Architecture + Business + Software…
Well the conference finished and I still had another day in Malta, so today we headed off to Valletta.
The streets were amazing, everything is so incredibly dense but it doesn’t seem crowded in anyway just extremely historic.
Today was the first day I’ve ever seen an elliptical dome which was simply amazing!
The architecture is mostly Baroque but also includes some Neo-classical and Modern Architecture.
It was great to see Xero’s recent annoucement about raising more capital.
The main thing this highlights to me and I talked about this in an earlier post: Even with economic times being the worst they have been for 60 years there is still opportunities to grow.
It also highlights that I have heard mentioned previously “Raise Capital before you need it as it will be easier to source than when you actually need it!”
My travels this time have taken me to Malta for Graphisofts International Partner Conference.
After last year only just arriving at the conference a couple of hours before it started, this year I decided to arrive a couple of days early to avoid the stress.
Yesterday two of my Swedish friends and I set off on a mountain bike around the island. We didn’t actually do a complete circuit but certainly saw an enormous part of the island.
Fortunately for me, having not been on a bike for a couple of years, the Maltese drive on the left so all I had to worry about the pot holes. However as an British ex-pat said
The British drive on the left, the Europeans drive on the right and the Maltese drive in the shade.
So there were a few hairy moments!
Anyway check out the photos below:
Which is why on Saturday we did the 5 man-relay not the Solo Ultra-Marathon of the Te Houtaewa Challenge 2009
At 8:30 Saturday morning Sally set off to run the first 3 km section of the 63km Relay down Northland’s Ninety Mile Beach. For the next 4:47:19 we took our turn to run a 3km section and then drive down the beach slowly making our way from the bluff to Ahipara.
The team consisted of:
All of them seasoned pro’s having run the event as many as 6 times before (it only started in 2003!) I was new to the relay but had run the extremely monotonous Half Marathon back in ’99.
The guys were a little nervous at the start when they heard there were 5 other teams entered this year, however the nervousness was uncalled for as we ended up winning by over 45minutes.
Hats off must go to Tony Ahern though as he finished only 38 minutes after us having run the whole 63km himself!
Hats off also to the organisers – the event is very well run and has a fantastic Far North Community feel about it.
Sometimes watching history taking place is not what it is cracked up to be.
Last night I watched history being made in the Super 14 as the lowest score ever was recorded – 6-0 to the Highlanders over the Crusaders.
That said even in such a low scoring affair and against an under strength Crusaders side a win is a win and must be enjoyed! Not only did we beat the Crusaders but we also became the first team in Super Rugby History to hold the Crusaders scoreless – an amazing feat in itself.
As a Highlanders supporter since day one, life has been pretty tough – we had a great couple of years in 98/99Â but since then nothing much has eventuated and it was the Crusaders themselves who denied the Highlanders their only title chance.
One of my friends is a Crusaders supporter who has had one up on me for a long time – I can just hear the excuses he’ll be making about last night!
However, aside from a low scoring game, the biggest irony yesterday was that 3 games of rugby were played in New Zealand in glorious conditions – why therefore can we not get a full one day game of cricket played against the Indians!
Using the Internet to communicate and sell is basically taken for granted these days, however from time-to-time it never ceases to amaze me on how quick things can happen. Also because everything is handled electronically the ability to monitor and analyze results is incredible – in days gone by it was time intensive to try to determine responses to direct mail campaigns and the information was never very accurate.
Yesterday Cadimage Tools announced the release of a book – the GDL Handbook:
At 4:18pm I sent 3942 Emails to all my Customers – (customers who have opted in to receive Newsletters so not Spam!)
The Email, while focusing on the Book, also had a couple of other topics of interest to our customers and included a series of links that the customers could follow for further information about the Topics.
Within 2 minutes of sending the email customers were already clicking the links.
Within 10 minutes the it was easy to see that the two links relating to the GDL Handbook were the most popular links.
At 4:24pm we received the first Sale of our new book! 6 Minutes after the original email – Wow!
