By: Johnny Hartsfield

It’s better late than never…..so we would like to share with you the work of CAST Architecture, a local Seattle firm who presented their new project, In-Freemont, at Northwest EcoBuilding Guild’s 10×10x10 event on September 25.  The Northwest EcoBuilding Guild, an alliance of builders, designers, suppliers, homeowners, and partners concerned with ecological building in the Pacific Northwest, hosts the 10×10x10 event every year to introduce ten cutting-edge sustainable building projects in and around Seattle.

CAST Architecture’s project, In-Freemont, is a set of 5 BuiltGreen town homes finished this past spring just north of 36th in Fremont on Phinney Ave.  MAP THIS Project. 

In 2007, CAST recieved a Built Green grant in the multi-family category, in the hopes of pushing a project like this forward.  They were successful with the help of a client who was willing and excited to explore what could be done in terms of a high quality sustainably minded project.

Some of the features that make this project sustainably innovative are:

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By: Johnny Hartsfield

Our friends over at HyBrid Architecture and Assembly are, as we speak, craning into place Seattle’s first cargo container buildings.  Here is their official press release.

SEATTLE‘S FIRST CARGO CONTAINER BUILDINGS CRANED INTO PLACE IN GEORGETOWN

“Cargotecture” by HyBrid Architecture is an affordable, sustainable and modular alternative to traditional construction

SEATTLE, WA - June 18, 2009 - Seattle-based HyBrid Architecture announces the assembly of Seattle’s first buildings constructed of recycled cargo containers in the Design District of the Georgetown neighborhood of Seattle on Thursday, June 18 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The two buildings are the future home of office space and a retail showroom gallery for a local interior design firm.  While the modules will be craned in place on Thursday they represent the structure of the buildings only. Interior finishes, insulation, kitted parts, and utilities will be installed on site for opening in Fall. 

The container building system, which HyBrid has coined “cargotecture”, is an affordable and sustainable alternative to traditional site construction. This particular project features two three-story buildings structurally based on 12 cargo containers, providing about 7,200 square feet on this 7,000 square foot lot.

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By: Johnny Hartsfield

Dubbed “the Sundial”, the Green Lighthouse is the first place competition entry that will soon become a shining new “beacon” for sustainable design and carbon neutral building.  Designed by Christensen & CO Arketekter A/S, this new facility for the Faculty of Science at the University of Copenhagen uses its cylindrical shape and adjustable facade louvres to invite sunlight to twist throughout the building during the day.  Expected to be completed in 2009, the Green Lighthouse will incorporate solar energy, rainwater harvesting, natural ventilation systems and re-insulation.  The green clad building will also be finished just in time for the United Nations Climate Change Conference.

Engineered by COWI, this commercial building consists of 950 sq. meters over three levels with meeting facilities, student services and a faculty club.  The Green Lighthouse is in a class all its own for commercial buildings.

According to the architects, “the building, that seamlessly merges the fields of architecture, engineering and groundbreaking technologies into one exciting building, takes a holistic approach to architecture, light, healthy indoor environment and sustainability.”

GreenFab previously featured the work of Christensen & CO Arketekter A/S in Affordable, Energy Efficient Housing in Allerod.

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By: Johnny Hartsfield

So, after a few weeks off, I have returned from the land of Fire and Ice to share with you just a bit more on what makes Iceland a truly inspiring country.  Aside from the obvious natural beauty, Iceland is making great strides to becoming the world’s leader in clean energy technology and production.  While walking down the streets of Reykjavik, I ran into a couple of city workers that are paving the way for a new electric car charging station.

According to the New York Times, at a Reykjavik conference this week, Driving Sustainability ‘08, Iceland announced plans to team up with Mitsubishi Motors to supply the country with a fleet of tiny i-MiEV electric cars (which have a range per charge of about 100 miles with lithium-ion batteries). Scheduled to go on sale in Japan in the summer of 2009, Iceland is likely to be the first European country to have i-MiEVs.

This decision is in the wake of a hydrogen-based fuel conversation that has been loosing momentum since it began.  According to Iceland’s foreign minister, Ingibjörg Sólrún Gisladóttir, “We see Iceland as the world’s laboratory for a decarbonized future,”  She was talking about the country’s plan, announced in 1998, to become to the world’s first hydrogen-based energy economy.

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By: Johnny Hartsfield

GreenFab had previously shown the progress leading up to the opening of MoMA’s “Home Delivery: Fabricating the Modern Dwelling” but we have yet to share some of the opinions of those that seem to be less impressed with MoMA’s efforts to explain the history behind prefabricated dwellings and the five international architects’ take on “the future”. 

The Washington Post recently published an article titled “Walls That Talk, and Repeat Themselves” that raises some interesting points about the story MoMA is telling about prefabricated design and construction.  Here are a few highlights:

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By: Johnny Hartsfield

Garrett and Dustin Moon of Portland, Oregon (although they are really from my home state of Washington) are building what promises to be one of the first Living Buildings in the country.  GreenFab highlighted their project, The Commons, back in April to share with you what very few people are attempting to do in this country when LEED is not enough. 

The Commons is “designed to reach beyond today’s highest green building standards and become the first U.S. home to meet the Living Building Challenge.  The Commons will generate all its own energy without fossil fuels, reclaim all its water, be free of unhealthy materials and be a place of beauty and community.”

Hot off the press, Garrett has just published a paper, Sustainable Architecture: an overview of equitable and efficient spaces that helps to identify and explain sustainable design processes and applications.  The document is half a survey of sustainability and its applications and half a case study of their project, The Commons.  This is a MUST READ!

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By: Johnny Hartsfield

Dockside Green is a 15-acre master-planned waterfront community in Victoria B.C. consisting of three neighborhoods designed to create a sense of belonging and true environmental sustainability.  Targeted for LEED Platinum, Dockside Green’s principles of New Urbanism, smart growth, green building and sustainable community design are the driving forces behind this development project. 

Synergy, designed by Busby Perkins+Will, is the first phase of the overall Dockside Green development to be completed and includes 95 homes in two condo buildings, townhomes and commercial space.  Recently, Synergy achieved 63 points out of a possible 70 for a LEED Platinum certification.  To reach this highest LEED rating to-date, Synergy incorporated a number of innovative sustainable systems.  Read on to learn more.

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By: Johnny Hartsfield

“Visionary architect Dr. David Fisher is the creator of the revolutionary Dynamic Tower, the world’s first building in motion. The Dynamic Tower heralds a new era of architecture: Buildings in motion will challenge traditional architecture, becoming the symbol of a new philosophy that will change the look of our cities and the concept of living.

The Dynamic Tower offers infinite design possibilities, as each floor rotates independently at different speeds, resulting in a unique and ever evolving shape that introduces a fourth dimension to architecture, Time.

The Dynamic Tower is environmentally friendly, with the ability to generate electricity for itself as well as other buildings nearby making it the first building designed to be self-powered, it achieves this feat with wind turbines fitted between each rotating floor. An 80-story building will have up to 79 wind turbines, making it a true green power plant.

The Dynamic Tower is also the first skyscraper to be built entirely from prefabricated parts that are custom made in a workshop, resulting of fast construction and of substantial cost savings . this approach known as the Fisher Method, also requires far less workers on construction site while each floor of the building can be completed in only seven days, units can also be customized according to the owners needs and styles.”

>> Dynamic Architecture