New media, Old-skool discipline

I am a media professional – and I am an addict. I would happily spend some hours pouring over the Apple website, absorbing Steve Jobs’ latest keynote speech. And I have spent many a precious moment bouncing across the office following the discovery of a new Creative Suite tool that provides a texturing effect that you will most likely never need. And I have experienced too many long evenings with the bedside light still glowing bright, as I devour yet another guide to “essential marketing” which relays more or less the same information as every other guide to “essential marketing”, yet it still cheers me to see that we are all in agreement.

I have been working within the media industry since I was 18. Therefore I feel that it is as much a part of me as my vital organs (I am equally fond of both). However, this innate adoration does not come without the bi-product of some griping at the seemingly lackadaisical attitude to today’s accessible marketing tools.

I still believe that every item of printed artwork should be thoroughly spell-checked, colour proofed and beautifully presented on a carefully chosen paper. I grieve for the process of yester-year that allowed time for thorough client approval, a CMYK review and cromalin reference. Websites should, indeed, have a wow-factor that makes the most of all the best technical advances, but you should also be able to navigate from one page to another without an honours degree. And whilst I am a number 1 fan of social media, I do wish that the majority of the world’s population had more interesting things to report than the contents of their breakfast or the 5-day weather forecast.

There is a science to media and marketing that is a skilled combination of art and psychology. I embrace the fact that with the continuing emersion of the internet and all that it provides, we can all be part of this very exciting world. But, it is important to remember that about half of coca-cola’s value is due to its brand strengths not simply its market capital. And Google’s brand value did not grow 36% in 2010 by simply being a functional search engine.

We can increase your brand value www.first-logic.com

Text: Jenny Seed

Dubai, Due credit

For a city that has been built on superlatives, it seems absurd to suggest that it is often under-estimated. Dubai plays host to the biggest, the tallest, the longest, and the largest of just about everything. It has golf, shopping, marinas, ski, spas, hotels and so very much more. The developmental creativity is mind-boggling and, with this in mind, it is of no surprise that it is often referred to as the “Las Vegas of the Middle East”. But this definition goes only a small way to describe all that Dubai has to offer. 

Dubai is a modern metropolis that only 10 years ago had a population of 863,000. Today that figure has more than doubled to 1.87 million. It is internationally aclaimed for all of the aforementioned feats (and fears) of construction and tourism numbers see no sign of dropping off. Dubai has grown from being a settlement, known mostly for pearl trading, to become a major business hub. Many reaped the rewards of six grand years of boom before the crash of 2009 - the scale of which it seems only a city so used to such excess could achieve. 

Today, much of the world seems happy to believe that the property market of Dubai remains on its knees (indeed, even Nakheel has reported a mass oversupply of residential properties that will take 5 years to resolve) and it cannot be denied that many a businessman has been burnt (if not thoroughly cremated) thanks to some recent turbulent economics. But that does not take into account the resilience of a destination that still possesses so much untapped potential. Whilst there may still be echoes of past agonies, it should not be overlooked that whilst the emergence of Dubai was rapid, it was not without forethought and discipline. The architects that created these masterpieces of construction were the some most talented of their time. Between the years of 2001 and 2006, Dubai managed to enjoy the highest rates of gross domestic product growth in the World. Exports grew by an astounding average of more than 28% annually from 2003 until 2008. And social factors have not been overlooked with education and healthcare services still continuing to improve.

I encourage anyone to take a journey on an arba around the lakes of the Madinat and be awed. And I doubt that there are few moments as inspiring as watching the waters leap to music at the foot of the Burj Khalifa. 

It seems to be a part of human nature to look to the past for examples of beauty and architectural expertise. Where Dubai is concerned, perhaps we should take some confidence and look to the future.

