Latest news with #officebuilding
Bloomberg
a day ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Blackstone Seeks €500 Million Financing, Testing Office Recovery
Blackstone Inc. is seeking the largest loan secured against an office building in Europe since interest rates spiked in 2022, a test for the nascent recovery that's taking hold of the continent's commercial property markets. The private equity firm has appointed broker CBRE Group Inc. to source about €500 million ($583 million) of debt that will be secured against the Trocadero office complex in central Paris, people familiar with the process said. Blackstone has agreed to pay German fund manager Union Investment about €705 million for the property, the people said, asking not to be identified as the process is private. Business Immo first reported the potential acquisition.
Yahoo
05-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Skanska invests $146m in Sweden's Solna Link office building expansion
Skanska has announced a significant investment of approximately Skr1.4bn ($146m) in the second phase of the Solna Link office building at Solna Station in Arenastaden, Sweden. The construction contract, valued at around Skr650m, is set to be included in the company's Sweden order bookings for the third quarter of 2025. The upcoming phase will feature a twelve-storey structure with about 21,000m² of leasable space amenities, including a gym, conference rooms, a lounge, a restaurant, a café, and bicycle services. Once completed, Solna Link will offer around 36,000m² of space in total. Skanska said the proximity to Westfield Mall of Scandinavia ensures easy access to additional shops, restaurants, and services. The company is aiming for the office spaces to be Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design-certified at the Platinum level. The project also boasts pre-certifications for NollCO2 and WELL Gold. Construction is scheduled to commence nexr month, with completion of the office building anticipated for the second quarter of 2027. The Solna Station area is experiencing continuous growth, attracting new businesses and enhancing its reputation as a key public transport hub. With a new subway line expected to open in 2028 and existing connections for various modes of transport, Solna Link is strategically positioned for accessibility. The development will be situated next to Skanska's previously completed project, Solna United, which was finalised in 2020. In May 2025, Skanska signed an expansion and renovation contract with Swedish state-owned property company Specialfastigheter Sverige for the Österåker correctional facility, located north of Stockholm. "Skanska invests $146m in Sweden's Solna Link office building expansion" was originally created and published by World Construction Network, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site.
BBC News
22-06-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Ipswich Willis building 'revolutionised' offices, says Norman Foster
One of Britain's most renowned architects said a building he designed for an insurance company revolutionised office all-glass exterior Willis building opened in Ipswich in 1975 with a roof-top garden and swimming was one of the first buildings designed by Lord Norman Foster who is also the architect behind other buildings such as London's Gherkin and Millennium Foster recently met with superfan Nicola Drown where he shared stories of designing the building which he called a "groundscraper". "Ipswich is a market town and everybody assumed that [the] Willis [building] would end up being a tower," Lord Foster explained. "If you think about the essence of Ipswich, it's these winding streets, it's a medieval geometry, so the idea was of recreating the street by following the edge of the site and keeping a building low and respecting the horizontality."That was really radical and it gave rise to a new kind of building that was called the groundscraper, as opposed to the skyscraper."That was subsequently adopted by developers." Lord Foster, who recently turned 90, said he was still continuously on the go, often attending meetings and talks, including an event at the Willis building to talk about it on its 50th anniversary. Lord Foster added the building was a "complete reinterpretation of the workplace" as it was a "lifestyle building", with a roof garden and swimming pool as well as its openness and swathes of natural sunlight colour scheme inside the building is yellow and green - colours of Norwich City Football Club, rival of local team Ipswich Town, whose stadium is just across the Foster said he "had no idea" about this when designing the building, however. Another interesting piece of the building's history included that Lord Foster was "apprehensive" about its initially got his design team to draw it up as a four-storey building, despite knowing it would never be iPlayer: Building Sights - Zaha Hadid on the Willis building"The first thing I got [a designer] to do was two drawings of the outside of the building," he explained."One was four-storey and one was three-storey."The first submission that I made was for the four-storey and the reaction that I got, that I had anticipated, was that it was too big."So we reduced it. We never intended it to be four-storey, but I remember that was a ploy at the time." Follow Suffolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
