High-Tech Engineering Helps Skyscraper Developers Reach Record
Heights
From wind-dispersing construction to on-site power
generation and energy efficiency, the tallest structures under
development today harness an assortment of technologies that can boost
the performance of more conventionally sized buildings. And despite a
recession-induced lull in new projects, the list of super-tall towers
continues to grow in 2009 with the anticipated completion of a new
record holder among soaring structures.
Developers completed more skyscrapers in 2008 than in any previous
single year, adding four super-tall buildings that brought the number of
structures exceeding 300 meters (984 ft.) in height to 38 globally.
That’s according to the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat
(CTBUH), which publishes a list of the tallest buildings completed each
year. Based at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago, the
CTBUH facilitates exchanges among professionals involved in tall
building design and development.
Realhound Hunts for Efficient Tools
When it comes to commercial real estate software,
Realhound, based in San Clemente, Calif., hopes to be one of the most
innovative. Established in 1998 by software developer Andrew Blount, a
former executive with Comps Infosystems, which merged into CoStar,
Realhound has an impressive client list. It counts most large national
commercial real estate service firms among its clients, including Grubb
& Ellis, Marcus & Millichap, Colliers International, ReMax Commercial,
CB Richard Ellis and Sperry Van Ness.
Josh Fadley, Realhound's vice president of operations, spoke with NREI
about the company’s latest industry software and the compelling need
for commercial real estate firms to focus on internal efficiencies using
the latest tech tools.
Internet Condo Sale Yields $21.8 Million
Response
When Los Angeles auctioneer and software executive William
Stevenson planned the simultaneous sale of 79 residential lofts in the
city’s historic financial district on Feb. 8, he had no idea how
successful the event would be.
Sixty-two of the renovated lofts in the 13-story downtown Rowan building
sold for a total of $21.8 million in the electronic auction. Buyers who
attended the event were able to see all the bids on large screens at the
front of the auction room, while remote bidders used computers to
participate. The auction was unique in the large number of units sold
simultaneously on the Web rather than in traditional sequential fashion,
which offers one item at a time.
Winning bids ranged from $207,000 for a studio to $534,000 for a
two-bedroom, two-bath penthouse. More than 250 pre-qualified buyers
registered to participate in the three-hour event.
Mexican Smart Buildings Institute Partners with BOMI
International
Building Owners and Managers Institute International (BOMI
International) has developed a partnership with the Mexican Institute of
Smart Buildings (IMEI) to provide educational programs to facilities and
property management professionals in Mexico.
Mexico’s economy experienced 1.7% growth in 2008, despite the global
economic crisis, and the country’s real estate development has
continued to reach new levels.
“[Mexico City] is running new construction projects, especially tall
buildings, so the building managers must be prepared to handle these new
projects,” says IMEI President Felipe Flores Hernandez. Upcoming
projects include buildings with efficient and modern technologies like
the Torre Mayor, the tallest and most environmentally sound building in
Mexico.
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