We can help you to realise the potential of your International property investment www.first-logic.com

Text: Jenny Seed

Stand out from the crowd

"Imagination is more important than knowledge." - Albert Einstein

In order to compete in an ever increasingly difficult marketplace,  it is essential to stand out from the crowd. It is not a matter of providing sound knowledge or varied experience, it is being able to to use and implement these capabilities to create something unique, innovative and exciting for your client and your buyers. 

The world of development will always be an inherently competitive one and finding a niche in your own particular market which people will find irresistible, is the key to project’s success.  Having content is taken as a given of course,  but unless the concept idea is right,  no-one will invest either their time or money with you. 

And it is the simplest ideas (behind which lies a wealth of design, research, planning, and market know-how) which are rewarded when you do get it  right and leave your competitors for dust…

Aleksandr the Meerkat is set to outsell former PM Tony Blair and ex-glamour model Katie Price when his autobiography is published this week.

 

Amazon.co.uk says pre-sale orders of A Simples Life - My Life And Times are 165% ahead, putting the amazing meerkat on track for a best-selling book.

Competitors have paled into insignificance compared with demand for the magnificently fictitious spin-off meerkat character.

The character, thought up by the VCCP advertising agency for the online  insurance comparison website : comparethemeerkat.com, has now taken on a life of his own.  Speaking exclusively to Sky News Online, the Moscow-based meerkat said: "My story of struggles, successes and Sergei is the greatest, most thrillsy book ever written by a meerkat in the bath. With this book, I am hope to inspire the next generation of young businesskats. And with royalties I am hope to re-marble.”

AND INSPIRE HE HAS! 

Recognizing the strength of this branding campaign and an opening in the market, was a stroke of development genius which must be applauded and can only be concluded by the kat himself… ‘Simples’

Be inspired:    www.first-logic.com

The power of rebranding

The Millennium Dome, often referred to as The Dome, was originally constructed to celebrate the arrival of the third millennium in the year 2000. However within one year of construction, lack of foresight turned this iconic London project into a National failure as the dome lay uninhabitable until five years later when visionary rebranding changed its fortune far in excess of even its initial success.

The Dome is the largest structure of its type in the world (designed by Sir Richard Rogers and engineered by Buro Happold) and the project included the reclamation of the Greenwich Peninsula - land that was previously contaminated by toxic waste meaning that the regeneration works were seen as an investment to benefit the whole city.

In the mid 1990's, the original concept for the millenium development were designed  on a much smaller scale. In 1997 however, the incoming Labour government expanded the project size. Tony Blair claimed that the Dome would be "a triumph of confidence over cynicism, boldness over blandness, excellence over mediocrity". However even during the first year, it became clear that the project had been badly thought out and badly executed. The Dome / New Millenium Experience entered into Liquidation to the sum of £789 million.

In 2001 the site was sold to Anshutz who developed a plan for an entertainment complex with designers HOK SVE and the original project engineers, Buro Happold to a  cost of over £600 million.  As a key factor of this transition, Anschutz devised a complete rebranding of the project in association with O2 plc. The dome was publicly renamed The O2 Arena in May 2005, in a £6 million-per-year dea.

Today,  with a capacity of  23,000, it is one of the largest indoor arenas in Europe. It has become the ultimate award-winning venue for music, comedy, entertainment, sporting events, ice shows and national public celebrations. And despite being open for only seven months of the year, the venue In 2008 , exceeded sales of over 2 million, taking the crown as the ‘World's Busiest Arena’ from 7-times winners the MEN Arena, later featured in the Guinness World Records for the largest audience for a comedy show in 2008.  The awards continue to come as the arena was named 'World's Best Venue' by Pollstar in 2009 and "Live Music Venue of the Year" in 2010 London Lifestyle Awards.

And this year, this rebranded arena has received Britain’s highest accolade as it has been announced that it shall share in the hosting of the 2012 Summer Olympics.
 
