| about quality assurance, practicing without very deep
| pockets, how do foreign architects fare in India?
Architect says tough not to be 'involved' in China
Wong Yee Fong
THE next time you walk past Jinlin Tiandi, the latest development
adjacent to the trendy Xintiandi district, do give it a second look, for
the granites that frame the upscale store fronts took a long and arduous
journey to get there.
Australian architect Geoffrey Lee rejected about 50 percent of the
granites before the prized stones found their way onto the facade of the
US$60 million project.
The development comprises about 200 apartments and 5,000 square meters
of retail and entertainment space and is now home to upscale retailers
like Ferrari Cars.
"We fought very hard to retain the quality of the project," said Lee,
managing director of Australian-based architecture firm, Woodhead
International.
Some of the granite pieces had water-stains, he said, which he and his
team rejected, but not before some huffing and puffing with the local
subcontractor who wanted them to accept the defect.
Such is the painstaking process that Lee goes through day to day to
ensure that his China-based clients get what they asked for.
cont'd....
http://www.shanghaidaily.com/art/2005/11/21/216297/Architect_says_tough_not_to_be___039_involved__039__in_China.htm