Garden Bridge

Heatherwick Studio and actor, campaigner Joanna Lumley came up with an idea for a new pedestrian bridge across the River Thames – Garden Bridge, the scheme that will connect North and South London with a garden. For one of the greenest cities in the world it will be a another precious piece of landscape and support many indigenous river edge plant species.

The proposed 367-meter bridge project got approval from local councils. According to words of Thomas Heatherwick, the bridge will be a very special place either for crossing, relaxing in or looking back at the rest of the city’s sights.

The bridge will cost not small amount of money – £175 million. It raised a lot of questions and criticism and they had to defend why their project deserves it more than the others. Heatherwick said : “This project creates a new and extraordinary views of London framed by nature.” The Garden Bridge is expected to begin construction next year. (via dezeen.com)

Shanghai Metal Corporation supplies many steel bridges projects with high-quality steel and takes part in these projects. For more information visit our main website or send us inquiry. English speaking staff will guide you further. Download a new application by scanning QR code below or follow us on Social Media.

     

Silvia M.//SMC Editor

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Credits : dezeen.com, archdaily.com, googleimages.com

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Scandinavian architects don’t use just wood

A metal-clad house

Wooden cabins and houses are typical for Scandinavian architecture. It perfectly fits into beautiful nature, surrounded by forest, as in a fairy tale. But Stockholm-based architecture firm Tham & Videgård came up with another kind of project. They designed a modern metal-clad House Husarö.

This house was built for client’s growing family and it is located on island in an outer Stockholm. It is placed high on the landscape surrounded by pines, so that it has overlook view of the sea.

The landscape

Starting point for the house was the sea view, the flat and smooth bedrock and light conditions. Tham & Videgård had a modest and relatively low budget, so they approached tectonic rationality to support a specific spatial structure. The pitched roof is clad in folded black metal sheets. Three sides of the building have sliding doors opening out to the views of the landscape.

Inside, the house is divided into two levels. A communal open area with the living room and kitchen on the ground floor and then upper private level with the bedrooms and a playroom. There is a contrast between dark metal facade and a light-colored interior.  A skylight that runs along the ridge of the roof on the upper level underscores the vertical space and enhances the experience of seclusion.

Interior

A contrast between interior and a dark metal facade

In Shanghai Metal Corporation we offer a wide range of metal products, roof forming machinery and other products. For more information visit our website or send us inquiry. Our English speaking staff will guide you further. You could also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn or read our blog. Download a new application by scanning QR code below.

Silvia M.//SMC Editor

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Credits : tvark.se, article.wn.com, techinvestornews.com, googleimages, inhabitat.com

Future home for homeless people = BILLBOARDS !

Phenomenon of homelessness has became a global question during these years. It seems like there are no solutions at all…..BUT what about transforming billboards into mini homes that can be used as shelters for homeless people?

A new initiative called The Gregory Project by Slovakian architectural design firm came up with a great sustainable idea! Roadside billboards that seemed just to ruin the surrounding landscape will be able to house people without roof. These very tiny apartments would require a minimal upkeep and the ad space itself would help fund the project.

A bedroom

These two-rooms apartment  would be built around the triangular shape of the billboard. It would have a kitchen, an office space, a bed with some storage underneath, even a bathroom! These apartments look surprisingly cozy and they are well-decorated.

The team behind this project explains their idea : “The Gregory project brings optimization to the construction of billboards. This object would need just a minimal maintenance cost which could be partially paid through the rental of its advert space.”

A bathroom

Although the pictures that you can see are only digital visualizations of what finished home would look like but the whole idea is promising. Despite the fact that The Gregory project is based toward Slovakia  but with some adjustments it can possibly be applied anywhere.

Modern billboards are supported by steel poles and here Shanghai Metal Corporation is coming. We offer wide range of high-quality metal and steel products. For more details visit our website or send us inquiry. English speaking staff will guide you further. You could also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or LindkedIn. Download our new application by scanning QR code below.

Silvia M.//SMC Editor

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Credits : boredpanda.com, businessinsider.com, sobadsogood.com, madehow.com, googleimages

New Trend in Modern Retailing Inspired by Japanese ‘Origami’

Inspired by Japanese paper folding ‘origami’ new trend in retailing is portable and aesthetically appealing. The Kiosks created by London-based architecture firm, Make Architects, in collaboration with metal fabricators, Entech Environmental Technology Ltd are a success and use models of origami throughout the design process. Two unique prefabricated retail kiosks opened to the public for the first time at Canary Wharf’s Ice Sculpturing Festival in London in the beginning of this year.

“It was only when we were making [physical] models that we suddenly realized something was jamming, and that was really interesting.” Later, the designers built a full-scale mock-up out of cardboard and foam board. “That way we could really understand how it works,” explains Sean Affleck, Make Architects’ lead project architect.

The outer shell is made of 2-millimeter-thick aluminum plate which is crucial to mimic paper due to its lightweight and easy manipulation. Any other material would be too heavy.

