All posts by Giulio

Architecture, Ideas, Style, Sustainability, Technology, Top Stories, Trends, Wood

Treehouse

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Up, up and away

Adventurous homeowner bucks tradition with unique treehouse dwelling

Photo credits JVL Photography

For 20 years, the owner of a beautifully-lush, heavily-wooded Ottawa property lived in a little bungalow surrounded by abundant foliage.

Then something happened that changed things forever … and Houry Avedissian, owner of Ha2 Architectural Design, was there for every step of the transformation.

“The owner, my client, has an outdoorsy, adventurous nature,” recalls Avedissian. “She wanted a new home on the very same property. So I came up with an idea, based on the wooded lot.”

That idea, to create a live-in treehouse dwelling to replace the existing house, took on a life of its own, it seems, as Avedissian was basically given carte blanche, and came up with a truly unique custom home.

The corner area it now sits on is surrounded by Spruce and Crabapple trees, virtually engulfing the bungalow that once lay beneath the overhanging branches. Avedissian created a symbiotic design that pushed the living experience up into the trees.

“We tore down the existing bungalow and created a far more spacious new two-floor detached home for the client and her partner to live, work and entertain in,” she says. “By locating the main living space on the second floor, we gave the client a fresh, new uplifting experience amidst the every-changing foliage of the trees.”

With two tall Spruce and four Crabapple trees, the home is right in the middle of branches, so that one can engage in the seasonal experience of the ever-changing leaves. The privacy provided, plus the south-facing cantilevered overhang that extends the dining room to the outside environment, serves as a shelter to the rain, while keeping the heat at bay during the summer and early fall months.

A visitor to the treehouse would see a contrasting, custom-designed steel, glass and concrete staircase up to the main living area on the second floor. The kitchen, dining and living rooms all flow into one another by way of a clear open concept. Adjacent to the living room, there’s a study separated by a low wall with custom-built cabinetry and sculptural shelving cubes. This design feature allows a visual barrier to delineate the space, as well as open the views for the entire house and glazed patio doors. To top it all off, the open concept is augmented by a see-through divide – a gas fireplace.

The experiment continues with the blending of inner and outer spaces, diverse, yet complementary textures, angles and rich colours. Contrasting materials and volumes balance the natural and refined with the rough and exposed as harmonious contemporary living spaces thrive among the naturally-evolving landscape that surrounds the house.

Environmentally-friendly touches are evident everywhere, with particular attention to the inclusion of wood products throughout.

“Inside, the materials were carefully selected to reflect the natural environment by using a rich palette of woods and veined marble tiles in earthy tones, reinforcing the concept both within and on the outside,” says Avedissian. “We were heavily inspired by the surrounding trees.”

To that end, Western Red Cedar (WRC) siding wraps the majority of the home’s exterior in a myriad of different applications such as knotty textured wood trellises that run both vertically and horizontally.

“Yes, wood is in the majority,” Avedissian says. “And while this is not a LEED project, nor a green project, per se, we did use sound principles to achieve efficient qualities.

“Mainly, it’s the southwestern orientation, with large overhangs and the location of operable windows for abundant air flow that heavily factored into the design to keep the heating and cooling costs to a minimum. That, plus we added environmentally-friendly insulation.”

Did you know? Cedar was used in four ways throughout the exterior and interior of the house. The main volume of the second floor is clad in vertically laid tongue and groove 1×5 WRC. Secondly the southwest elevation has 2×2 vertically installed (and spaced one inch apart) knotty grade WRC lattes to give it depth and texture. Within the balcony perimeter of the upper deck volume, again, 2×2 knotty grade cedar spaced one inch apart, is used, only this time, installed horizontally. And lastly, serving as the backdrop to the inner staircase wall is 1×5 tongue and groove.

Web / ha2d.comBC Passive House Plant

Photos courtesy of the Wood Design & Building Awards Program

Architecture, Green Energy, Ideas, Style, Sustainability, Technology, Top Stories, Trends

Floating paradise

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Zero-impact custom portable islands can be placed anywhere in the world

The age-old dream about ‘having your own private island’ has taken on a whole new meaning these days.

Up until recently, you’d probably need a top-shelf real estate agent to track down that little piece of heaven in some far-flung tropical locale.

But now, there is another way to make your dream come true – simply buy a man-made portable island.

The portable island concept has been developed with architect Koen Olthuis of Waterstudio.nl and water-based design specialists Dutch Docklands. The result? New luxury private islands that can give owners a secluded taste of paradise anywhere in the world.

Studies conducted over the past 10 years showed that the next trend in ultra-luxury real estate would be private islands, with the focus on more intimacy and lifestyle freedom.

Enter Olthuis and Dutch Docklands, who design the structure of each island. Buyers are then invited to customize the size, shape and style of their personal residence from scratch and choose where they want to be located.

Amillarah Private Islands Maldives

There are a number of initiatives in the works, but an introductory project, called The 5 Lagoons, features Dutch Docklands in a joint venture with the government of Maldives. They are master developers of the entire project and control the design, engineering, financing, construction and sales, with Waterstudio.nl as the architectural firm.

With privacy as the key, each island will have its own residence, garden, pool, beach, and more. And part of a new trend in green developments, says Olthuis in a published report, luxury and quality will be combined with a scarless, self-sufficient approach.

The customized concept is an important element, in that each owner is encouraged to jump in with both feet, right from the outset.

Previously, most traditional private islands tended to be isolated and difficult to reach, which made construction and maintenance expensive. The man-made model makes those disadvantages a thing of past.

