Google’s New Super-headquarters in London

 Google has gone to great lengths to make their offices fun for employees, but those working at the new super-headquarters in London have the best deal of them all. Not only are the enormous 160,000 square foot facilities decked out in re-purposed furnishings designed to recreate the comfort of a London townhouse, but the 9th floor rooftop garden features small allotments that allow employees to grow veggies and herbs! This is not the first Google project undertaken by PENSON, but it is certainly their most sustainable - just a few requirements shy of meeting LEED Platinum.

 Located in Renzo Piano’s Central St. Giles Building in Covent Garden, the new super headquarters feature a series of indoor and outdoor workspaces, a gymnasium and dance studio, along with several restaurants, cafes and comfortable rendezvous areas. These are all themed spaces that feature many recycled furnishings that allowed the designers to keep costs low. Also, in keeping with Google’s in-house policy, no toxic materials were used and many of the floors and trimmings are comprised of certified wood.
Among the workspaces are outdoor balconies or “secret gardens” fronted by trimmed hedges that provide a solar screen and some privacy (not to mention some good old-fashioned greenery!) But talk to anyone on the street and they’ll tell you that the rooftop allotments are among the most enviable feature of this new corporate headquarters. Employees have to sign up for a waiting list to use the allotments, and anyone who neglects theirs will be booted out. But once they’re in, they can nurture root vegetables and herbs in small tubes made from responsibly-sourced timber and cook them at home.

London’s First Air Tram Cable Car Opened : The Emirates Air Line

Commuters and visitors in London will have a new way to travel across the Thames thanks to a brand new cable car system . Sponsored by Emirates Airlines, the UK's first urban cable car system has the capacity to transport 2,500 passengers per hour in each direction, which is equivalent to 50 buses in the same time frame. The Emirates Air Line project was designed by Wilkinson Eyre Architects and provides spectacular views of the London skyline at 90 meters in the air as it efficiently connects visitors traveling from the city's Olympic venues to existing public transit lines.

Transport for London’s Emirates Air Line spans 1 km from the North Woolwich Peninsula to Royals Victoria Dock and is supported by sculptural towers. Opening just 1 month before the Olympics begin, the £60 m project is expected to alleviate travel across the river between the O2 Arena in Greenwich to the ExCeL Exhibition Centre. Crossing the river via cable car will take a short 5 minutes and provide views of London as opposed to views outside a bus or underground via the tube and a much longer route. Cyclists will also be able to bring their bike on the cable car to speed their journey. The cable car is open from 7am to 9pm during the week, from 8am to 9pm on Saturdays and from 9am to 9pm on Sundays. Tickets are £4.30 for adults, but only £3.20 for those who use Oyster pay. Planning for Transport for London’s cable car began back in 2010 with backing from and in October 2011, Emirates Airlines stepped in to sponsor the project and provide funding. Impressively, the project has only taken 2 years from conception to completion. The project is expected to be a destination in and of itself, especially during the Olympics.