Cladding: is our response to tragedy adequate?

FunderMax’s Paul Hughes questions whether the UK is doing enough to prevent further disasters following the Grenfell fire, and suggests where improvements should be made. In the early hours of 14 June 2017 Grenfell Tower, a 24-storey social housing tower... View Article

Practice Profile – Cove Burgess

James Parker spoke to architect Tim Burgess, one of the founders of a young practice which has quickly evolved from a two-man set up to a firm making its name in London and beyond. CoveBurgess Architects has been in existence... View Article

Editor’s comment – February

Comment by James Parker, editor of Materials for Architecture, February. Now that spring is finally rearing its head, the events season is upon us. If you are attending ecobuild which is fast-approaching at the start of March, you may well... View Article

View Point – Nigel Ostime from Hawkins\Brown

Nigel Ostime, project delivery director at architects Hawkins\Brown, offers some thoughts on how to counter the ills of Design & Build using current procurement. There has been much in the media recently about the poor quality achieved through Design &... View Article

Editor’s Comment – December

It is somewhat hard to know what to make of Phillip ‘joker’ Hammond’s recent Budget, given that it contains a lot for housing, as rumoured, and perhaps more than some feared, while at the same time raising yet more questions... View Article

View point – Nigel Ostime from Hawkins\Brown

A continuing wage gap in architecture is presenting a further obstacle to diversity of new entrants to the profession. Nigel Ostime from Hawkins\Brown suggests a different approach. Economic commentators are observing an increasing gap between the super-rich – the ‘1... View Article

View Point – Tim Burgess of CoveBurgess Architects

Tim Burgess of CoveBurgess Architects says that grass-roots answers are needed to the problem of practices finding it harder be located in London’s rich diversity. Our modern cities are the current embodiment of humans’ desire to gather into groupings that... View Article

Practice Profile – Colman Architects

Emerging from a desire to ‘do things better’, over their 30-year lifespan Colman Architects have produced a wealth of diverse projects from sleek gallery spaces to colossal Chinese masterplans. Sébastien Reed investigates. The project is the all-important thing – Colman... View Article

Comment: Get specification right first time

The Metal Cladding and Roofing Manufacturers Association explains the importance of approved cladding systems and the dangers of changing specifications. Metal cladding systems provide efficient, aesthetically pleasing and sustainable solutions for a wide variety of external building envelopes. However, the... View Article

5 genius ways shipping containers are used every day

If you think shipping containers are only used for imports and exports around the world, it’s time to think again. While shipping containers play a vital role transporting the products that we enjoy every day, they can also be used... View Article

Bringing light home

Chris Chaney of Sunsquare explains how rooflights can improve daylighting, boost wellbeing and minimise a building’s energy consumption. Spiralling property prices plus a lack of appropriate accommodation to move into have led to many homeowners preferring to carry out significant... View Article

Realistic rainwater storage

Ian Crickmore of Polypipe Terrain explains how adopting rainwater harvesting systems can provide sustainable drainage solutions in space-constrained urban areas. Obsessing over rain is something of a national pastime, but capturing rainwater could help meet sites’ increased drainage demands, particularly... View Article