How to Work with An Architect

How to Work with An Architect

An Architectural Primer for designing your Home

These selection of from a series of articles written when I was based in the San Francisco Bay Area over a sixteen year period. This is written for people who want to understand the process involved in hiring and working with an architect to help them expand their house or design a new one. There are many things to think about when considering a residential project. These articles will answer some basic questions and provide a glimpse into the realm of what it means to work with an architect, a contractor and some tips on how to finance projects.

Although much of this may seem obvious, not many people know exactly what architects do and what value they can bring to a project. Most people never come into contact with architects and rarely think about where their built environment comes from. The following series of articles will discuss in the simplest terms what architects do and what value they bring to projects.

Installment 1

The value of hiring an architect

Summer is upon us, and the time for change just feels right. For some, this means adding on that extra bedroom room to the house, while for others it may mean building that dream home.

When you first consider building on to your home, whether it’s adding on a bedroom or two, expanding your living room, or enlarging and renovating your kitchen, the idea may seem rather confusing at first. Where do you start? For many people, their first instinct is to talk to a contractor and find out what the cost of construction is and what is it that the contractor can do for them. With a preconceived idea that architects are just too expensive and just not feasible, some people may feel the impulse to either plunge into the “do it yourself” mode and draft their own plans, or rely on the contractor to do so.

In the state of California, a homeowner of a home less than 3 stories in height and under 3000 square feet of floor area, can design, and build their own home, this includes remodeling, without the use of an architect, as long as those two conditions are met when the remodel is complete. The only requirement is that the homeowner submits a set of architectural and sometimes structural drawings to the planning department and building department for approval. If a homeowner decides to build it themselves, they have to take on full liable responsibility through workers compensation if they plan to bring on outside help.

Although you’ll save some money doing it yourself, consider this. Can you bring sufficient value to your property through good design? Although there are many factors involved such as function of floor plan and aesthetics of the building, most people, on the practical level, consider good design not only that which looks good, but also that which would yield the greatest return on their investment. Believe me, I’ve seen some real winners in my day, floor plans laid out so badly, that real estate agents have to pull out all stops in their marketing techniques in order to persuade prospective buyers that there’s still salvageable hope.

The next question is, do you know the building codes, zoning codes, and plethora of architectural requirements imposed by most building departments for approval of plans for construction. I’ve seen homeowners get caught in the bureaucratic shuffle for years because they weren’t knowledgeable enough to fish their way through the process. Frustrations can run very high.

I’m often asked, what does an architect do? This is a valid question. Don’t be timid about asking questions, you’re going to spend a lot of money, and for that you should know exactly what you’re going to be paying for.

The value that a professional architect can bring is actually measurable and can yield a greater value to your home in many ways. For one thing, an architect can provide you with a design that is well suited for the house, finessed for your specific needs and when time comes to sell your home, chances are that an architect designed home will yield a higher rate of return. Architects are typically up to date on the latest trends and can provide you with a design that fits within market demands. An architect designed home will maintain a higher value for very long periods of time. Architects can also wade through much of the bureaucracy at the government level during the permit stage and help reduce the pain of that process considerably.

A well designed home is a complex task. Think about your home as a kit of parts, thousands of parts as a matter of fact. Not only is the floor plan important, but there is also the selection of all the pieces, such as lighting, light switches, finishes, trim, color, appliances, door knobs, tile, joist size, etc. One thing that a qualified architect does well, is to think through the entire process down to the smallest detail; from the color of the framework of a skylight to the size and color of your tile grout in your bathroom. Something to keep in mind is the more planning you do up front, the better chance of a successful project you’ll have later on.

For those who can afford it, some architects can design everything customized so you have a unique one of a kind. From lighting fixtures, to door knobs to built in furniture. Some of the more famous architects like Robert Stern in New York City have gone so far as to design free standing furniture, dinnerware and utensils to fit the design of the house as an integrated component. Who hasn’t seen the line of products at Target stores designed by architect Michael Graves out of Princeton NJ?