Amillarah Private Islands Miami

The private islands can be placed virtually anywhere. With a combination of unique technology and craftsmanship, and detailed location studies, the exact methods for creating and mooring the islands will be determined. Using piles or cables, attention will be paid to have minimum impact to the sea bottom.

Designers say there is no environmental impact because each island will be completely self-sufficient and equipped with state-of-the-art green technology. Living with water, they say, creates sustainable long-term solutions that have zero impact on the environment.

The developers have partnered with the Ocean Futures Society – established by French conservationist Jean-Michel Cousteau, son of famous oceanographer Jacques Cousteau – to protect and enhance marine habitats under the islands. They will investigate new and better ways to enhance the reaction of artificial reefs below the islands.

Amillarah Private Islands Miami 3

In a published report, Cousteau said: “Our association makes sure that the ocean is being respected and that the environmental impact is near zero. To be able to protect the environment which will be under those structures is one of the most exciting times of my life.”

Free from environmental impact, and safe from rising sea levels, the islands will also create a new underwater habitat for sea life. Not only that, the social impact of the islands is also being considered, and floating schools, purification plants, housing and agriculture plots will be created alongside the luxury properties.

Moreover, a clear trend is also emerging to take the concept to another level – creating resorts that float on the water.

Waterstudio.nl, led by Koen Olthuis, specializes in architecture, urban planning and research related to living, working and recreation on water.

Amillarah Private Islands Miami 4Web / waterstudio.nl

Architecture, Green Energy, Ideas, Style, Sustainability, Technology, Top Stories, Trends

Vincent Callebaut Architectures

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Future watch

Fantasy letter by an ‘aquanaut’ teen born at an underwater farm off the coast of South America

Hi People of the Land. My name is Océane. I’m 15. I’m what they call an aquanaut teen. I was born in immersion in 2050 in an underwater farm called Aequorea off the coast of Rio de Janeiro. Bio-inspired, the farm draws its name from a bioluminescent, light-emitting jellyfish characterized by its articulated, webbed tentacles. These tentacles enable it to swim and ensure its stability, while producing its own energy.

My grandparents are oceanographers and architects. For the past 50 years, they’ve been participating in the collaborative construction of Aequorea. It’s a genuine underwater village printed in 3D from algoplast, a composite material they invented that mixes algae with garbage from the seventh continent. You know, the seventh continent? That infamous soup of plastics formed at the beginning of the century in the heart of the five main ocean gyres, where the Coriolis effect causes the currents to swirl.

AEQUOREA 16

In the 20th century, on Earth, every human was producing up to 10 times their weight in garbage annually. Two hundred and 69 million tons of plastic waste with a life expectancy of a thousand years were thus produced every single year, and more than 10 per cent of it was ending up in the oceans.

Well, my grandparents, together with a community of scientists, decided to extract value from this disgusting soup of petroleum-based waste by recycling it. They formed an NGO to defend an ethical approach to the oceans. As soon as 2015, they began the repurposing of plastic waste dumped by the People of the Land into impervious, durable materials.

Faced with climate change and the rise of water levels, a new civilization emerged: the People of the Seas. Once their lands and islands were under water and salinized, a large portion of the 250 million climate refugees got involved with interdependent NGOs like the one my grandparents created. Together, they invented new underwater urbanization processes that were energy self-sufficient, recycled all waste, and fought ocean acidification.

AEQUOREA 15

The People of the Seas’ objective? To explore the abyssal zones in a respectful way, in order to speed innovation and to massively democratize new renewable energies. This community fought the capitalist frenzy rubbing its hands at the idea of plundering the last petroleum, ore and methane resources through drilling and fracking natural habitats at great depths; to develop new scientific, energy, pharmacological and food resources unsuspected until then: such was their credo in 2015.

For the past 50 years, these inhabitants of the sea managed to revolutionize the way we live together through environmental resilience and intensive energy transition. They won the challenge of recycling 100 per cent of the seventh continent’s plastics into a sustainable habitat.

AEQUOREA 53

Each Aequorea village can welcome up to 20,000 aquanauts. Their main access is on the water surface, through four marinas covered with a mangrove rooted on a floating dome 500 metres (1,640 feet) in diameter. Modular living, co-working spaces, fab labs, recycling plants, science labs, educational hotels, sports fields, aquaponic farms and phyto-purification lagoons stack up layer by layer.

So let’s jump in the water! There’s no longer any need for scuba tanks to breathe underwater: put on your gill mask, designed to capture water and extract oxygen molecules; your microbead suit, like a dolphin skin; and your carbon fibre monofins inspired by whale tails!

AEQUOREA 50

There’s no more need for coal, oil, gas or nuclear energy to get light: we reproduce bioluminescence in the double glazing of our apartments, thanks to symbiotic organisms that contain luciferin which emits light through oxidation. On the ocean floor, a field of water turbines, shaped like volutes and laid out in a star pattern around an abyssal scientific base, turn the sea currents into electric energy. An ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) power plant completes the panel of energy supply.

In order to produce drinking water and fresh water for aquaculture, the OTEC power plant uses the in-depth pressure to counteract the osmotic pressure, and to separate the water from the salt via a semipermeable membrane. Air is renewed, either naturally by convection through wind chimneys innervating the four branches of each tower’s twist, or by the oxygen station via seawater electrolysis.

