Construction
Treehouse escapes: re-live your childhood in style
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Treehouses have the ability to fire the imagination and transport you back to the long care-free afternoons of your childhood like almost nothing else. These days, the professionally crafted designs available far outstrip the rudimentary structures we would slap together during summer holidays and they are being used not just as magical playrooms for the kids but as spare guest bedrooms, entertainment areas, hotel escapes and even conference suites. The latest examples to cross our desk are these striking arboreal dwellings from Andreas Wenning of German architecture firm baumraum. Read More
One kilometer high Nakheel Tower to become world's tallest building
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It looks like Dubai is running out of countries to compete with in the architectural stakes, so they’ve started outdoing themselves. State-owned builder Nakheel has unveiled plans to build what would be the world’s tallest building before the Gulf city state’s previous claimant to the title, the Burj Dubai Tower, has even finished construction. Nakheel plans to build a tower measuring over 1 kilometer (0.62 miles), high in an area between two of the city’s artificial palm shaped islands which the company also created. Nakheel has not revealed the exact height or cost of the tower but said it would have “more than 200 floors” and be part of “a multi-billion pound development”, which includes a man made inland harbor and 40 additional towers ranging from 20 to 90 floors high. Read More
Solar brick provides integrated outdoor lighting solution
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Sunrise Solar Corp has unveiled a new building brick that integrates solar technologies into traditional construction materials. The Solar Light "Bric" is able to capture the sun’s rays and convert them to energy to power an embedded light without the need to connect to the electrical grid or flick a switch. Read More
Kawasaki to build Japan's fastest train
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Plans announced by Kawasaki Heavy Industries could see a new record set for high-speed train travel in Japan. The design for the rail vehicle dubbed the “Environmentally Friendly Super Express Train” (efSET) is expected to be completed by the end of 2009 and its promised operating speed has been pitched around the 217mph (350 kmh) mark, quicker than the fastest trains currently operating on the country's high-speed Shinkansen network which clock around 188mph (300kmh). Read More
Northrop Grumman to build first new aircraft carrier class in 40 years
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The Gerald R. Ford CVN 78 is the first ship in the first new aircraft carrier class in over 40 years and Northrop Grumman has received a $5.1 billion, seven-year contract for its construction, which is scheduled to be delivered to the Navy in 2015. Read More
FANUC debuts world's largest, strongest six-axis robot
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FANUC Robotics has introduced the heavy-duty M-2000iA line of robots, designed for handling truck, tractor and car parts. The model which was demonstrated during the IMTS 2008, sets new records for size, reach and wrist strength, claiming the title of world’s largest and strongest six-axis robot. Read More
Fraunhofer develops technology for the bonded aircraft
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An aircraft is held together by hundreds of thousands of rivets. Fully automatic machines install rivet holes and rivets with precision in numerous materials. A new hybrid technology combines this mechanical joining technique with adhesive bonding. The lighter an aircraft is, the less fuel it consumes. Given the need to cut carbon dioxide emissions, this is a key aspect of materials research. Aircraft manufacturers are therefore pinning their hopes on particularly lightweight construction materials. These include not only lightweight metals, but also fiber composite plastics, particularly carbon-fiber reinforced plastics (CFRPs). Whenever two CFRP components have to be joined together, this has so far been accomplished primarily by riveting. Read More
The first Kitahaus relocatable living and office pods
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September 6, 2006 As technology evolves, our ability to create remarkable, sustainable temporary living and working environments has grown considerably, as can be evidenced by Gizmag stories on relocatable structures such as the off-the-grid home, the Sphere House, the Nackros Villa, the Free Spirit Sphere, the LoftCube and the first mobile hotel room. Two years ago we wrote about the KitaHaus Pod which is designed as a stand-alone accommodation or temporary office and can also be interlinked to create unique temporary or permanent living and working environments. The KitaHaus legs are adjustable so it can be situated in almost any site including normally unusable sloped and wooded areas. The first built Kitahaus pods are currently going into Elleray Prep School in Windermere, UK as three classrooms and the designer is now seeking JV partners wishing to create eco-tourism resorts. Read More