New York Times
13-06-2025
- New York Times
These Robots Do Windows
Good morning. It's Friday. Today we'll find out about a robot that washes windows. We'll also get details on the mistrial on the final charge against Harvey Weinstein. The window-washing scaffold slid down the side of an office building the way window-washing scaffolds do. It stopped at the 23rd floor, and the two window washers onboard went to work. Someone on the sidewalk below, looking up, might have thought they were guys in white hazmat suits. They were not. They were robots. Their long mechanical arms swept back and forth, scrubbing the glass with brushes that dispensed just enough water to clean away the grime without dripping on the floors below. The system, known as Ozmo, is safer and faster than human window cleaners — more than 60 percent faster, according to Ross Blum, the president and chief operating officer of the company that markets it. 'Repetitive tasks that are dangerous and dirty are rife for automation,' he said, adding that he had 'a deep appreciation' for window washers and what they do. 'It is a tough job,' he said. 'It is a thankless job. It is manual labor at high elevations with variable weather conditions.' Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Washington Post
29-05-2025
- General
- Washington Post
Miss Manners: How to deal with solicitors in a ‘no solicitor' building?
Dear Miss Manners: I work in an upscale office building in the downtown core. Our building is supposed to be solicitor-free, but on occasion we get walk-in solicitors, companies trying to sell their services and people trying to give resumes. This is both annoying and bothersome. Our office is locked, so these people need to ring or knock to be let in — and then when they come in, I realize they are not clients, but peddlers. Is it impolite to say there is no soliciting in the building, or should I take their card and just say I will pass it on, even though I won't? I understand that these people are trying to better themselves, but they are already breaking rules and taking time away from my work. One can enforce a building rule rudely and one can enforce it politely, but you appear to be asking if the rule itself is rude — a habit, perhaps, in an age when everyone is asked to comment on everything. The rule itself strikes Miss Manners as innocuous. More importantly, it is not within your authority to change. Tell the person that you are sorry, but the owners have a rule against soliciting in the building. You can then pick up a phone, leaving them to guess whether this is to inform someone of their presence or merely to go about your own business. Dear Miss Manners: I learned from a treasured friend that if a person brings up a topic regarding themselves, it usually means they want to talk about it. Said friend will then, sometimes, seem to throw up her guard when I ask a question, wanting to hear more. Is it rude to ask questions when someone brings up a personal subject? Am I asking the wrong questions? Perhaps I'm asking the wrong way. If so, how should I politely ask? Maybe I want the correct preface. There is no one-size-fits-all answer to such a question except to say: When in doubt, attentive listening is usually the least likely to get one in trouble. Dear Miss Manners: Both of my sisters-in-law's grandchildren graduated from high school last weekend. We gladly traveled the two hours to their respective parties and gave each one a cash gift. Both sisters-in-law have texted, thanking us for coming and for the nice gifts. I suspect (in one instance, anyway) that we're not to expect a reply from the recipient, as the text went into detail how appreciative the graduate is, how the money will be put to use and what his future plans are. How do I respond? It feels misplaced to say 'You're welcome' to the grandparents, when we attended and gifted in honor of the graduates. The problem, as both you and the sisters-in-law know or suspect, is that the unmannerly recipients are not going to express thanks themselves. So the question within your question is whether you let the sisters-in-law — who do not want you to think ill of their grandchildren — off the hook. Miss Manners would have you text back that you are 'Glad they are enjoying the gift.' This will reassure the sisters-in-law that you have no quarrel with them — while its brevity relieves you of directly addressing the larger question. New Miss Manners columns are posted Monday through Saturday on You can send questions to Miss Manners at her website, You can also follow her @RealMissManners. © 2025 Judith Martin