AEQUOREA 05

For heating and climate control, we no longer use fossil fuels. Rather, we use microalgae grown in aquarium walls, which absorb the carbon dioxide produced by people’s breathing. These green-algae-based bioreactors also recycle the liquid or solid organic waste, and produce energy through photosynthesis and biomethanation.

For food, we grow algae, plankton and mollusks rich in minerals, proteins and vitamins. Coral reefs are harvested on balconies, thus becoming nurseries for the aquatic fauna and flora. On the surface, the four large floating conch-like structures house community horticultural greenhouses, organic farming fields, orchards and vegetable gardens. We live from sustainable fishing in our apartments’ garden, i.e. the ocean.

We move around by ship or submarine, thanks to the algae fuel or hydrocarbons we produce free of greenhouse gas emissions. We make our biofuels by extracting hydrogen and carbon from seawater through osmotic pressure, then synthesizing them.

We study the molecules of living organisms to heal ourselves. We only use bio-based materials to lay out and furnish our apartments.

Oh, I almost forgot to tell you about the most important change! We went through a real economic Big Bang, because we also created a currency specific to marine urbanism: the Aequo. No more bosses. No more employees. We’re now all eco-conscious individual entrepreneurs.

Never forget this: oceans produce 50 per cent of our planet’s oxygen. They are its most active lung. It was really worth cleaning them, and fighting their acidification, thus re-enchanting our living together – don’t you think?

Aquatically yours,

Océane (Real name Marianne O’Donnell)
Trainee at Vincent Callebaut Architectures

Web / vincent.callebaut.org

Architecture, Building Envelope, Green Energy, Ideas, Style, Sustainability, Technology, Top Stories, Trends

Top of the world

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Vertical village in Singapore turns isolation into horizontal connectivity

It’s quite a crowning achievement for German architect Ole Scheeren.

His project, a vertical village in Singapore named The Interlace, keeps picking up prestigious urban building awards.

Earlier this year, the large-scale residential development won the prestigious World Building of the Year award at the 2015 World Architecture Festival held in Singapore. More recently, The Interlace has been chosen by the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat in Chicago as winner of the inaugural worldwide Urban Habitat Award 2014, in recognition of its ground-breaking contributions to the urban realm and social sustainability. The project has also been awarded the Universal Design Mark Platinum Award and Green Mark GoldPlus Award from Singapore’s Building and Construction Authority.

The Interlace by OMA Ole Scheeren_13_photo Iwan Baan

“The Interlace opens a space of collective experience within the city and reunites the desire for individuality and privacy with a sense of togetherness and living in a community,” says Scheeren. “Social interaction is integrated with the natural environment in a synthesis of tropical nature and habitable urban space. The design generates a multiplicity of qualities and choices for its inhabitants – a sense of richness and freedom in the choices you make.”

The Interlace, a 170,000-square metre complex, features a network of living and social spaces within 31 apartment blocks stacked in a hexagonal arrangement around eight sizable courtyards.

Instead of following the default typology of housing in dense urban environments – clusters of isolated towers – the design turns vertical isolation into horizontal connectivity and reinstates the notion of community as a central issue in today’s society.

The 31 apartment blocks, each six stories tall, create a multitude of shared outdoor spaces, forming a dramatic topography of inhabitable terraced gardens across the stepped volumes. Partly resting, partly floating, the blocks hover on top of each other to form an expressive “interlaced” space that connects the individual apartments with an accessible and inclusive community life.

The development, which was completed in 2013, provides 1,040 residential units of varying sizes and prices. The unusual geometry of the hexagonally stacked building blocks creates a dramatic spatial structure populated by a diverse array of activity areas.

The blocks are arranged on four main “super levels” with three “peaks” of 24 stories. Other super level stacks range from six-18 stories to form a stepped geometry, resembling the dramatic topography of a landscape more than a typical building. Multi-story openings allow light and air to weave into and through the landscape of the courtyards.

The Interlace by OMA Ole Scheeren_01_photo Iwan Baan

Eight expansive courtyards and their individual landscapes are defined as the heart of the project and form distinct spatial identities. Each courtyard, spanning a distance of 60 metres across and extending further through the permeable interconnections, possesses a specific character and atmosphere that serves as a place maker and spatial identifier.

The primary pedestrian route through the project leads residents from the main entrance through and to the courtyards as primary points of orientation and identification – residents live in a courtyard, a space, rather than a building or an object. Pedestrian circulation is grouped and bundled according to the density of residents around each courtyard in a central “connector.” A system of secondary footpaths brings residents from the connector to the private front doors of their homes.

The Interlace by OMA Ole Scheeren_02_photo Iwan Baan

The notion of community life within a contemporary village is emphasized throughout the project by an extensive network of communal gardens and spaces. A variety of public amenities are interwoven into the landscape, offering numerous opportunities for social interaction and shared activities integrated with the natural environment.

A central square, theatre plaza, and water park occupy the more public and central courtyards and contain numerous shared amenity areas such as a clubhouse, function and games rooms; theatre, karaoke, gyms, and reading rooms; and a 50-metre lap pool and sun deck, family and children’s pools. Surrounding courtyards provide shaded outdoor play and picnic areas with lower blocks around its perimeter. Other courtyards offer residents further choices and areas in a more contemplative environment with additional swimming pools, spa gardens, and outdoor dining.

The Interlace by OMA Ole Scheeren_08_photo Iwan Baan

Multiple barbeque areas, tennis and multi-courts, organic garden, pet zone, and “the rock” line the perimeter of the project and offer a wide selection of communal activities for residents. A continuous loop around the site provides a running track and connects the ”internal” courtyards to the activities around the edge of the site.

