London: 'Walkie-Talkie' skyscraper melts Jaguar car parts

[denpanosekai]

BBC News: 'Walkie-Talkie' skyscraper melts Jaguar car parts

 

A new London skyscraper dubbed the "Walkie Talkie" has been blamed for reflecting light which melted parts of a car parked on a nearby street.

 

Martin Lindsay parked his Jaguar on Eastcheap, in the City of London, on Thursday afternoon.

 

When he returned about two hours later, he found parts of his car - including the wing mirror and badge - had melted.

 

Mr Lindsay said he "could not believe" the damage. The developers have apologised and paid for repairs.

 

The 37-storey skyscraper at 20 Fenchurch Street, which has been nicknamed the "Walkie Talkie" because of its shape, is currently under construction.

 

 

'Dangerous'

Mr Lindsay, director of tiling company Moderna Contracts Ltd, said: "I was walking down the road and saw a photographer taking photos and asked, 'what's happening?'

 

"The photographer asked me 'have you seen that car? The owner won't be happy.'

 

"I said: 'I am the owner. Crikey, that's awful.'"

 

The wing mirror, panels and Jaguar badge had all melted, Mr Lindsay said.

 

"You can't believe something like this would happen," he added. "They've got to do something about it.

 

"It could be dangerous. Imagine if the sun reflected on the wrong part of the body.

 

"On the windscreen, there was a note from the construction company saying 'your car's buckled, could you give us a call?'"

 

In a joint statement, developers Land Securities and Canary Wharf said: "We are aware of concerns regarding the light reflecting from 20 Fenchurch Street and are looking into the matter.

 

 

Mr Lindsay said his car's wing mirror, panels and Jaguar badge had melted

"As a precautionary measure, the City of London has agreed to suspend three parking bays in the area which may be affected while we investigate the situation further."

 

Mr Lindsay said the developers had apologised and agreed to sort out the £946 repair costs.

[rnr_ss]

Je me demande si le problème est assez sérieux pour reclad les façades concave avec un matériaux qui reflet moins...

 

La version française. http://www.courrierinternational.com/chronique/2013/09/04/le-gratte-ciel-qui-fait-frire-les-oeufs-et-fondre-les-voitures

 

INSOLITE

Le gratte-ciel qui fait frire les oeufs et fondre les voitures

 

COURRIER INTERNATIONAL | CLAIRE MAUPAS

4 SEPTEMBRE 2013|

 

 

AFP AFP

Un gratte-ciel concave ? Une idée lumineuse – un peu trop peut-être. Le "Talkie-Walkie", à Londres, fait fondre les voitures : la réflexion de la lumière sur la façade vitrée de l’édifice aurait endommagé plusieurs véhicules. Martin Lindsay a laissé sa Jaguar XJ sous le bâtiment de 37 étages. A son retour, le véhicule sentait le plastique brûlé. Une partie de sa carosserie et son rétroviseur avaient fondu, comme le montrent ces photos.

 

Les promoteurs du bâtiment, qui assurent "prendre la question au sérieux", ont pris en charge les frais de réparation de la Jag. La municipalité a condamné trois places de stationnement à "titre de précaution". Le gratte-ciel aurait également cuit une Vauxhall Vivaro. Selon le propriétaire du véhicule, Eddie Cannon, "tout ce qui était sur le tableau de bord" a fondu sous l’effet loupe créé par l’édifice. Jim Waterson, journaliste de City Am, a quant à lui réussi à se faire cuire un œuf grâce à la chaleur dégagée par le bâtiment. Le phénomène est causé "par la hauteur actuelle du soleil. Actuellement, il dure environ deux heures par jour", expliquent Canary Wharf et Land Securities, promoteurs du gratte-ciel de la City. Déjà surnommé "Walkie-Talkie" à cause de sa forme, le 20 Fenchurch Street de l’architecte Rafael Viñoly a été rebaptisé "Walkie Scorchie [brûlant]", note The Independent.

[LindbergMTL]

Va falloir que les architectes fassent attention à ce genre de problème à l'avenir. Pourraient ils mettre des capteurs solaires sur le toit de l'édifice attenant?

[franktko]

À mon avis, je crois que c'est assez sérieux qu'ils devront absolument régler ce problème. Je serais surpris d'un reclad complet mais ils devraient appliquer une péllicule sur le verre pour diminuer le reflet...

[monctezuma]

C'est pas unique à Londres ce problème de fenêtre concave :

 

Las Vegas hotel guests severely burned after windows reflect sun to cause 'death ray'

By Daily Mail Reporter

UPDATED: 15:06 GMT, 30 December 2010

 

Holidaymakers at a new hotel in Las Vegas have been left with severe sunburn after the building's windows reflected 'death rays' onto certain areas around the pool.

 

 

The Vdara hotel has a concave shape which reflects the blistering Nevada sun from its all-glass front and directly onto sections of the swimming pool area below

 

The result has left some guests with burns from the powerful rays and even plastic bags have been recorded as melting in the heat.

 

 

 

 

Chicago attorney Bill Pintas felt the power of the dangerous ray first hand last week.

 

'It felt like I had a chemical burn. I couldn't imagine why my head was burning,' he said.

 

 

'Within 30 seconds, the back of my legs were burning. My first though was, 'Jesus, they destroyed the ozone layer!'

 

 

Gordon Absher, a spokesman for MGM Resorts, which owns the Vdara hotel, said they was aware of the issue and designers were working with resort staff to come up with a solution.

 

 

In fact it is claimed that the designers foresaw the issue with the reflecting sun but thought they had solved it by installing a high-tech film on the south-facing panes of glass.

 

 

However, Mr Absher, conceded it had not been enough and some of the guests had suffered as a result.

 

 

The Las Vegas Review Journal quotes one hotel employee as saying the building's design causes the sunshine to be diverted 'like a magnifying glass that shines down' over a space of about 10 by 15 feet as the poolside.

 

 

And as the Earth rotates, the spot moves across the pool area. The 'death ray' can increase temperatures by around 20 degrees.

 

 

While the designers work on fixing the problem, the hotel is looking at getting some larger, and crucially, thicker umbrellas to provide better shade for guests.

 

 

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/article-1316444/Las-Vegas-death-ray-hotel-leaves-guests-badly-burnt.html#ixzz2e1gD7mnQ

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