NEWS
DUBAI EXPO REVEALS MAIN PAVILIONS AHEAD OF EVENT
The organisers of Expo 2020 Dubai released images of buildings by the world’s leading architects that will host next year’s coronavirus-delayed event. Dubai Expo 2020 was originally scheduled for October 2020, meaning that many of the buildings on the 438-hectare site to the south of Dubai are largely complete. The rescheduled event will now open on 1 October 2021. At the centre of the site, which has been masterplanned by American architecture firm HOK, stands the Al Wasl Plaza enclosed in a spherical building. Designed by Adrian Smith+Gordon Gill,
the plaza stands at the intersection of the expo’s three themed districts. The Sustainability Pavilion was designed by the New York and Dubai offices of architecture studio Grimshaw. The structure has been designed with a large overhanging roof that will provide shade for the surrounding gardens and exhibition spaces, as well as being a platform for solar panels. It will also harvest fresh water from the humid air. Surrounding the pavilion are a series of solar trees, which will track the sun and provide additional electricity.
Following the expo the Pavilion will reopen as a science museum. Foster+Partners’ trefoil-shaped Mobility Pavilion is also largely complete. Conceived ‘as a fairground’ for demonstrating technological innovations related to mobility, the pavilion will include a partly open-air 340-metre track for visitors to see vehicles in operation. The third district will focus on Opportunity, with a pavilion designed by AGi Architects, with images yet to be released. The Dubai Expo 2020 organisers also revealed images from within the three districts, which contain over 86 permanent buildings designed by UK studio Hopkins Architects. Along with the main thematic pavilions, the expo will feature 192 national pavilions, including a structure by Es Devlin for the UK and a pavilion topped with stained glass-style solar panels for the Dutch Pavilion. Each of the site’s main three entrances will be marked by a 21-metre-high gate designed by British architect Asif Khan. Expo 2020 Dubai will run from 1 October 2021 until 31 March 2022.
Expo 2020 – now set for October 2021 – released images of its pavilions designed by the world’s leading architectural practices
SMART PHONE LOCK WINS STATESIDE AWARD A smart-phone operated lock was named the product of the year in the USA. Accurate Lock and Hardware scooped the top accolade for its SmartEntry product in the Decorative Plumbing and Hardware Association’s annual awards. SmartEntry is a smartphone-operated mortice
lock. The battery-powered smartlock features keyless local entry via Bluetooth or remote access via ethernet bridge connection, both of which are controlled by a proprietary app. All technology components are hidden inside the mortice pocket, it is compatible with any
architectural hardware, requires no wiring through the door frame and is battery powered. The DPHA Awards aim to recognise outstanding accomplishments in the industry; create industry awareness’ and spotlight exceptional products, companies and individuals.
4 • ARCHITECTURAL IRONMONGERY JOURNAL
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