The building industry is riddled with lingo that is specific to its own profession. Architects train for many years in accredited universities and must take long tests in order to qualify to use the professional title of Architect. In California, it’s misdemeanor to practice under the term Architect if you are not a licensed and California registered architect in good standing. A trained architect understands such issues as Title 24, handicap accessibility, or structural seismic construction which are necessary and without exception a requirement of designing anywhere in California.

Construction costs in the Bay Area are among the highest in the country. In prime areas, such as San Francisco, Marin, the Peninsula and Sonoma, construction costs can begin around $200 per square foot. This does not take into consideration high end or expensive finishes. It’s just the reality of basic construction costs. Architect’s fees can range anywhere from as little as 7% of the cost of construction up through 15% and higher even, depending on many circumstances. However, that additional cost will pay off in the end, as you find yourself less stressed over the design and permit phase as you otherwise may have been had you designed and submitted the plans yourself without success. Plus you have someone on your side throughout the entire process. Ideally the architect will stick with you from beginning of the first idea to the moment you complete your home.

The opportunity to make the most of the project can be made easier with the help of a qualified architect working for you and taking you through the whole process.

Anthony M. Catsimatides, AIA, is founder of the architecture and design firm of The Open Atelier, primarily engaged in custom residential and high tech commercial projects throughout the Bay Area. He can be reached at anthony@openatelier.com.

Resources for architects:

www.aia.org

www.aiasf.org

Installment 2:

How to select an architect

The process for selecting an architect is the most important first step to consider when you have decided that working with an architect is right for you. Architecture is a service based industry. Architects don’t sell products they sell ideas and their time.

As in any service driven industry, you want to know who you are going to be working with. The first step is to meet with several architects and get a sense of who they are. You’ll be spending a lot of time with them over the course of several months, or even years depending on the extent of your project, and you want to make sure that there are commonalities that make you both compatible.

The profession of architecture requires considerable training and is regulated by each state through exams and licensing procedures. Unless you know what a qualified architect can do for you, hiring and working with one for the first time can be difficult.

Finding an architect can be easier than you think. Talk to friends, neighbors or others you know who’ve gone through the process. This is probably the best place to start. I find that I have better luck with referrals than looking through the yellow pages in most any service I need, it shouldn’t be any different for architects.

If asking friends and neighbors doesn’t yield any results, walk around your neighborhood or vicinity and check out homes that have recently been built or remodeled. See if you can contact the homeowner. After all, when someone has just spent a large sum of money renovating, or building a home, they usually don’t mind showing it off.

If your project isn’t too large and you have a limited budget, as most of us do, you may probably be smart to find a local architect. An architect who needs to commute a long distance may add cost to the fee for travel time. This of course should be weighed with other factors, for example, if budget is not an issue, you may prefer working with an architect who’s are known for a certain style.

Make sure the architect has the same goals as you do. If keeping costs down are your primary objective, then make certain that you work with an architect that can share that vision with you and work within the framework of your budget. Some firms target the high end residential market, while others target the broader client base. If your goal is to create a masterpiece, and money were no object, make sure you select an architect who has prior experience or can work with lavish details and designs that meet your demanding expectations.

Other key issues to consider are, reputation around town, reputation with building or planning department. Sometimes an architect may know a building department personnel well enough to know exactly what they are looking for and therefore keep the time through the permitting process as short as possible.

If you have a preference for a certain style, then you want to look for an architect who can work comfortably within that style. You don’t want to select an architect who is know for designing in an classical style if you want a modern home. If your preference is to upgrade your lifestyle with flair, seek out that architect who can give you that certain touch that’s right for you.

Some architectural firms team up with general contractors and provide a design build service. This is a unique service that is actually becoming more and more popular. Many years ago, long before professional organizations were established and the process of becoming an architect was one of apprenticeship and guild, architects were builders too. So the idea of hiring a single firm that does the design and construction is not new, it’s just reinvented for today’s standards. There are many reasons why it may make sense to hire a firm that is design build rather than just design. I’ll be discussing design build firms in more detail in a future installment.