The character of a vertical village embedded in a rich landscape of activities and nature is evident throughout the project. Elevated roof terraces and sky gardens extend outdoor space on multiple levels with views above the tree line to the surrounding courtyards, parks, sea, and city. The diversity of the various offerings and atmospheres of natural environment encourage social interaction with the freedom of choice for different gradients of privacy and sharing, contributing to the overall sense of community.

The Interlace by OMA Ole Scheeren_05_photo Iwan Baan

Sustainability features are incorporated throughout the project through careful environmental analysis and integration of low-impact passive energy strategies. A series of site-specific environmental studies, including wind, solar, and daylight analysis, were carried out to determine intelligent strategies for the building envelope and landscape design.

The landscape design capitalizes on the generous size of the eight-hectare site and further maximizes the presence of nature. By stacking the apartment blocks, the design generates a multiplication of horizontal surfaces populated by extensive roof gardens and landscaped terraces.

Water bodies have been strategically placed within defined wind corridors, which allow evaporative cooling to happen along wind paths, reducing local air temperatures and improving the thermal comfort of outdoor recreation spaces in strategic micro-climate zones.

The Interlace by OMA Ole Scheeren_06_photo Iwan Baan

Traffic and parking is accommodated in a single layer below the landscaped ground level. A large number of open-air voids allow light and air to the semi-sunken and fully naturally ventilated parking deck, creating areas of lush vegetation and trees below ground and connecting these spaces visually and through planting to the courtyards above.

All apartments receive ample levels of daylight throughout the day while the unique massing of the project provides a sufficient level of self-shading in the courtyards which helps maintain comfortable tropical outdoor spaces year-round and continuous usage of the courtyards and their communal functions.

Extensive balconies and protruding terraces form a cascading vertical landscape across the facades and further connect the green roofs and shared public terraces between the building volumes. Overall, the project appears not only surrounded by the tropical vegetation but embedded within it.

The Interlace by OMA Ole Scheeren_02_photo Iwan Baan

The highly efficient system of compact cores, minimal circulation, and maximized floor area allowed the project to be realized on a budget for reasonably priced private housing, within the competitive context of Singapore’s market.

Büro Ole Scheeren is an international architecture firm – with offices in Berlin, Beijing, Bangkok and Hong Kong – that practises architecture, urbanism, interior design, and research. The Interlace adds to Scheeren’s international portfolio of city-defining structures and cultural projects, with his current projects at Buro Ole Scheeren including an art center near the Forbidden City in Beijing; Angkasa Raya, a 268-metre tall building of floating rectangular volumes in the heart of Kuala Lumpur; DUO, a large-scale mixed-use development currently under construction in Singapore; and Mahanakhon, currently rising to become Bangkok’s tallest skyscraper.

Web / buro-os.com

 

 

 

Ideas, Style, Sustainability, Technology, Top Stories, Trends

Details, details

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How to plan a successful virtual trade show – a guide for exhibitors

Yes, there are substantial savings when switching from traditional physical trade shows to virtual online alternatives – thousands of dollars to be exact.

But that doesn’t mean opting for a virtual event is a walk in the park. Planning and executing a virtual trade show, or online event, is not easy. In fact, it pays to do your homework and well worth the effort to give any virtual show the same level of attention as conventional fairs.

Although there is no physical contact, the virtual shows certainly offer participants the opportunity to connect with clients and business partners without having to meet them in person. As such, while saving time and money, they are able to promote their products or services, exchanging valuable information digitally.

But there still needs to be attention to detail. Successful online trade shows should offer the content, networking and product specifications associated with a traditional fair, with the added convenience, however, of access from any device, anywhere in the world.

If your company intends to set up a booth at a virtual fair, there is a checklist to follow. Sure, there aren’t any of the headaches inherent in traditional options – like booking airline flights, hotel stays, printing, and a myriad of other related expenses – but hosting a virtual booth still requires a marketing strategy.

Booth1

Here are a few considerations for those contemplating setting up a booth at a virtual show:

1) Establish goals: Before any plans are put in place, coordinate as a team exactly what you are trying to achieve. It’s the same principle as for a physical event. Next, flesh out the details.

2) Aesthetics: Take the time to create a visually appealing booth. It may not be a skillset your team has traditionally called upon, but good procedures are worth getting in place. Think colorful, high contrast, and high impact – work with the show’s managing director to determine the best way to grab browsers’ attention. Don’t forget to ask about the ‘add-ons’: additional promotional opportunities both inside and outside your booth. This can be anything from banners elsewhere within the virtual show to pre-event e-mail blasts, intended to make your participation even more personal and memorable. And make sure your logo is in a prominent place.

3) Prepare content: With a virtual event, there are fewer limitations to the quantity and quality of the content you can provide. Extended videos are just a click away for any virtual visitor. That said, you’re not just competing with other booths, but with an attendee’s day-to-day workload as well, and if you lose their attention for a moment, attendees can slip away. As such, a virtual booth does not mean you can scale back on the value proposition, but quite the opposite: content needs to be clearer and stronger than anywhere else.

4) Host a social booth: People will stay longer and engage more if attendees communicate with each other at your booth. Rally potential attendees on social media, encouraging them to explore your Facebook or LinkedIn presences. Offer anything from random prizes to advanced games. Provide your audience with a running start and they’ll be much more engaged with your conversations throughout your campaign. Attendees who have engaged will likely return to check buzz around your booth.

