Design beautiful Pylons? - A Real Challenge!
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| Ugly pylon days numbered? |
A new competition has been launched, run by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) for the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) and National Grid, that calls for designs for a new generation of pylon.
There are more than 88,000 pylons in the UK, including 22,000 on National Grid’s main transmission network in England and Wales. These stand some 50 metres high, weigh around 30 tonnes and carry up to 400,000 volts of electricity over thousands of kilometres of some of the most exposed, weather-beaten parts of Britain. But the familiar steel lattice tower - long considered a blight on our natural landscape - has barely changed since the 1920s.
This new competition challenges designers to create a pylon that can help "preserve the beauty of the countryside".
With the equivalent of twenty new power stations needed by 2020, and the costs of underground connection being prohibitive, then pylons look like being part of our countryside landscape for generations - so congratulations to the National Grid and the Government for launching this competition!
Ruth Reed, President of RIBA, said: “Design has never been far from our energy network. The current pylon design was chosen by Sir Reginald Blomfield, a leading architect of his day back in 1927, but the familiar steel lattice tower design has barely changed since then. This is a technically challenging but exciting competition, with the potential to improve our landscapes for decades to come, and I expect it to generate widespread interest.”
The competition closes on 12 July 2011, with shortlisted candidates notified at the end of July.
A prize fund of £10,000 will be shared amongst the winning candidates and National Grid will give consideration to developing the winning design for use in future projects.
The competition is now live and open for registration at www.ribapylondesign.com. Read more...
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