Cost vs. production: disparities in social housing construction in Britain and Germany

The nature of the labour process in the British construction industry is different from that in Germany. The rationale of the British system is based on controlling costs through overseeing contract relations, themselves circumscribing a range of narrow, clearly defined and priced tasks. The production process has become secondary and production expertise restricted. In contrast, in Germany cost aspects are incorporated into, rather than separated from, the production system, built on the interaction of capital and labour and on a high level of production expertise. Employment relations rather than contract relations predominate and circumscribe a set of skills drawn from the potential of the labour force and dependent on broad‐based vocational education. A detailed investigation of social housebuilding projects and the firms involved in Britain and Germany reveals the need for more skills, and a qualitatively different constellation of skills, professional and operative, in Britain.     

Perceptions of owners in German construction projects: congruence with project risk theory

The construction industry is a major user of formal project risk management practices, yet risk is often dealt with inadequately, which is a contributory factor to poor performance. Conceptual developments propose a holistic view of risk incorporating threats and opportunities and the management of uncertainty. To optimize a risk management process there needs to be a reflection of this holistic view in management practice. A key project participant is the owner and understanding the perceptions of project risk of construction owners is an important step in assessing the degree to which practices reflect theory. Semi‐structured interviews were conducted with 10 practitioners in German construction owner organizations to explore their perceptions of project risk. The results showed no common definition of project risk and a general belief that risk equated to threat. Some owners did manage opportunities and saw a link between threats and opportunities, yet this practice seemed more the result of experience than an awareness that it was an integral part of a theoretical risk management framework. Most owners perceived risk to encompass uncertainty and the sources of uncertainty perceived as most important were those linked to a longer timescale, such as the ability to let out buildings.     

The determination of occupancy costs during early project phases

In addition to the earnings, costs determine the commercial success of real estate investments. The discussion in the German‐speaking region focuses on occupancy costs and their planning. When planning, the occupancy costs must be determined early, continually monitored, and controlled if necessary. A process for determining occupancy costs, the construction element process, is presented and tested using an actual property. The test results deviate by only approximately 8% from the occupancy costs actually incurred. The process demonstrates its suitability for the early determination of occupancy costs using only a few pieces of data on the property. However, it does require occupancy cost indicators. Also, the significant drivers of these indictors must be known in order to select the appropriate indicator. For this reason, future work on occupancy costs must not only collect additional data, but the data must also be analysed with regard to the cost drivers.     

Qualifications in the German construction industry: stocks,flows and comparisons with the British construction sector

The paper provides an overview of qualifications in the German construction workforce and draws comparisons with the situation in the British construction industry. The German system of general education and vocational training is outlined. Data from a variety of sources are used to describe both the stocks and the flows of qualifications in the German construction workforce. Particular attention is paid to vocational qualifications, such as apprenticeships and the Meister qualification. Key findings are that the majority of German construction workers are qualified up to apprenticeship level, and that most of these employees have achieved a general schooling certificate from at least a lower secondary school prior to their vocational training. These factors are taken as signs of strength of the German construction workforce. Comparisons between the stocks of qualifications in the construction industry in the two countries suggest that intermediate qualifications of the apprenticeship type are far less prevalent in the British construction workforce.     

A qualifications trap in the German construction industry: changing the production model and the consequences for the training system in the German construction industry

German construction companies traditionally rely on qualified workers. This has influenced both their production model (work organization on site) and their policy towards training and education. Due to the massive inflow of workers from countries with low labour costs, firms may fundamentally change this model to a new one which is distinguished by the combination of less qualified workers with a larger number of managers for instruction, supervision and control. This change is initially likely to have a considerable knock-on effect on the training system. However, what is even worse is that the new model is not likely to work in the long run. To date the construction industry has acquired its site managers and supervisors directly from the pool of qualified workers. By reducing training it produces a shortage of the very resource inevitably needed to be able to reduce training. The industry will fall into a qualifications trap. What is more significant is that this trap is shown as a first step towards lowering corporate image, quality of human resources, productivity and, in the end, competitiveness.     

青岛德国近代建筑中的青年风格派设计初探

19世纪末,20世纪初,德国占领青岛时期所建造的近代德国建筑中,有许多体现着德国青年风格派设计的作品。该文首先追溯了德国青年风格派的历史,接下来从青年风格派在青岛德国建筑的建筑装饰细部、立面造型方面的表现进行了详细论述,并重点分析了青岛德国青年风格派的代表性建筑,最后对青岛德国青年风格派建筑的影响及其价值进行了总结。     

从工业废弃地到绿色公园: 卡尔.亚历山大矿山公园景观改造简

卡尔·亚历山大矿山基址原是德国贝斯韦勒市一座废弃的露天煤矿。20世纪90年代以后,在相关环境立法的促进下,矿区植被得到了全面再造和恢复。2002年,在一次针对矿山及周边区域改造的景观规划设计竞赛中,德国DTP景观事务所以矿山改造为契机,通过对景观结构的改变将这里转变成为一条以未来为导向的、多方向发展的主动脉,从而带动区域振兴。一期实施的矿山公园,通过架设“空中廊道”的方式成功地解决了矿山保护与城市发展之间的矛盾,为城市更新注入了新的活力,这里也成为了贝斯韦勒市独一无二的地标。在该项目中展现的设计尊重现状、景观推动区域发展的策略,为我国的后工业景观改造提供了有益的借鉴。     

德国化妆品和盥洗用品市场走出低谷

到2009年底,德国已经开始快速从经济空洞中走出,并且2010年上半年延续了良好发展势头。据业内人士分析,德国化妆品和盥洗用品市场确实再次前行,在经过一段损失和不确定性的时期后,2009年德国所有的化妆品和盘洗用品公司都取得了良好的收益。     

德国绿色电力营销政策

德国的发电燃料结构以煤和核能为主;同时,可再生能源,主要是大型水电也占了一部分,近年来发展最快的可再生能源是风能。德国绿色电力产品分为3类,即纯大型水电、可再生能源电力与热电联产混合产品以及纯可再生能源电力。德国的第一个绿色电价项目出现于上世纪90年代中期,在德国开展了绿色电力营销和认证体系,同时,该国传统上的可再生能源政策更加注重对可再生能源发电的直接支持,而不是对市场的零售端提供激励措施。     

德国建筑中雨水收集利用

德国是世界上在雨水收集利用方面最先进的国家之一。通过对波茨坦广场等德国建筑的考察研究。展示了雨水收集利用在德国建筑中的广泛应用，以及在不同类型和不同规模的建筑中采取不同的雨水收集利用的措施。同时分析了德国的公共政策在推动雨水收集利用的广泛应用中所起的重要作用。