5) Give yourself enough time: Things don’t always progress at the pace you’d like. Whether it’s deliverables from an exhibitor, graphics from the creative agency or an e-mail list from your marketing department, insert sufficient wiggle room into the timeline. One of the biggest dangers of virtual event execution is the rush job to get to the finish line.

Before committing to a virtual trade show, however, you can get a feel for the experience by contacting the show’s managing director for more details or a demo walk-through. Once on board, all you’ll have to do is make a quick phone call to lay out the general design of the booth, and then you’ll be able to log in to the show, and upload information, including logos and company materials.

For additional information about the first Canadian virtual trade show for green and sustainable building, contact Executive Managing Director Giulio Marinescu at 416.250.0664.

Web / www.green-building-expo.com / giulio@green-building–expo.com

 

Green Energy, HVAC, Ideas, Style, Sustainability, Technology, Top Stories, Trends

Giancarlo Zema Design Group – Watery inspiration

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Solar-powered floating building can be positioned anywhere there are calm waters

Italian architect Giancarlo Zema has carved out a reputation by immersing himself in water-based projects.
Already well-known for his aquatic creations, Zema has set the bar even higher with his design of an eco-friendly floating building.

Called a WaterNest 100, this circular pod-like structure is made up of 98 per cent recycled materials, is powered by a rooftop solar system capable of generating 4 kWp and can be positioned anywhere there are calm waters, such as along rivers, bays or lakes. WaterNest 100 is the ideal solution for those wishing to live independently, exclusively and in complete harmony with nature.

“The inspiration came from observing the aquatic nests of water birds all over the world where they can live and growing their babies in total harmony with nature,” Zema told Gizmag.com in a published report. “So I thought of designing something similar that can help us to embrace life and allow us to live a floating experience in a natural and energy-saving habitat.”

This unit is 1,076-square feet (or 100-square metres, hence the name) of space. Utilizing recycled glued laminated timber and a recycled aluminum hull, the WaterNest 100 was designed exclusively for the British firm EcoFloLife. Different versions are appropriate for different uses. For example, the WaterNest 100 could be a house, office, laboratory, shop or bar/restaurant.

Balconies are located on the sides and large windows permit panoramic waterside views. On the wooden roof, there are bathroom and kitchen skylights, as well as solar panels used for the internal needs of the unit. Inside, the basic WaterNest 100 allows for a living room, dining room, bedroom, kitchen and bathroom. But other configurations are pos sible, depending on needs.

In addition, there’s a sophisticated system of internal natural micro-ventilation and air-conditioning that positions the WaterNest 100 as a low-consumption habitat. A home automation system allows users to control lighting, draw curtains and blinds, and control the sound system. Preset lighting, air conditioning and sound profiles can be triggered, and users can monitor energy consumption and temperature.
The interior is warm and welcoming, featuring contemporary styles and innovations. The large windows allow light to enter and provide all-day illumination. The furnishings are of high design in recycled and recyclable material.

Natural materials, soothing colors and soft shapes provide an exclusive environment in direct contact with nature. Users can read a good book illuminated by the sun coming through the large windows, listen to soft music in an acoustically designed environment or relax on a chaise lounge close to a window that overlooks one’s own personal magical water location.

The layout is basically circular, with balconies located along the longer sides. Here are examples of the various options to be made available:

  • House or resort / This version of WaterNest 100 is ideal for a young couple or family of four, wishing to live in a new, eco-friendly and non-conformist manner, without sacrificing comfort, elegance or style. The interior includes a living room, dining area, bedroom, kitchen and bathroom.
  • Office or lab / This version is more suited for a young and dynamic work team wishing to communicate and work in a single, one-of-a-kind space, in close contact with nature. WaterNest 100 can fit separate or adjoining workstations, a bathroom, storage and archives.
  • Shop or exhibition / This style is suited for those wishing to open an innovative floating business or exhibition gallery. A large open space can be used according to the various business needs with storage, dressing room and toilet.
  • Lounge bar/restaurant / Here is the ideal design to accommodate an innovative, charming environmentally-friendly restaurant for bio products, or an intriguing floating bar. There’s enough open space for a bar, stools, tables, chairs, kitchen and toilets, with seating capacity for 40 people.

Web / ecoflolife.com / giancarlozema.com

Architecture, Building Envelope, Green Energy, Ideas, Style, Sustainability, Technology, Top Stories, Trends

The White Tree

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Multi-purpose structure in France lauded as innovative and sustainable

 

The French city of Montpellier has ventured “outside the box” in pursuit of a design for a new sustainable multi-purpose tower.

After a competition, Montpellier selected architects Sou Fujimoto, Nicolas Laisné Associés and Manal Rachdi Oxo to come up with a unique design known as an architectural folly, or architectural folie, of the 21st century.

The result: A cross-cultural endeavor that embodies modern Montpellier. It’s name? The White Tree, or L’Arbre Blanc. The design is seen as an interchange between two generations of architects, with Sou Fujimoto from Japan, and its state-of-the-art approach complemented by Manal Rachdi Oxo and Nicolas Laisné Associés, representing a younger French generation.

The new tower is designed for housing, a restaurant, an art gallery, offices, a bar with a panoramic view, and a common area. From the project’s concept phase, the architects were heavily inspired by Montpellier’s tradition of outdoor living. The tower will be strategically located between the city centre and the newly-developed districts of Port Marianne and Odysseum, midway between the “old” and the new Montpellier.

