Have you thought of… July/Aug 2010

...capturing the moment in a shiny new trowel? 

Thanks to architects’ love affair with glass curtain-walling, there were plenty of “reflection” shots in the  CIOB’s Art of Building digital photography competition (see pages 8-9). But this effort from Bovis Lend Lease, showing the topping out at the University of the West of Scotland’s new £70m campus in Ayr, also deserves an honourable mention. Imagine the brief from the PR team: photograph two senior representatives of the client, wearing hard hats and high viz, against the background of an averagely chaotic site, and come up with an image that will catch the editor’s eye. We salute you!

www.artofbuilding.org

...launching the first iPad app for the construction industry? 

The race is on, and the pace is being set by landscaping specialist Marshalls. Although not strictly speaking a construction app, it has come up with a free tool called  Garden Moodboard. The app lets users plan gardens inspired by four themes: growing fruit and veg; relaxing and sun-bathing; children’s fun and sociable gardens for entertaining. You can add further images or information on carbon footprints. Updates that will  allow you to “sketch” your own design are due later in the year. So come on, we want to see those iPad app press releases coming...

www.marshalls.co.uk/ipad

...sending a Tesco store on a Scottish cruise? 

That was what happened to this lucky pre-fab Tesco store, when it was sent from Aberdeen to Kirkwall in Orkney by container ship. Offsite specialist Yorkon transported the supermarket in 26 purpose-built modules, assembling them at their destination in just three days. The new Tesco is a temporary store, to be used while Barr Construction demolishes Kirkwall’s existing store and rebuilds a bigger version. After that, the interim store will be dismantled again, broken down into its modular components and set sail once more in search of new horizons...