Uploaded on 2014-11-06 by KennethHawthorn

The building that I have chosen to represent the impact of the global economy on construction is the TIK building of Strathclyde University which is in Scotland. This is for many reasons. Just by walking around the site you notice fencing by Heras (England), cement from Lafarge (India), Weinerberger bricks (Austria) and a Thwaites (England) swivel dumper rented from Jarvie Plant (Scotland). This is just on the ground however, if you do some research on the building you will find that the lead contractor on the project is EMEA which is the UK arm of the Lend Lease Group, an originally Australian company that now operates in the Americas, Asia and Europe too. The fact that it was a large company that had been bought by an oversees group shows that this building is from the new global economy and that the old age of local craftsmen is over. The building itself is obviously mostly steel and glass which is in stark contrast to the older parts of the city which is almost all red or blonde sandstone as that is a plentiful material around Glasgow. This marks it out as a building of the new global economy, where it is much cheaper to import materials from India or Austria compared to sourcing materials from just a few miles away. The TIK building has a function much closer to home though, as it is owned by Strathclyde University (Scotland) with funding assistance from ITREZ, Scottish Enterprise, Scottish Fundraising Council, SSE, Scottish Power, Weir and many other companies. Interestingly enough, all of these companies are based in Scotland, which is an odd contrast to the companies and suppliers of material to the construction of the building who have origins all over the world. More/higher resolution pictures available! [1]: https://edxuploads.s3.amazonaws.com/1415292000787526.jpg