The building is intended to meld with, and defer to, its surrounding environment, yet provides just the right added flair. Arching like a pair of wings hugging the contours of the Lez River down to Pompignane Avenue, The White Tree is intended as a natural form that will be carved out or sculpted over time by water or wind. It perfectly mimics a tree reshaping itself to grow into its environment, yet simultaneously enhancing it by offering much-needed shade.

Despite the name – The White Tree – this is by no means an ivory tower. Integral to the urban song, the building is seen as a public high-rise built for everyone in Montpellier.

The edifice will “extend its limbs,” from the ground floor restaurant and art gallery to the penthouse bar, serving as the main viewing area. This will make the tower that much more attractive as a source of pride for Montpellians and a point of interest for tourists. A common space has been added to the public bar where all the residents from any floor can have a private scenic view.

The 17-story high-rise will dominate the Montpellier skyline, creating a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to soak in the breathtaking expanse, with a view of the ocean, the Pic Saint-Loup mountains, the sprawling city and the Lez River below.
The White Tree has been imbued with Mediterranean character and Japanese culture alike, with dense yet permeable peripheries where inside and outside join forces. The lines are blurred between room and balcony, while uniquely indulgent exterior expanses surrender themselves as full-fledged living spaces. Well-provisioned hanging gardens will take up more than half the space allotted for residential units and offer up places to arrange plants, tables, chairs, benches, storage spaces, etc.
Spaces in the living spaces know no difference between inside and outside – residents will be free to move through them instinctively. The balconies are proportioned to make people gravitate toward the outdoors, like “leaves fanning out to soak up the warm nourishing sunlight.”

Residents will be able to select from a variety of versatile spaces. They will select a setting (west-facing three-bedroom, southeast two-bedroom, etc.) and a preferred floor plan from a list of possible layouts.
The architects sought to encourage free-choice architecture, which they see as underpinning tomorrow’s housing trend, where everyone starts with a “housing stock” when they buy their apartment and are not confined to manufactured articles, regimented layouts or turnkey spaces. Instead, they are given possibilities, modular interior spaces they can choose from in a catalogue of optional features and floor plans.

Just like a tree, the tower will feed off its locally-available natural resources to drastically reduce the energy it needs to expend. It will devise passive strategies to induce comfort and use as well as control environmental impacts and scale back emissions. An unconventional, yet dialectical, process will passively cool units with solar fireplaces. The building implements passive strategies and provides natural and sustainable resources that reduce and control the amount of energy emitted.

L’Arbre Blanc is the tallest folie in Montpellier’s architectural arsenal and is looking to become the city’s focal point; a landmark that serves as a lighthouse, or guiding star, at night, amid the regional urban skyline.

It’s to be an exclusive outlook on the surrounding area, a gift to all the city’s residents and visitors.

It’s to be a starting point from where the vista branches out and your eyes can take it all in: the land’s silhouettes, the open water, the longing it creates for far-off lands and Montpellier’s rich historical heritage.

Erected in a pivotal location for the city, at its core, The White Tree (L’Arbre Blanc) is the very symbol of the Mediterranean, the “midland sea” that has forever been a crossroads, a meeting point between Europe, Africa and Asia.

 

 

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Big changes

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Stunning new home for engineering at York University a far cry from nondescript parking lot

The transformation could not have been any more scintillating.

It wasn’t that long ago when visitors to the back end of the York University campus would have been greeted by a plain, unremarkable parking lot.

But now, with the completion of the Bergeron Centre – housing the Lassonde School of Engineering’s educational facility – there’s an astonishing new gateway to the university; a gateway that connects students and provides a new and creative set of values and culture.

Triangulated glass panels form a shimmering “cloud” facade – inspiring limitless blue-sky thinking, innovation and unconventional approaches. And Lassonde has created a home for Renaissance engineers who are free to explore their passions and gain different perspectives from the world around them.

At the heart of the concept is sustainability.

“Sustainability is an important factor at York University and this particular project represents the latest in green building and development strategies at this campus,” says Paul Stevens, Senior Principal, ZAS Architects, whose company designed the project. “Moreover, York’s original goal was LEED silver, but through the design development process, it was strongly encouraged that we strive for gold, if achievable within the established budget.

“We are currently tracked towards the gold level – to the delight of the university and the school of engineering.”

Dubbed “The Cloud,” for its rounded appearance, the interior is equally remarkable, with open layout learning spaces. The “cloud that sits above a rock” motif beckons, creating social and collaborative spaces that sit alongside intense research and academic areas. All in all, this design facilitates innovative and inspirational cross-pollination of ideas and values.

The involved and collaborative design process resulted in a world-class facility that expresses new pedagogies of a new “landscape of learning” that is visually and physically connected back to the building’s campus surroundings and supports every aspect of learning and student life.

Lassonde’s dean, Janusz Kozinski, and his staff were insistent that students at the school come first and should feel it is their building – not the faculty’s, or even York’s. As a result, academic services and student clubs are strategically located at the main entrance. The best panoramic views and social spaces are on the main level where students gather.

This student-centric philosophy resonates through the building, from the labs and classrooms to the corridors, which become places to learn, complete with ever-present small niches, banquettes and whiteboards. The open layout mirrors the look and feel of start-up businesses that often begin in flexible, raw spaces. The entrepreneurial spirit is one of the objectives of the program and the building reflects that.