By 10:19pm (6 Hours 1 minute after email) we had orders for 9 Books from Australia, Germany, Luxembourg and the USA
Having now arrived at the office (8:12am next day) I have looked at the ‘link stats’ which are also interesting:
In the first 16 hours:
We have received 709 Clicks from 403 Unique Customers (approx 10% of email recipients)
229 Clicks have been registered against a PDF of sample pages from the Book
130 Clicks have been registered against the Product Page on our Website where customers can purchase the Book
While some of these numbers aren’t necessarily big, it is the speed of them that amazes me.
Now while the above makes it sound easy to do business on the Internet this is certainly not the case:
The main point is though, all this effort is being rewarded and because of the infrastructure we have build we know we can easily launch new products quickly and make sales from around the world.
As a first year architecture student 15 years ago one our History of Architecture papers was to profile an international Architect.
All 90 of us in the class had to profile a different architect, so the day the list went up for us to select our architect was quite chaotic!
Many people in the class, including myself, were keen to profile the Finnish-born Eero Saarinen.
Today I received an email from AutoDesSys the makers of FormZ announcing a new 3D modelling program called Bonszai3d that has just been launched as a BETA. The email then had a feature on Saarinen’s TWA Terminal at New York’s JFK that has been modelled for an exhibition on Saarinen.
Checkout the Model of this amazing building designed 50 years ago.
Checkout the Eero Saarinen Exhibition.
When I look back on my studies and see where technology and software have come over the last 15 years, I can’t help but think but I could do if I was studying architecture today.
Incidentally, I wasn’t quick enough to signup to profile Saarinen, however, keeping with the Nordic theme I profiled Sigurd Lewerentz, one of the two architects of the Stockholm Woodland Cemetery:
Currently being in Atlanta I couldn’t help myself but to post a short piece on what will likely be one of the world’s most historic events – the inauguration of President-elect Barack Obama!
Last night I flew over the top of Washington and based on the statistics I was hearing today I think that is a close as I want to get!
They are predicting over 2 million people will head out to see the inauguration ‘live.’ I say ‘live’ because by some accounts some people will actually be as many as 27 blocks away from where it all takes place.
To cap it off today (the day before the big event) is Martin Luther King day so in the words of one man I was talking to at breakfast “we’re in the middle of four days of celebration.”
Some people are saying the inauguration overshadows the importance of today – I believe however it actually makes the significance of the event that much greater.
I know tomorrow virtually the whole US will stand still – I am sure there will be plenty other places around the world that do so too.
Yesterday I finally got to visit the BMW Welt – Situated next to the BMW Production Plant, Headquarters and Museum the Welt is the Showcase for all things BMW. (Welt is the German word for World.)
However the Welt is more than that, is is also the winner of the Production Category in the World Architecture Festival Awards 2008. (The same awards that Patterson Associates were in – just a different category.)
The story of the Welt Design Competition I think is fantastic:
275 architecture firms submitted tenders for the BMW Welt, and the jury’s decision was unanimous. The winning design was by Professor Wolf D. Prix and the Viennese architecture firm Coop Himmelb(l)au.
As a student, Professor Prix attended lectures by Professor Karl Schwanzer, the architect of the BMW headquarters – the so-called 4-Cylinder Building – and the BMW Museum. On one occasion, Professor Schwanzer’s lecture was interrupted as there was a call for him. When he came back he said to his students: “Today is like Christmas for me – I have won the BMW Tower!†Exactly 30 years later, Professor Prix was giving a lecture in Vienna himself. This lecture was also interrupted: “You have won the BMW Welt competition!”
The museum was absolutely incredible and well worth a visit – even if you are not into cars!
Check out the Satellite View in Google Maps to see what BMW paint on the roof of their circular museum – though I warn you it isn’t too surpising!
Note: I apologise for the photo quality as I only had my phone with me! For better images and also design sketches and plans check out the BMW Welt Website.
It is not surprising, given my background and eduction, that when I find myself with spare time during my travels that I enjoy walking around and checking out the local architecture.
Today I found myself with spare time in Munich and while I only had my phone (not sure how I managed to leave my camera at home) I was able to find immense variety in the local architecture.
From the historic National Theatre and the Theatine Church; to the 1972 Munich Olympic Park; through to the BMW Welt and the recently completed Museum Brandhorst the architecture was varied and amazing.
