Morgan Lovell's' inspired office interior design and consultancy services will transform your office interiors to places your people want to be. Find out how! en-gb London mayor Boris Johnson has received backing over his scheme to offer foreign businesses free office space in the capital for 12 months.

Richard Kauntze, chief executive of the British Council for Offices (BCO), has said that this initiative should help London maintain its position as one of the premier destinations for businesses around the world during the recession.

He noted: "[It] is an imaginative response to the severe economic downturn.

"Rent-free periods are often used by landlords to incentivise tenants to take space."

Furthermore, Mr Kauntze stated that London offers firms a combination of skills, culture and opportunity and represents excellent value to businesses.

Meanwhile, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors reported in December that commercial property capital values could fall by 25 per cent in the next two years.

Furthermore, it predicted that the UK commercial property market could record a drop of at least 16 per cent in capital values in 2009.


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Crain's Manchester Business has reported that although the chancellor has implemented a rate exemption for properties lying empty valued less than £15,000 - many feel that Mr Darling has "fallen well short" of what the industry required to reinvigorate it.

David Cownie, director of the professional team at the Manchester office of CB Richard Ellis, told the newspaper: "The chancellor has bowed to growing pressure from the industry, but its concessions will provide little relief to the majority of those affected by the Rating Act 2007."

Meanwhile, Builder & Engineer Online recently reported that commercial property values continued to fall last month, with the Investment Property Databank's index showing a record one-month fall of 4.3 per cent - the greatest single decline in its 22-year history.


]]> Morgan Lovell office layout around the UK have been criticised by a number of leading commentators.

Piers Gough, from the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment, has described the latest proposals from the Home Office as "absolutely idiotic", claiming they will diminish the aesthetic quality of Britain's towns and cities.

The National Counter Terrorism Security Office has launched a project aimed at highlighting to architects the potential importance of making buildings less vulnerable to terrorist attacks.

Mr Gough told the Guardian: "We used to be afraid of cars but now it seems to be terrorism. It seems like another way of stopping us living a civilised life."

From this summer, architects responsible for the office design on major public projects will be briefed by government officials on how to incorporate truck-bomb barriers and panic rooms into their plans.

Last week, the government released a document described as a 'National Security Streategy', which highlighted some of the greatest threats to British people, including terrorism and global climate change.


]]> Morgan Lovell LEED) is due to change, it has been claimed.

A writer on the P-I Reader Blog at seattlepi.com has reported that the initiative will be transferred from the US Green Building Council (USGBC) to the Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI).

She noted that, since the launch of the professional accreditation initiative in 2001, over 40,000 individuals have gained LEED recognition.

Danielle Johnson said: "GBCI will now be the place to learn about LEED Professional Accreditation, register for the LEED AP Exam, find LEED Accredited Professionals in your area, access your LEED AP exam records, and manage your LEED AP Directory listing."

She added that the USGBC would continue to manage the development of LEED while also providing those interested in the scheme with educational opportunities and other resources.

The USGBC notes that LEED accreditation provides verification from an independent third party that a building project meets the standard of green office design and sustainability.
]]> Morgan Lovell carbon neutral non-domestic buildings, according to the UK Green Building Council (UKGBC).

The organisation believes that the timeframe for the adoption of such environmentally-friendly initiatives is "challenging yet achievable".

Chief executive of the UKGBC Paul King states that the government and construction industry both need to take responsibility.

"[The] government needs to accept its responsibility to set good policy focusing on outcomes and in return industry can - and must - respond and innovate. UK-GBC members are up for ambitious targets on sustainability," he explains.

The report, Carbon Reductions on New Non-domestic Buildings, was commissioned by Communities and Local Government and suggests that the additional cost of constructing to carbon neutral standards will be between five and 30 per cent of current baseline costs.

The UKGBC was launched in February 2007 and campaigns for a sustainable built environment.
]]> Morgan Lovell sustainability in Britain under new guidelines.

All school buildings - including ancillary structures such as offices - built in Wales after the start of the current academic year must achieve a rating of excellent under the Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (Breeam) for schools.

This compares to England's requirement that new build and refurbishment projects must achieve a very good Breeam rating, the Times Education Supplement Cymru notes.

Breeam spokesperson Christina Gulvanessian notes that that to date there is no school structure in the UK that has an excellent rating.

Pupil and staff health and wellbeing are also to be taken into consideration under the new guidelines.

Breeam rates buildings against a range of criteria and provides a score which falls within a band, thus providing a structure with a rating of pass, good, very good or excellent.
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The scheme will demand the buildings reach a number of standards that are based on the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) system, according to Gulf News.

Chairman of the EmiratesGBC Dr Sadek Owainati told the publication that emphasis was being placed on the conservation of water due to the scarcity of the resource in the region as part of alterations to make the scheme more suited to the UAE.

"We have enhanced the system to suit the region ... the sustainability parameters need to be adapted to give better solutions for the future," he added.

According to the publication, the EmiratesGBC aims to have the LEED Emirates rating system sanctioned by this time next year.

Formed in July 2006, the EmiratesGBC aims to promote green building principles to protect the environment and adopt a positive attitude towards sustainability in the UAE.
]]> Morgan Lovell LEED) for Neighbourhood Development programme, it has been reported.

Biscayne Landing, which will comprise some 180,000 sq ft of offices, almost 300,000 sq ft of retail space, over 6,000 residential units and a 200-room hotel, is one of 260 projects accepted into the scheme, according to the Coral Gables Gazette.

The programme took on developments that took a positive attitude towards sustainability through promoting efficient water and energy use and adopting new urbanism and environmentally-friendly ideas as part of design principles.

Kevin Burns, North Miami mayor, told the publication: "The city of North Miami is proud to be the home of the only Miami-Dade County registered project in the LEED for Neighbourhood Development Pilot Programme."

It was recently reported by Greener Buildings that an increasing number of existing structures are undergoing environmentally-friendly revamps under LEED-Existing Buildings guidelines.
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In news that may lead to an increase in the uptake of sustainable office design, the Dormitory Authority will require its new construction projects to be meet Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) guidelines.

Head of the US Green Building Council's (USGBC) New York chapter Fiona Cousins commented that the idea of bringing in such policies is not a new one, but stated that it was a positive move.

David Brown, head of the Dormitory Authority, stated that he did not anticipate much resistance to the project, noting that a number of other agencies have been pursuing similar environmentally-aware projects.

The Dormitory Authority is a state agency that provides funding and construction services to universities and healthcare facilities and currently has over 70 projects in various stages of construction. All its buildings after this number must comply with the new regulations.
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Reports from real estate adviser Jones Lang LaSalle suggests that the office market in Leeds has rapidly increased, with demand for office space leading to greater demand in Yorkshire.

This could lead to growth in office space planning as businesses and firms in the region aim to make best use of commercial property.

Jeff Pearey, head of office agency at Jones Lang LaSalle says that "2007 will see increased demand for office space in the Leeds market from sectors such as law, IT and insurance, which are either outperforming the national employment forecast trend or are subject to corporate change driven by regulation and consolidation".

He adds that more than 50 per cent of 600,000 sq ft has already been committed with remaining supply approaching the 200,000 sq ft mark.

It was recently reported that planning permission for a new business park outside Cardiff had been granted, which could see the creation of up to 100,000 sq ft of office space.
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