Since opening in September 2015, the school is seeing the intended results – attracting students who are not even in the program because it is such a wonderful place to study and socialize. The building is fostering interaction and collaboration among students from different faculties – all happening naturally due to the thoughtful ZAS design and an inspiring Renaissance vision.

All in all, a visitor would definitely be left with the feeling that interesting, creative work is at play there.

Web / zasa.com

 

Architecture, Building Envelope, Green Energy, HVAC, Ideas, Style, Sustainability, Technology, Top Stories

Q & A with Michal J. Cerny

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Green Building and Sustainable Strategies Magazine catches up with the President and CEO of Ambassador Fine Custom Homes

When Michal J. Cerny is designing for Ambassador Fine Custom Homes, he spends a considerable amount of time ensuring that energy efficiencies get the same consideration as sophisticated interior finishes and eye-pleasing exterior finishes.

You have won many awards for your builds, including Best Custom Home in Canada above 4000sf SAM Award by the Canadian Home Builders’ Association and Best Custom Home in GTA Award by the Toronto Home Builders’ Association. What kind of energy efficiencies and green build standards do you incorporate into your designs?
We design about 65 per cent of the homes we build. Naturally, part of that process is constant communication with the client and consulting with them as to what their energy efficiency needs and goals are. For the better part of the past 10 years, we have had most of our clients agree to the extra expense of using 2lb BASF closed cell spray foam insulation throughout the house. We always install HRV’s (Heat Recovery Ventilators), Hepa and Media filters, High Efficiency Furnaces, low flush option toilets, energy rated bathroom fans, LED light bulbs in our pot light fixtures, greywater recovery systems, waterproofing our foundation walls using RubberRWall, in-floor heating, and we encourage the client to purchase energy efficient appliances.

Expand more on your use of 2lb BASF closed cell spray foam insulation in so many of your homes.
We typically fill wall cavities with about 5.5 inches giving a final insulation factor of about R33 once the refrigerant gas has escaped from within the cells. Imagine what a difference this made when before the revised 2012 Ontario Building Code, wall insulation ratings in the GTA were R20. Even with the new 2012 OBC increased ratings between R24 and R27 pending upon efficiency of windows and furnace, we are still delivering a better finished product to the client.
Most people don’t realize how 2lb spray foam insulation actually hardens to the point that it becomes part of the building envelope in more than purely its insulation intended use. It can provide structural enhancement to the house and assists in keeping studs in the same installed condition as compared to being affected by humidity and temperature swings in the home. We took a video of one of our guys trying to hammer out this spray foam and homeowners are in disbelief as to the inherent strength of this product.

Explain why you think more homes should be installing greywater recovery systems.
This is a subject that is a specialty onto itself.   I believe this is one of the most underutilized energy efficiency opportunities. At Ambassador we are striving to implement this into all our new home builds, effective 2016.
In very broad strokes, devices capture heat from residential greywater, through a process often called greywater heat recovery. Incoming cold water from the cty, rather than flowing directly into a water heating device, flows first through a heat exchanger where it is pre-warmed by heat from greywater flowing out from such activities as dishwashing, or showering. Typical household devices receiving greywater from a shower can recover up to 60% of the heat that would otherwise go to waste.
On top of that feature, the greywater generated from showers, baths and sinks enters the greywater system and passes over the Recover’s patent pending filter system removing fine particles from the water before it enters a holding tank. Once the shower or bath is finished, the system automatically begins the chlorination cycle followed by cleaning of the filter. The water from the holding tank fills your toilet tanks and for irrigation of your lawn.
As greywater contains fewer pathogens than domestic wastewater, it is generally safer to handle and easier to treat and reuse onsite for toilet flushing, landscape or crop irrigation, and other non-potable uses.   As long as your clients are willing to use non toxic and low sodium soap, you can add clotheswashing machines and dishwashers to the systems.
Energy savings plus water conservation equal money saved. Win-win for the client and the environment.

What about the price of LED light bulbs? Don’t they increase the cost of your client’s build?
When we build a home, we are as equally concerned about the lifetime cost of the build as we are with the actual immediate cost of the build. Meaning, are we using materials that will save the client money in the long run by using materials that are maintenance friendly.   A simple example is we encourage the client to use stone, brick or limestone, as opposed to stucco, that will fade or crack over time and require maintenance, which will cost the client more money over time.
Going back to the LED example, the electricity used over the lifetime of a single incandescent bulb costs five to 10 times the original purchase price of the bulb itself. What does this really mean in terms of cost to the client? An LED bulb will last some 50,000 hours versus 1,200 hours that a typical incandescent light bulb will. Yes it costs about $36 vs $1.25, but here is the savings – your energy cost over 50,000 hours of usage – LED will cost you about $86 vs incandescent $352.   Now use a multiple of some 150 pot lights in a typically-sized home we build.   That’s a savings of some $52,000.

You are well-known for having your award-winning homes built with in-floor heating. Can you expand on that?
The best way that I can summarize this is by the feedback we get from our clients. February of this year was the coldest February in our history. We got feedback that our clients’ furnaces worked a few days per week during that month, while the rest of the winter they turned on a handful of times.
It’s thermal comfort.  Homes equipped with radiant heat systems have interior environments that are highly favorable to human thermal comfort. Unlike many systems that directly heat the air, radiant floor heating gently warms the surfaces of objects in the room as well as the air itself. The warm surfaces significantly reduce the rate of heat loss from the occupants, allowing most to feel comfortable at room temperatures 1.5 to 2.5 degrees Celsius lower than with other methods of heating.


