Where is the biggest construction project?

Where is the most activity in the construction world?

Right now the largest construction project in the world is the Al Maktoum International Airport, Dubai. This massive project is set to cover 21 square miles. Just for scale, the Vatican city is .17 square miles. This airport alone has the area to support a large city. On large projects like this, we all know that there will be a master plan followed by several design phases. Many designers enjoy creating on their own terms, but in a project like this, each designer has to be humble enough to realize that their impact may blend into the larger scheme.

Although large projects can be incredibly frustrating to work on, the beauty of the struggle forces everyone to have a bit of humility. When you're working on a large project and you feel little to no significance, understand that at the completion of the project can still be fulfilling. Many times as designers, we lose sight of the overall importance of what we are designing. At times, it can be hard to push through a job, especially when we don't see the purpose. If you can remember the purpose, designing will be much more bearable during the struggles.

That's an Airport???

This has to be more than an airport...

When we think of airports, we usually just think of the hubs that connect us from one flight to another. Very rarely do we say, "Yay! I can't wait to go to the airport". We knowingly get ripped off when we pay for overnight parking. We get our enthusiasm shut down at the TSA checkpoint. Then we finally break through the procedures in order to have the freedom of choice between our favourite processed foods. All jokes aside, most experiences at airports are less than ideal. However, the Singapore Changi Airport is one of the few hubs that flips this notion on its head.

The Singapore Changi Airport has received over 500 airport awards. Amenities found here are not even found in many metropolitan downtown areas. For example, this airport is home to kinetic sculptures , a nature-themed entertainment and retail complex, and even a spiderman that crawls up and down the control tower. This is a place that you might go visit without even knowing that it's an airport. When we concentrate on modern design, our focus has to remain on the experience and memories that we can provide the consumer.

Why Skyscrapers?

Good question right?

We seem to have a fascination with tall buildings, but why? What if we had smaller buildings and only a couple of skyscrapers? I understand that from an efficiency and density standpoint, skyscrapers are useful. However, I'm not convinced that they support the best quality of life.

I remember one day when I was emerging from the depths of the beautiful New York City subway system. Not only was I struck by outside light, but I was also taken back by a sign that I saw. The sign said that, "1 in 4 New Yorkers will die from a heart attack". I thought to myself, "WOW. That's Insane". I was puzzled as to why this might be, but then I took a second and looked around. If you look around New York or look at a map, you will notice that the only large open space is central park. Now, you might think, "That's a huge park! Central Park is great for everyone!". Except you realize that if you are located on the North or South of the main island, access is not that easy. With that being said, you can understand how cramming a large amount of people in tall buildings, with subpar open space can lead to an uptick in heart attacks. New York will always be New York, but how we choose to make incremental changes in the design overtime will play a role in our health and quality of life.