Posted on April 2, 2014 in the category(s) General
PS3d recently organised a Grand Prix karting night at Karting North East, the North’s premier kart circuit, owned by former BRC rally champion Guy Wilks. AMA’s sole representative Ollie Currie lined up second on the grid, and took the lead into the first corner, in what were very very very foggy conditions. With the lead gained at the first corner, a track both wet and dry in places and a dozen other racers OC managed to put in some impressive lap times to take overall victory. The quickest lap being less than 2 seconds off the lap record set in dry conditions, sterling effort.
Huge thanks to PS3d for organising the event and hopefully see everyone and a few more at the next one…
Posted on February 27, 2014 in the category(s) General
One of the latest AMA projects on site is now rapidly being erected on site at Cheyne Walk, Northampton. The project being constructed in Light Gauge Steel [LGS] is on site with Meldrum Construction Services and is now moving upwards very quickly with the time effective LGS method. The building is a purpose built scheme for the client in the Conservation Area of the town and is aiming to acheive BREEAM ‘Very Good’.
It is due for completion in August 2014.
Posted on February 3, 2014 in the category(s) Latest News
Children from Greengate Infant School in Barrow made a short journey next door to the site where construction of Barrow’s new £6.5m Care Home is under way. The children were invited by the main contractor, GB Building Solutions, to paint a section of the hoarding surrounding the site and decided to base it on a sea theme. The school children wanted to use the theme having recently read The Snail and the Whale, the tale of a tiny mollusc which hitches a ride on the back of a humpback whale.
“AMA and GB have been working on the project for the past few years and getting the community to become heavily involved is really great to see. The children had an absolutely fantastic time”. The new 60 bed Care Home is labelled as being Cumbria’s premier Home with the brief to acheive University of Sterling Gold Standard.
Posted on January 6, 2014 in the category(s) Latest News
For Christmas 2013 AMA decided to limit the printed and posted Christmas cards and maximise financial support to charities and organisations that may require the support. Before the Christmas break staff were asked to nominate worthy causes and 3 were chosen: The Architects Benevolent Society, which supports architects, technologists and landscape architects. The Stroke Association, a charity close to many of our hearts, and last, but by no means least, the North of Tyne Mountain Rescue Team, with whom Ollie is a volunteer, and who together give up a lot of time for training, searching for missing/injured persons and supporting local events such as the Kielder Marathon.
For more info on any of the above charities see the link for the websites below:
www.absnet.org.uk
www.stroke.org.uk
www.northoftynesearchandrescue.org.uk
Posted on December 19, 2013 in the category(s) AMAttects
I enjoyed the series ‘Professional Master Chef’ on television and I was struck by something the judges said when commenting about two of the semi-finalists. They had been highly impressed with the dishes the chefs had presented and Michel Roux Junior remarked that, despite their very obvious skill, neither chef exhibited any arrogance or conceit. Monica Galetti replied that they didn’t need to, because their work spoke for them.
I don’t know about you, but I’ve often found that the most arrogant or self-important people are those who have least to commend them. It’s as if they know they have to compensate for their lack of ability or knowledge or skills by trying to make you feel inferior or less able than they are. I’ve listened to people confidently spout facts and information, which makes them sound very knowledgeable, and I know that they’re just parroting what other people have told them – even what I’ve told them, sometimes! I can only assume they don’t realise that most people can see through them!
Of course, we all pick up information and knowledge from various sources – hopefully we never stop learning – but we don’t need to be overbearing or bumptious about what we know.
The other interesting comment that Michel Roux Junior made was that letting their work represent their skill and knowledge showed the chefs’ professionalism. I like that idea -and I find it so relevant in my working life. I’ve referred before to the huge changes in working practices since I started out as a young and very green Architect, how so many contracts used to be agreed on a handshake and how the world has ‘progressed’ to the tomes that constitute modern contract documents. But the true professional, in whatever field, is the person who knows what they’re talking about and what they’re doing. They’re the person who’s happy to share that skill and knowledge with their Client to reach the best solution / end result. As a professional, that’s my goal; I want my work to speak for my skill and knowledge, be it in designing, be it consulting with or advising a prospective Client. I’d like to think that even people who don’t like me personally would still recommend me as an Architect because of the knowledge and skills I have. Put it this way: if I need a brain surgeon and I have the choice of a very skilful and experienced surgeon who I can’t stand, or one that I like but whose reputation as a surgeon is not, let’s say, so established, I’ll go with the person I don’t like! Obviously, I’d explain to my friend why he was passed over!
Professional:
adjective
- relating to or belonging to a profession
- worthy of or appropriate to a professional person; competent, skilful, or assured
- engaged in a specified activity as one’s main paid occupation rather than as an amateur
noun
- a person engaged or qualified in a profession
- a person competent or skilled in a particular activity
- a person engaged in a specified activity … as a main paid occupation rather than as a pastime
On that affirmative note, I wish everyone reading this a very Happy, restful and invigorating Christmas and a prosperous New Year – all the things I wish for myself, in fact!