The system operates quieter, cleaner and reduces fuel usage: Radiant heat systems have a proven record of reduced energy usage relative to other forms of heating, with savings resulting from several factors such as the ability to sustain comfort at lower indoor air temperatures, reduced air temperature stratification, non-pressurization of rooms (which leads to higher rates of air leakage), and the ability to operate with lower water temperatures.  Naturally savings will vary from home to home, but industrial statistics show estimates in the 20% to 50% savings range, pending on insulation, efficiency of window and furnace, quality of system installed, geographical area lived in.
On top of this, most systems are installed so that your domestic hot water is heated using the same boiler. Depending upon floor coverage, heat-loss calculations, spacing of radiant tubing, average temperature and flow, a second boiler will be required to accommodate both in-floor heating and domestic hot water heating (in past homes around the 6000sf range start to fall into this consideration). The client saves on energy costs and it’s nearly impossible to run out of hot water – no more family arguments over who used up the hot water.

Michal J. Cerny, PMP, P.GSC, is President and CEO of Ambassador Fine Custom Homes Inc., and has 29 years experience in multi-site project management and operations across North America.

Web / ambassadorfinecustomhomesinc.com

Architecture, Green Energy, HVAC, Style, Sustainability, Technology, Top Stories, Trends

True to form

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Reid’s Heritage Homes continue as innovators with first net-zero energy project

One of Reid’s Heritage Homes’ company core values is “we are world-class innovators.” And make no mistake about it – the company takes this credo seriously.

Case in point: Back in September 2014, Reid’s Heritage Homes became the first builder to break ground in a national net-zero energy homes’ demonstration project. Then, less than a year later, they opened the doors to the Net Zero Discovery Home and over 400 interested members of the public lined up for a tour. Any way you look at it, that’s an example of innovation at work.

The Net Zero Discovery Home is the first to be completed as part of the national demonstration project to prove that net-zero energy homes can be built on a community-level scale. The goal is to make net-zero energy homes – which can produce as much energy as they consume on an annual basis – fully accessible and affordable to all Canadians.

Reid’s Heritage Homes is building five homes as part of this project. Overall, five builders were selected to participate in the national project that will see the construction of at least 25 net-zero energy homes in four provinces—Nova Scotia, Québec, Alberta, and Ontario. This total will almost double the number of net-zero energy homes currently in Canada. The project is funded in part by the ecoENERGY Innovation Initiative (ecoEII), with contributions from each participating builder, industry suppliers and Owens Corning Canada.

While many agree that net zero is the future of the home building industry, a past barrier saw net-zero energy homes as custom-built projects, using elaborate designs, with complex and expensive heating, cooling and generating technology. This project, however, aims to make net-zero energy homes accessible to more consumers than ever before, using existing, often “off the shelf” high-performance equipment, insulation and building materials that are readily available to the average builder.

The back roof of Reid’s Heritage Homes’ Net Zero Discovery Home features 33 solar photovoltaic (PV) panels from Bluewater Energy which will produce the energy required for the home to achieve net-zero energy status. More importantly, the technologies underneath the façade are what make this net-zero energy home innovative and affordable.

One of the critical technologies is the insulated and airtight design providing an advanced envelope system made possible by the Owens Corning CodeBord® Air Barrier system, which significantly reduces air leakage of the home. The triple-pane windows by JELD-WEN Windows enhance comfort and insulation while providing noise reduction. The home also incorporates the latest air source heat pump space heating technology from Mitsubishi Electric and a leading-edge hybrid air source heat pump hot water tank from Rheem Canada.

Due to the volume of information coinciding with the net-zero energy home and overall initiative, Reid’s Heritage Homes recently released a collection of informative technical videos on its designated YouTube channels. A video – About Net Zero by Reid’s Heritage Homes – provides a detailed overview of exactly what a net-zero energy home entails, with appearances by company executives and industry partners. The videos then break into more detailed focus on net-zero energy features, covering topics such as advanced building enclosures, home comfort systems, fresh air systems, ultra-efficient electrical, high- efficiency water solutions and renewable solar power.

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Built in the Westminster Woods community of Guelph, Ontario, the project’s inaugural home will be used as a show house for the remaining four net-zero energy homes to be built by Reid’s Heritage Homes.

The second home is currently under construction and was recently listed for sale. The home features the popular Fairmeadow Craftsman floor plan and has three bedrooms, 2.5 bathrooms and offers 1,775 square feet of living space.

Some of the features include:
* Insulation in foundation walls and under slab, improving the efficiencies of heat loss through the basement floor;
* Flex ducts providing the home with improved air circulation;
* Comfort zoning on the main and second floor to allow separate temperature controls;
* Drain water heat recovery system;
* Battery back-up rough-in;
* LED spotlights, energy monitoring, and over $42,000 in upgrades.

The home is currently priced at $554,382 and will be move-in ready by February 2016. For a limited time, the builder is offering a discount of $35,000 off the sale price. The remaining three homes will be completed by spring of 2016.

About Reid’s Heritage Homes
A modern approach to traditional homebuilding. Built on a solid reputation of quality, integrity and service, Reid’s Heritage Homes is one of Ontario’s leading builders, with a history of homebuilding that dates back to 1947. The same enduring values that motivated our founder, Orin Reid, inspire our many diverse communities today. Our commitment to these values applies across the Reid’s Heritage Homes’ family of companies, including Williamsburg Homes in Kitchener and Sherwood Homes in Collingwood.