The Shard becomes the tallest building in the UK.New London office building The Shard is officially the tallest building in the UK.
The Shard London Bridge has now surpassed One Canada Square in height and become the UK’s tallest building. (more…)
New legislation has been introduced to tackle discrimination in the workplace.
The Equality Act will cover most workplace environments and draws on nine separate pieces of legislation, condensing them into a single act.
The new laws have been met with some disdain from equalities campaigners and employers, for not being tight enough on gender discrimination and for supposedly burdening employers with extra rules respectively. (more…)
An economic office will increase worker productivity and ensure you feel comfortable in your working environment.
This can be easily achieved through some small changes that will save you money as well improving the standard of your work.
Here are a few tips on how to make your office more economic.
Firstly consider the lighting in your office. Around 44 percent of energy usage in office buildings is artificial lighting. You can reduce this by nearly two thirds by simply switching to energy efficient light bulbs. Try to avoid glare from overhead lighting and lamps, a more environmentally friendly and comfortable option would be installing a skylight and taking advantage of natural lighting.
Since you spend most of your day sitting down at your computer it is also important to have a comfortable office chair. You should be able to reach your keyboard and mouse easily. A bad office chair can result in repetitive strain injury and carpel tunnel syndrome. Make sure that the height of the seat can be adjusted and that the chair offers lower back support.
Aesthetic touches such as tidying up loose wires and decorating the walls can encourage creativity and productivity. A cluttered workplace will be distracting and potentially dangerous, keeping a clean office will help to ensure employees feel comfortable and focused.
Lastly, reconsider your commute to work. Public transport and carpooling will result in less congestion and pollution. Carpooling can also add a more social aspect to your office as well as a less crowded car park.
These simple tips can help you to achieve a more comfortable office space and will hopefully result in a more economic and productive workforce.
Real estate investment managers, LaSalle Investment Management, a subsidiary of Jones Lang LaSalle, recently announced the property purchase of 100 Middlesex Street, E1, in a deal costing approximately £26.5 million.
In a deal in conjunction with Generation Estates, LaSalle purchased the property from Blackstone on behalf of a pension fund client with a net initial yield of 5.5%. LaSalle were advised by Savills and Blackstone were advised by GM Real Estate.
The confirmed closure of a London regional development agency (RDA) office has been followed by the announcement that nine other offices may be cut from the government budget as well.
Communities Secretary Eric Pickles said: “[the offices] are not voices of the regions in Whitehall. They are agents of Whitehall to interfere in localities.” (more…)
Mayfair property and development company Helical Bar reported a 7.9 per cent increase in the value of their properties today.
According to Property Week, its net asset value rose by £13.1 million compared to £68 million the year before. (more…)
NASDAQ OMX is to close their European trading platform as they have not been reaching their targets. However a representative of the company has said they are still committed to their London offices.
This decision was sparked by their weak performance in a competitive European market and comes just 18 months after the company launched their European offices.
Eric Noll, executive vice president, said, “Despite our best efforts, the increasingly competitive nature of the multi-lateral trading facility space in Europe has meant that the growth of the business hasn’t reached levels necessary for us to realise our stated objectives.”
The ‘7 More London’ building looks like all other London offices, but it has just been announced to be the most eco-friendly office space in London.
The building was designed with the environment in mind and was constructed in a collaborative act by PwC, Fosters, developer More London, an architect and an engineer from BDP and a several other consultants.
As a result Breeam sustainability assessors recently made the assessment that it was the most environmental-friendly building in the city.
The government is in the process of announcing a dramatic office upheaval with 15,000 London office jobs to be relocated to other areas.
Bradford is currently being considered as a potential area for relocation of the London government workforce.
Regeneration officers in Bradford have said that offering office space for relocation could be mutually beneficial to Bradford and the government.
Not only is office space in Bradford “great value for money” but it is hoped that the relocation will boost the local economy.
London offices have recently seen the largest ever rise in rental values as the property market finally starts to recover from the recession.
The office rental market was seriously affected by the recession because businesses became reluctant to spend money on renting new office space.
But now, after two and a half years of decline, there is finally a price increase in the rent of commercial properties.