Rebrand your company for sustainable success: www.first-logic.com

The British Condition: Construction

As an architect, I am saddened to say that the construction industry, as a general statement, is not only renowned,  but actually accepted for its failings. Horror stories of project delays and wildly escalating construction costs are common-place worldwide.  A recent study of cost overrun found that 9 out of 10 international construction projects today have underestimated costs and that overruns of 50 to 100% were common,  the main cause has been identified as inadequate data and lack of  strategic business planning.

Public projects are the seemingly worst offenders such as The Sydney Opera House which was 15 times over budget or the Channel Tunnel which exceeded 80% overspend during construction. Or of course, the classic example of UK cost & time management gone mad: the new Scottish Parliament Building in Holyrood, Edinburgh.  Designed by Enric Miralles, this iconic building which should have represented a new era in Scottish politics, a symbol of National pride was scheduled for completion in 2001, but finally opened its doors at the end of 2004, over 3 years late and with an estimated final cost of £414 million, which was between 4000-10000% over budget. 

Taking all of this into account, what should concern us all is that n 2005, RIBA, the UK’s architectural representatives (of which I am one), awarded the Scottish Parliament Building the UK’s highest accolade in architecture: The Stirling Prize. Awarded annually, this prize recognises ‘excellence in architecture’ for ‘the building which has made the greatest contribution to British architecture in that year’ and laureates receive the tidy sum of £20,000 for their ‘achievement’.  Now am I missing something???  Or did this project fail on so many levels that it’s impossible to call this an architectural success or is this just another example of The British Condition? How it is that the UK has come to accept that design and construction runs late and exceeds budget?

Correlating figures from the Office of National Statistics (UK) taken between 2005 and 2010 give a clear indication of this ‘British Condition’.  It is recorded that during the past 5 years, client satisfaction for the service they received is almost reaching 80% satisfaction for the same period where just 44% of projects were delivered on time and only 46% on budget, and even more worryingly more than 25% of these rated an unacceptable level of defects at the point of handover,  and yet we were satisfied.

In order to compete on an international level, it is essential that the British construction industry demands higher and greater efficiency from the sector. The development of international consultancy services has been proven to establish more demanding UK project milestones (and penalties) in line with international expectations to accelerate UK developers into a competitive position within the international construction marketplace.  

Text: Heather Graves

We can help maintain schedule and budget: www.first-logic.com

Construction budgeting

Figures from the Office of National Statistics (UK) indicate that overall during the past five years,  the predictability of project construction costs has improved from 48% to 52% - not exactly a worthy headline of success,  however an improvement nonetheless. This figure comprises both construction and design.  The forecasting of design costs is much more secure standing at a comparatively repeatable 67%,   unlike its counterpart, construction at only 47% accuracy.

FACT: Cost overruns in construction projects are expensive. Simple. Three explanations which lead to cost overrun exist: technical, psychological and political-economic.

Technical aspects are the largest contributing factor to a project exceeding its budget. This is caused by original square metre calculations, survey information, specifications and materials costs being sourced incorrectly or inadequately and/or data not being fully considered within the framework of a financial critical path which leads to the ‘critical motorway’ the place where developers and investors alike are forced to drive faster and harder .

The second factor, psychological, accounts for the biased budget forecasting.  Experienced developers appreciate the need and long-term benefits of conducting feasibility studies in order to define a clear project strategy, cost frameworks, investment plans and critical paths.  However, the problems occur when poor or misleading studies (often worse than having no study at all) are produced by undertaking the task in-house or by contracting a third party subject internal bias). 

The third factor is political-economic.  This can be explained simply as lack of forecasting. Correct current data is essential, however a lack of knowledge when interpreting this data and intelligently predicting future political and economic trends is equally crucial to budget success.  Insufficient forecasting if not identified quickly, can lead to spiraling material costs, on site delays and unexpected design fees to compensate for these trends. In addition to this, where construction loans and/or external investments exist, this automatically results in further additional costs such as interest charges and penalty fines.

We can provide sound budget forecasting to avoid the critical motorway: www.first-logic.com