The strength of hydraulic jacks was on display in November 2016 when a gigantic hangar-like structure was moved to the site of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Reactor No. 4 disaster in Pripyat, Ukraine. The structure was moved into place over the aging and unstable Soviet Union-built “sarcophagus” using a skidding system that consists of…
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New escalators, improvements and easier-to-use products New Escalator Series Mitsubishi Electric has released its new S-series escalators, designed for enhanced passenger safety and high-level energy conservation. Safety features include automatic stopping when an object is caught between the comb and step, and optional skirt brushes and step demarcation lighting. A variable-voltage, variable-frequency inverter control (with…
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70-Story Religious Structure Rising in India The International Society for Krishna Consciousness is building the 70-story Vrindavan Chandrodaya Mandir in Vrindavan, India, which, upon completion, will become one of the tallest religious structures in the world, The New Indian Express reported. Situated on 5.5 acres, the structure will boast a capsule elevator to take riders…
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“Unique, Attractive” Addition for Surfers Paradise Surfers Paradise on Australia’s Gold Coast is set to get an 89-story, 304-m-tall addition described by the Gold Coast city architect as “unique and attractive,” The Urban Developer reported. Developed by Forise Holdings of China, The Spirit will house approximately 480 apartments, more than that of the architectural landmark…
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KONE to Outfit Mixed-Use Dubai Development KONE has won an order to supply 32 elevators and four escalators to One Central in Dubai, a multiple-building mixed-use complex being developed by Dubai World Trade Centre on 104 ha in the central business district (CBD). Al Futtaim Carillion is the main contractor, and Hopkins is the architect.…
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Hitachi Establishes Vietnam Subsidiary Citing rapid urban growth, Hitachi, Ltd. has established wholly owned subsidiary Hitachi Elevator Vietnam Co., Ltd., headquartered in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. In 2015, Hitachi received an order for more than 60 units for Urban Railway Line 1 in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam’s first urban railway system. This was…
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Two-year project to investigate “rope-less, non-vertical elevators.” The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) Research Office, project sponsor thyssenkrupp and an international steering committee have embarked on a 24-month research study investigating how technical innovations in elevators, specifically rope-less, non-vertical elevators, could impact the design outcomes of tall buildings and cities. thyssenkrupp contributed…
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A US$76-million, 23-story mixed-use structure, Chinatown Eastern Tower, is making headway near downtown Philadelphia thanks to a US$1.3-million state grant, SkyriseCities reported. Developed by Philadelphia Chinatown Development Corp. (PCDC), the building is set to contain approximately 150 residential units, a 17,000-sq.-ft. community center, 21,000 sq. ft. of offices in a podium and ground-level retail on…
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A 29-story apartment tower is part of St. Louis’ Ballpark Village phase two, a US$220-million project of Major League Baseball’s St. Louis Cardinals and Cordish Cos. of Baltimore, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. Designed by Hord Coplan Macht, the 310-ft.-tall building would house approximately 300 apartments above a parking garage. It would be joined by…
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Construction Spending Approaches Record A building boom is underway in New York City (NYC), with the New York Building Congress projecting construction spending to reach a record US$43.1 billion in 2016, US$42.1 billion in 2017 and US$42.3 billion in 2018, Reuters reported. The 2016 figure is a 26% increase from 2015 and a 47% increase…
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