Ahead of its annual general meeting on Tuesday, Taylor Wimpey told investors that build cost inflation is “now expected to be low to mid-single digit for 2026”, with cost pressure and surcharges “starting to come through from our supply chain”. Source link
Get the inside track from Roisin O’Connor with our free weekly music newsletter Now Hear This Get our free music newsletter Now Hear This Get our free music newsletter Now Hear This A local construction worker helping to build the stage for Shakira’s upcoming Brazil concert has died after suffering “crushing injuries,” organizers have confirmed. A statement posted to social media by the concert’s organizers said “an accident this Sunday afternoon (April 26th) tragically claimed the life of a professional who was working on assembling the structures for the show.” The “Hips Don’t Lie” singer’s Todo Mundo No Rio concert is scheduled to take place May 2 in Rio, Brazil. In a statement provided to The Independent, Shakira said: “I am deeply saddened about what occurred yesterday. I learned that while preparing the production for this weekend’s show, a local worker tragically lost his life in an accident. “I am truly devastated for his family and loved ones. My heart goes out to his family, friends and colleagues.” A construction worker building the stage for …
Stability between the sticks provides a reliable base upon which to build Source link
LOS ANGELES (AP) — It looks like a freeway on-ramp as it hovers over Wilshire Boulevard, but people behind the new building anchoring the Los Angeles County Museum of Art define it with aquatic imagery. The free-flowing sections of the David Geffen Galleries housing the museum’s permanent collection are named for the Pacific Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean, the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, and they’re meant to run together physically and culturally in the way bodies of water do. Technically, the Geffen Galleries represent the third phase of a two-decade series of renovations. But the opening of this space to the public on May 4 is the truly huge moment of reinvention for the institution known to locals and the broader art world by the acronym LACMA. It’s a $724 million, 347,600 square-foot (32,293 square-meter) monument designed by Swiss architect Peter Zumthor that gives the museum an entirely new orientation, footprint, feeling and, ideally, an identity that it has largely lacked to the outside world. The space — all on a single second-story floor …
Source: Satellite image from Vantor on Apr. 10. Over the last few months, China has been quietly and quickly building an island in disputed waters off the coast of Vietnam that will help Beijing continue to dominate one of the most crucial waterways in the world. China claims about 90 percent of the South China Sea, including parts that are also claimed by several Southeast Asian countries. Satellite imagery going back to November shows Chinese dredgers building a crescent-shaped island on Antelope Reef in the Paracels, a cluster of islands and reefs where China, Taiwan and Vietnam have competing claims. By April, the edges of the island had been shaped and jetties, a helipad and unpaved roads were visible. It was almost twice the size of New York’s Central Park and appeared to still be under construction. Analysts say that given its size and the ongoing expansion, Antelope Reef is likely to become one of China’s largest military outposts in the region. Such islands typically have airstrips, radar, electronic warfare facilities and missile bunkers. The …
According to the Deloitte AI Institute 2026 State of AI report, nearly 74% of companies plan to deploy agentic AI within two years. Yet only one in five (21%) reports having a mature model for governance of autonomous agents. Executives are most concerned with data privacy and security (73%); legal, intellectual property, and regulatory compliance (50%); followed closely by governance capabilities and oversight (46%). Enterprises may not even realize they are treating agents within their environment as first-class citizens with the keys to the kingdom, creating looming blind spots and potential points of exposure. What is needed is a robust control plane that governs, observes, and secures how AI agents, as well as their tools and models, operate across the enterprise. “A control plane is the shared, centralized layer governing who can run which agents, with which permissions, under which policies, and using which models and tools,” according to Andrew Rafla, principal, Deloitte Cyber Practice. “Without a true control plane, you don’t really have the ability to scale agents autonomously—you just have unmanaged execution, and …
Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more When it comes to before and afters, planning your dream extension and maximising living space is right up there when it comes to home renovations. Especially with the cost of moving and the housing market being relatively stagnant, many homeowners are choosing to invest in improving what they already have. And summer, in particular, offers the ideal opportunity to extend, with longer days, better weather, and chance to have your space ready to enjoy when it matters most. “Whether you’re looking to create more downstairs space with seamless indoor-outdoor living, or add an extra bedroom as your family grows, a summer extension can transform how you live.” “Just in time to make the most of brighter months and beyond,” highlights Costel Radescu, founder of …
Former London Fire Commissioner Lord Roe is said to have made significant improvements to the way the Building Safety Regulator works (Collage by Antonello Sticca) 8 min read57 min The Building Safety Regulator is under new leadership. Will it succeed in fixing a broken system? Noah Vickers reports England’s Building Safety Regulator did not get off to the best of starts. Created under the last government’s Building Safety Act of 2022, the BSR was designed to prevent a tragedy like the Grenfell Tower fire from ever happening again. As well as overseeing the remediation of existing buildings, all new-build developments which qualify as ‘higher-risk’ at the planning stage are referred to the regulator for approval, and if they fail to pass muster, are sent back for changes to be made. The definition of ‘higher-risk’ means any block of flats taller than 18 metres, or seven storeys, comes under the BSR’s purview. But soon after the regulator’s establishment, it quickly struggled with the volume of applications it was receiving, and delays mounted …
Presented by Retool The logic used to be: buying software is cheaper, faster, and safer for most use cases. Building was reserved for companies with large engineering teams, deep pockets, and problems so specific that no vendor could address them. But now, the cost to code a piece of software has dropped to zero. Anyone can build their own software now, but enterprise and governance models have yet to catch up. Retool’s 2026 Build vs. Buy Shift Report, based on a survey of 817 builders, traces exactly how this shift is playing out. The cost curve changed; SaaS pricing didn’t Two years ago, a custom internal tool might have taken an engineering team weeks or months and cost six figures. Today, an operations lead with the right platform can have a working prototype in a day or two. This structural shift is driven by AI-assisted development and the maturation of enterprise app-building platforms. Meanwhile, SaaS pricing hasn’t adjusted, still charging per-seat for generic software that requires customization and integration costs on top. When the cost …
Erewhon, the iconic LA grocery store known for its $20-plus smoothies, will soon open at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art as part of a new partnership. LACMA is currently preparing to open its new, Peter Zumthor–design building, officially called the David Geffen Galleries, this spring, with members getting access beginning April 19 and the public opening coming on May 4. Erewhon will similarly have its opening timed to the new building, with members getting early access ahead of the café’s public debut. Related Articles It’s unclear if the Erewhon pop-up is only temporary—a press release says it will “be available through the summer”—or if the grocery store is testing the waters to see if it will be profitable before committing to a long-term residency at the museum. The Erewhon outpost will be located in the building’s northeast pavilion, called the W.M. Keck Plaza, and facing the recently reinstalled Three Quintains (Hello Girls) sculpture by Alexander Calder. “We are excited to launch Erewhon at LACMA for the opening season of the David Geffen Galleries,” …
