline the Design Awards submissions process. Architects are a busy sort, and with modern society’s increasing pressures on time, we’re looking to overhaul the submissions process to make it easier for practices to participate and to encourage individuals and businesses of all scales to submit their work.

• Reinstate the Noel Hill Award as an annual student prize for architectural travel and/or research.  After a brief hiatus, the relaunch of the Noel Hill Award was announced at the 2019 Student Charrette. Eligibility criteria and submission timelines for the £2,000 travel and research grant will be announced shortly.

• Promote member projects through social media platforms. Over the last few years, the AIA UK chapter has increased its presence on social media platforms including Instagram. We’re looking to continue to promote members’ achievements and are developing a program to allow our membership to quickly and easily share their projects with our press team.

• Develop an AIA UK Roadshow to raise awareness of the chapter with UK-based practices and universities. Though our chapter is over 25 years old, we realise that many recent expats and US companies with a local office may not be aware of the multitude of ways they can benefit from being members. The Roadshow will bring the AIA UK directly to members and their colleagues to answer any questions you may have about our events and how the AIA can serve you.

• Develop a policy and budget to cover travel for attendance of directors to board meetings.  Currently, board meetings are held in London.  Board members residing outside Greater London are able to dial in for meetings; members within London are encouraged to attend in person and to use public transit where possible. The new policy will enable greater in-person attendance from board members residing outside Greater London.

As we look to the next year, we welcome the thoughts, comments and participation of our membership.  If you are interested in contributing to one of the above projects, or have ideas for how we can improve our chapter services, please get in touch at chapterexecutive@aiauk.org or membership@aiauk.org.

Written by: Amrita Raja AIA

2020 Annual General Meeting

ON THE NIGHT / A trio of talks - Bertie van Wyk informs on workplace design; past Chapter President Amrita Raja AIA summaries the past year and oversees the business meeting; new Chapter President Chris Musangi AIA looks to the future.

Although an Annual General Meeting is a serious, formal event, the AIA UK Chapter enjoys surrounding the mandatory business content with a celebration of the past year and a lookahead to the next.  Following a tradition starting in the 1990s, this year’s AGM was hosted by our long-term sponsor, Herman Miller. Herman Miller’s generous hospitality before and after the business meeting perfectly balanced commercial affairs with social enjoyment. 

Prior to the business meeting, Herman Miller’s representative, Bertie van Wyk, gave a presentation on ‘Wellbeing and Social Ergonomics in Workplace Design’.  He started his talk with startling statistics from recent research suggesting that only 8% of the UK workforce were ‘actively engaged’, 73% were ‘disengaged’ and the remaining 19% ‘best dealt with by a strong HR department’.  

Concentrating on the critical 73%, he then illustrated how social interaction and work performance could be enhanced by considering factors such as personal space, physical and psychological proximity and territoriality in new office design.  One quick-fix illustration – drag a flip chart into an office and watch the effect on idea generation...  

As ever, the Herman Miller talk was both entertaining and instructive – and earned attendees 1.0 Continuing Education credits.  If you missed the presentation, you could still check out Herman Miller’s research for office improvements HERE.     

The formal part of the AGM dealt with approval of the 2019 Accounts and the election of the 2020 Board of Directors and Officers.  Additionally, the 2019 President, Amrita Raja AIA, gave an overview presentation of the past year and the 2020 President, Chris Musangi AIA, gave a preview of plans for 2020.   These Year End Presentations can be viewed in full HERE.

The Year End Presentation also includes a summary of the 2019 Accounts, statistics on Chapter membership and a list of Board Directors and Officers. 

After business, many went home, but the party continued…

Written by: Lorraine King AIA