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The Zahner Tessellate system can be put on a timer to put on a show, or respond to changes in temperature, light levels, and time of day . It would be pretty interesting to watch your building shift according to exterior conditions! You can watch also watch a video of this responsive building system .
Lake|Flato recently acquired a 10kW PV array which was featured in CPS Energy's blog , as well as The Rivard Report . To learn more about our decision to implement this great technology, check out the video below!
The weekend before last, Graham and I ventured to Marfa to take in a weekend that combined an art exhibit focussed on climate change with conversations between scientists, artists and writers. Highlights for us were a tour of Mimm's Ranch by the Dixon Water Foundation, a discussion entitled Climate Change and Adaptation with scientists Diana Liverman and John Nielsen-Gammon, and a conversation between Michael Pollan ( Omnivore's Dilemma, Botany of Desire ) and Hamilton Fish. Recordings of all these conversations can be found here !
ABC (American Bird Conservancy) director Dr. Christine Sheppard talked recently on NPR about her research on how birds see...or don't see the glass in buildings. Sheppard says birds don't see the way we do. "Reflection is definitely a problem," she explains. Most birds don't have good depth perception beyond their beaks — they have to get relatively close to an object to see much detail or distinguish it from background. Reflections in glass can make it seem as if there's no building there — just more sky, clouds and trees.
A new report prepared by Perkins and Will compiles information on building materials that may cause or aggravate asthma. This is really important stuff. Check out the report here . "There is no doubt that the environments in which we all live, learn, work, and play are changing and affecting our health" ~Floyd J. Malveaux, M.D., Ph.D.
Big news -- A 10.2 kW photovoltaic array will be installed on the roof of our office within the next week! The PV panels will be installed in a 30' x 34' area on the garage roof, where the solar resource is greatest. The CPS Energy rebates and federal tax credit for the array made the payback really speedy. In addition to a great payback equation, the array will bolster our efforts to earn LEED EBOM certification for the office and will be a great opportunity for us to all learn more about how this technology works and performs.
Frog Hill, a 3,655 s.f. residence in Washington, Connecticut, has achieved certification under the LEED for Homes Program! This was accomplished through exemplary use of environmentally preferable building materials and pest control alternatives, and a design that is predicted to perform 35% better than code based on energy simulation and diagnostic pressure testing of the home after construction. Among the home's energy-conserving strategies is a warm radiant concrete floor that is also heated through the solar gain of the windows in winter, shown ABOVE Congratulations to the project team...
What are the Bottom Line Benefits of Biophilic Design ? How can our designs more effectively connect with Nature? These are some of the questions being discussed at this year's AIA Convention by a panel including Jason McLennan, founder and creator of the Living Building Challenge, William Browning, partner of Terrapin Bright Green, and Bob Berkebile, founding principal of BNIM Architects. Read a short article about this panel's discussion here .
Why are Ground Source Heat Pumps so efficient? How much do they cost? Where can I learn more? We thought we'd put together a short white paper to get you started!
About a year ago, Bob and I nailed two samples of Cambia wood siding to a south facing exterior wall of Jamey Garza's studio compound in Marfa. After a year in the desert sun, through the diurnal fluctuations of temperature, the sample looks almost the same as a year ago. Cambia is a thermally modified wood (domestic and FSC). This treatment improves the dimensional stability and decay resistance of the wood. We plan to use Cambia on the Kruger's deck and hope it performs the same way!
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