| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Martha Gunn |
Posted - 29/06/2007 : 21:39:48
The paving slabs come from China. Can we be assured that they were not mined using children, who were paid pittence, and worked under dangerous conditions?
I hope so.
Even if they were dug out of the ground using child labour bordering on slavery, at least its given New Road a con-ti-nen-tal flavour so its all good isn't it.
Could the slabs not have come from up north or was rock sourced 1000's of miles away explicitly specified by the scandinavian consultants? |
| 25 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Infinite Poppadum |
Posted - 19/07/2007 : 12:10:09
The restaurant at the corner of North street has been painted white again nd so have the columns outside it. This looks much better. For a while it had been a very depressing green out of keeping with the area. |
| steve71 |
Posted - 04/07/2007 : 10:43:27
quote:
Originally posted by fartin1976
Yes, that is an excessively long construction period but it is the same everywhere. Contractors keep spreading themselves really thinly over loads of sites as there is so much work and no labour available.
A junction in London we designed the upgrade for has been on temporary lights for 6 months now. It should have only taken 2 months to replace three islands, the signals and controller!
I'm sure this is all true, but in the case of New Road, I can assure you, the size of the workforce wasn't the issue (except on Saturdays & Sundays when 2 fellas turned up to scratch their arses and drink tea all morning)...the issue was more to do with how little the majority of the workforce were actually doing. As a benchmark, the amount of work that got done in the week leading up to the Queen's visit was about 5 times that of any other week during the project...once she'd been and gone we returned to the 'go slow' ethic. |
| Miriam Binder |
Posted - 02/07/2007 : 14:51:53
A gap in the labour market? Here in Britain where everyone is eager to work? |
| fartin1976 |
Posted - 02/07/2007 : 14:33:41
Yes, that is an excessively long construction period but it is the same everywhere. Contractors keep spreading themselves really thinly over loads of sites as there is so much work and no labour available.
A junction in London we designed the upgrade for has been on temporary lights for 6 months now. It should have only taken 2 months to replace three islands, the signals and controller!
|
| steve71 |
Posted - 02/07/2007 : 13:37:18
...and that's not to mention the cost of the construction work. Believe me, as a New Road resident who's had the misfortune to wake to the sound of angle grinders for the last 8 months, the most infuriating waste of budget went on a workforce who never appeared to spend more than 50% of the day actually doing anything...that adds up on a project of this length... |
| fartin1976 |
Posted - 02/07/2007 : 11:34:23
Designing and building anything in the UK is expensive, have you had a builder around your house recently? Well it is an expensive place to live.
It is ok though my engineering company is sending most of its design work to India as people of Britain don’t like paying the going rate for British design, the same way they don’t like paying the going rate for British granite and import it from China.
|
| Captain Hawkeye |
Posted - 01/07/2007 : 19:18:50
quote:
Originally posted by Daveb
Amazing really.
A paved space, a few benches and how much did it cost to design and build?
Mind boggling cost for a glorified patio!
Experts! Huh!
I would have been nice for some of the talent in Brighton to get the credit for that. |
| Daveb |
Posted - 01/07/2007 : 18:57:08
Amazing really.
A paved space, a few benches and how much did it cost to design and build?
Mind boggling cost for a glorified patio!
Experts! Huh! |
| Captain Hawkeye |
Posted - 01/07/2007 : 18:43:28
Some background information about the New Road development and people behind it.
http://www.brightonbusiness.co.uk/htm/ni20070623.683630.htm
http://www.riba.org/go/RIBA/About/RIBALondon_3935.html
|
| Miriam Binder |
Posted - 30/06/2007 : 19:30:30
No, I'm afraid you are right. |
| long time no see |
Posted - 30/06/2007 : 19:20:41
Return to the Old days
without imports.
That will never happen |
| Miriam Binder |
Posted - 30/06/2007 : 19:10:21
quote:
Originally posted by long time no see
Never happen sadly.
What will never happen LTNS? |
| long time no see |
Posted - 30/06/2007 : 19:07:17
Never happen sadly. |
| Miriam Binder |
Posted - 30/06/2007 : 19:02:02
No, not just idealistic ... it certainly should be the way we do things. I am very much afraid though that it may be too late to reverse the trend and that we will certainly see them emerge as a world power, certainly economically. |
| Daveb |
Posted - 30/06/2007 : 18:58:44
Just an idealistic thought.
The cost would be huge.
The result of fuelling the Far East economy may be greater in the long term. |
| Miriam Binder |
Posted - 30/06/2007 : 18:57:03
quote:
Originally posted by Daveb
We need to rebuild our own industry now and stop importing.
Certainly we do ... but can you see us stopping the importation of cheap, albeit shoddy, goods? |
| long time no see |
Posted - 30/06/2007 : 18:55:52
quote:
Originally posted by Daveb
We need to rebuild our own industry now and stop importing.
That will Never happen
under Corrupt New Labour UK Power. |
| Daveb |
Posted - 30/06/2007 : 18:53:58
We need to rebuild our own industry now and stop importing. |
| Miriam Binder |
Posted - 30/06/2007 : 18:50:37
China and the rest of the far East is the up and coming world power ... Mark my words! |
| Daveb |
Posted - 30/06/2007 : 18:48:24
It is just as bad to deal with China than to give a few bribes to the Arabs to sell our arms.
Lets face it where would you like to live.
By transferring industry to China and fuelling its economy the west has created a far more dangerous animal.
Cheap goods will cost us dear in the end. |
| Captain Hawkeye |
Posted - 30/06/2007 : 10:41:00
quote:
Originally posted by Martha Gunn
The paving slabs come from China. Can we be assured that they were not mined using children, who were paid pittence, and worked under dangerous conditions?
I hope so.
Even if they were dug out of the ground using child labour bordering on slavery, at least its given New Road a con-ti-nen-tal flavour so its all good isn't it.
Could the slabs not have come from up north or was rock sourced 1000's of miles away explicitly specified by the scandinavian consultants?
Not just children. Prison labour and general working conditions that would never be acceptable in Europe. |
| caeos |
Posted - 30/06/2007 : 01:16:49
ok, if this is meant to be a car free road, why put - at each end- the flying motorbike signs that are so high up you need to be on the upper deck of a bus to read them?
|
| Martha Gunn |
Posted - 29/06/2007 : 22:48:04
quote:
Originally posted by Infinite Poppadum
Have the slabs been tested for the weight of taxis?
well, they certainly stain like every other slab in Brighton! |
| Infinite Poppadum |
Posted - 29/06/2007 : 22:01:43
Have the slabs been tested for the weight of taxis? |
| long time no see |
Posted - 29/06/2007 : 21:44:44
China
I guess that saved them Big Money.
Sign Of The Times. |
