PROGRESS NOTED ON VT UPGRADES AT LONDON RAIL STATIONS
PROGRESS NOTED ON VT UPGRADES AT LONDON RAIL STATIONS
The blog IanVisits says a newly released report from Transport for London details the progress made on rail-station vertical-transportation (VT) upgrades at several stops. At Paddington Station, the steps, chains, floorplates and handrails of two new escalators are complete, and a new elevator is ready for testing. At the Bond Street station, preparatory work on VT for a "step-free interchange" to the Elizabeth line has been completed. At the Victoria station, work is progressing on passages to the Circle and District lines that include elevators and new ticket-hall escalators. At the Knightbridge station, work has begun on two new station entrances and elevators. And, at the Camden Town station, refurbishment on two escalators has begun, with the first to be ready in early March and the second later this year.
IN MEMORIAM: DORIS JOYCE DRISCOLL
Doris Joyce Driscoll, who founded Atlantic Elevator Service of Avon, Massachusetts, with her husband, Jim, in 1976, passed away on September 20, 2017, at her home in Abington, Massachusetts. She served as treasurer of Atlantic Elevator and was an active member of the National Association of Elevator Contractors (NAEC), attending many NAEC conventions and educational events. A graduate of Boston City Hospital School of Nursing, Driscoll is survived by Jim, her husband of 52 years; their four children, Jeffrey, Susan, Deborah and Dennis; and 12 grandchildren. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the melanoma research program at Massachusetts General Hospital or the Melanoma Research Foundation.
32-STORY BANYAN TREE RESIDENCES MOVES FORWARD IN DUBAI
Developer Sweid & Sweid's first Banyan Tree Residences for the Middle East, a 32-story residential tower in Hillside Dubai, is moving forward, with Core Savills appointed sales agent, construction reaching the fourth floor and sales set to start in February, ConstructionWeekOnline.Com reports. On track for completion in 2019, the structure will have 244 apartments, including duplex units with private outdoor terraces, and full-floor penthouses. Amenities will include cantilevered pools and a residents-only clubhouse and spa. Civilco Civil Engineering & Contracting Co. is the general contractor.
AWARD-WINNING DESIGN INSPIRED BY MOSCOW’S HISTORY
Architecture firm MVRDV has won the competition for Silhouette, a 78-m-tall mixed-use building that will serve as a symbolic gateway into Moscow, various news outlets, including ConstructionWeekOnline.com, report. The design team drew inspiration from Silhouette's historic Constructivist-style neighbors, such as the Ministry of Agriculture building by Alexey Schusevand. Containing luxury apartments, a supermarket, a flexible workspace, a sports center, event space and underground parking within 52,000 m2 in the city center, Silhouette boasts a stepped, red ceramic façade. It is being developed by GK Osnova.
ELEVATOR MECHANIC DIES IN MANHATTAN FALL
An elevator technician was killed on the morning of January 23 when he fell down the elevator shaft on a job in Manhattan, New York, the New York Post reported. The 33 year old was working on the ninth floor of an under-construction Flatiron District building when he lost his balance and fell. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Police are investigating the incident, but no criminality was immediately suspected.
LATEST SECTION BEGUN ON INDIA RAIL EXPANSION PROJECT
Work has begun to double and electrify a 25-km stretch of rail that will complete the project between Maduri and Chennai, India, The Times of India reports. Union Minister of State for Railways Rajen Gohain, who participated in a ceremony launching the work, said the section, part of just one of three such projects in Tamil Nadu state, should be finished this year, and all the work should be finished in three to four years. Along with the rail expansions and electrifications, Gohain said 84 escalators and 61 lifts had been commissioned at stations, with work in progress on 32 escalators and 26 lifts.