Although lightweight the aluminum shell is not less resistant; the powder-coated aluminum cladding panels are highly durable against weather and graffiti, requiring minimal maintenance. The rest of the body uses stainless steel fabricated in-house.

To create a proper system that allowed opening and shutting the pop-up store with easiness the metal was folded, pressed and rolled. Such a process created an integral hinge into which a stainless steel rod was inserted. Very convenient a remote-control can do the job of opening and closing the kiosk with no stress.

“[The kiosk] had to be solid, but lightweight, so then that led us to origami,” says Affleck. “[You] end up with something very flimsy; add a few folds and creases, and suddenly the strength appears. In the folds, the shape appears.”

The vibrant opening is attractive to the public who also finds a shelter underneath the ‘origami’ roof. When opened the inside of the sculptural rectangular box measures 2m deep and 3m wide, perfect for multitude of purposes; from serving coffee to information points to even a spot for DJs at events. The interiors lined with steel frames and a plywood-stressed skin can be customized by the vendors, depending where and when they are used. It is very comfortable to stand inside the rectangular ‘origami’ box, rain-skin cladding panels protects the changing vendor stories from insulation and reduced solar gain.

“Our solution on the modern street kiosk is a distinctive sculptural rectangular box that transforms when it opens and its function is revealed. The internal fit-out elements can be adapted to suit the needs of individual vendors”, says Affleck.

Aesthetically pleasing, the prefabricated pop-up stores are a great solution as urban furniture. When closed, the booths appear as futuristic sculptures, their matte grey exteriors evoking the steel and stone of the city, enhancing and revitalizing the public space.  The aesthetic form of the kiosks coupled with new activities and landscape would be able to provide a new urban platform for both tourists and locals alike.

Shanghai Metal Corporation offers a wide range of metals such as aluminum, widely used in the fabrication of prefabricated ‘origami’ pop-up stores. To find out more, please visit our Website or send your inquiry here. Our English speaking personnel will be more than pleased to help you. Follow us on  LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel. Or you could try our new mobile app by scanning our QR code.

Source and Photo credit: sddretail.co.uk, sklim.com, blog.archpaper.com, alucobondusa.com, archiloci.com, bestpaperz.com

Camilla G.//SMC Editor

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Can You Guess What’s Wrong In This Picture?

The photograph series “For What It’s Worth” by photographer and artist Dillon Marsh is at the very least surreal. By combining photographic precision and computer-generated imagery Marsh produces illogical images as an attempt to provide a graphic visualization of the quantity of copper extracted from the Blue Mine in Springbok, situated 550 km north of Cape Town.

Blue Mine, Springbok (1852 to 1912) 3,535 tonnes of copper extracted

The blue in ‘Blue Mine’ is in reference to the color of rocks in the mine as a result of copper coming into contact with oxygen in the air. Back to the mid-19th century copper was the primarily driving force behind the establishment of relatively remote area of the country such as Springbok, Okiep and Nababeep as formal towns. Following operations that began in 1852, the Blue Mine is recorded as the first commercial mining endeavour in South Africa. South Africa hasn’t been so commercial before, and with the discovery of copper deposits the town became a centre for mining prospectors with movement of people coming to Springbok also attracted by its near and steady supply of drinkable water.

Nababeep South Mine, Nababeep (1882 to 2000) 302,791.65 tonnes of copper extracted

By 2007, however, most of these mines had run their course and production had stopped almost completely. As an attempted to represent the uncertain future for the towns and people of the region, Marsh placed impressive copper spheres in the arid scene of what once served as copper mine. “Whether they are active or long dormant, mines speak of a combination of sacrifice and gain”, describes Marsh. He also adds “their features are crude, unsightly scars on the landscape – unlikely feats of hard labor and specialized engineering, constructed to extract value from the earth but also exacting a price”.

Jubilee Mine, Concordia (1971 to 1973) 6,500 tonnes of copper extracted

Mash’s intention is “to create a kind of visualization of the merits and shortfalls of mining in South Africa, an industry that has shaped the history and economy of the country so radically”.  On the one hand, the development of the mines around Okiep contributed significantly to the demise of copper mining in south-west of England. On the other hand technology and skill were still transferred from these mines to other parts of the world. Unesco classifies the principle value of the copper mine site of Springbok an extension of the Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape in the UK, for instance, also sharing a close association with other mining landscape in Australia, Brazil, India and Mexico.

Tweefontein Mine, Concordia (1887 to 1904) 38,747.7 tonnes of copper extracted

Shanghai Metal Corporation offers a wide range of metals such as copper, widely used in varying artifacts. To find out more, please visit our Website, WordPress, LinkedIn , Twitter , Facebook  and Instagram. Or you could try our new mobile app by scanning our QR code. Moreover, we sell directly from Alibaba , EC21 ,Tradekey or directly at sales@shanghaimetal.com.

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Source and picture credit: springbokinfo.co.za, designboom.com, visualnews.com, ignant.de, whc.unesco.org, dillonmarsh.com

Camilla G.//SMC Editor