Magazines are great resources for finding architects. Many publish their work through trade journals and home magazines that you find in the home section of any news stand. The San Francisco Chronicle often times features local Bay Area architects with exceptional talent. Other publications of note are Sunset Magazine, www.sunset.com, for local Bay area trends, Architectural Digest, www.architecturaldigest.com, where anything goes, and Dwell, www.dwell.com, for mid century modern home design.

The American Institute of Architects, AIA, www.aia.org and the San Francisco Chapter, www.aiasf.org, has some great resources for finding architects. One free publication that is offered from the AIA is called, “You and Your Architect” and can be obtained by calling your local AIA chapter or through their web site. Recently, the San Francisco chapter of the AIA hosted a series of seminars titled, “How To Work with an Architect”. Advertisement is usually in the Chronicle, Marin IJ, or other local media. Architects will share information with you on what it takes to do your project. The seminars are free.

Every architect should have a portfolio of work. The more experienced architects can show you photographs of homes they’ve designed in the past. A less experienced architect might have some wonderful drawings, but not as many built projects. Both have their benefits and drawbacks. You’ll probably pay more for an experienced architect, but might get more energy out of a younger firm. Larger firms tend to have larger overhead, and require minimum fees to meet that overhead.

In summation, set up a meetings or interviews and ask to see portfolios, follow up with references, and spend a little time over the phone to see if you are compatible and that you have the same value base. Discuss what you are looking for before you get started. Make sure that you have the same value basis to work from. A little home work up front will go a long way.

Installment 3

How to work with your architect

There about as many ways to work with an architect as there are grains of sand at San Francisco’s Ocean Beach. Well, maybe a little exaggeration, but unless you know what to expect from an architect, it can seem overwhelming. So where to begin?

In my last installment, I mentioned that the San Francisco Chapter of the American Institute of Architects, SFAIA, holds local seminars entitled “How to Work with an Architect”. These seminars are free to the general public and a great first step in learning, as the title suggests, how architects work. They are not only informative about working with architects, but you can also pick up tips on construction financing, contractor relationships, and other tid bits. There are also publications that you can get for free from the AIA, such as “You and Your Architect”. These can be downloaded from the AIA web site at www.aia.org or call your local AIA chapter for more information.

Each architect works differently, but there are some basic assumptions that we can make that will generally be the same for all architectural firms. These assumptions can be defined as divided into phases: Pre Design, Schematic Design, Design Development, Construction Documentation, Construction Administration and Additional Services. I’ll explain each phase and what they mean. The important thing to remember is that some architects may clump phases together, such as Schematic Design and Design Development, while others may break out each phase into sub phases. These phases of architectural service have been developed over years of professional experience and are codified by the American Institute of Architects.

Now that you’ve spent some interviewing architects, and you’ve decided which one to work with, you’re ready to sign a contract and get started. The first phase in the project is called the Pre Design Phase. As the name suggests this phase includes everything that is required before any designing can begin, contractual matters and fee agreement, obtaining property surveys and defining property description, and other legal matters. Once your contract is signed, your architect is ready to begin. It is important to note that the California Architects Board states “an Architect shall use a written contract when contracting to provide professional services to a client”. Make sure you have a contract and that the contract reads clearly enough for you to understand the terms of the agreement. If not, keep asking questions.

Within this phase, the architect will gather information about the project in order to begin designing. This is where the architect gets the legal boundary definition for the site and researches any possible building restrictions imposed by the planning department, such as building height or set backs from lot lines. If you are planning to build out, with a new foot print, you will probably need to have a survey of the property, a soils report, and other data. Check with your architect and local building departments for their requirements. This is also the phase that you explain in great detail to your architect exactly what you want. This is also known as requirements gathering. The better defined you can make your requirements, the better prepared they are to design what it is you want. It’s ok if you don’t have all the answers, that is what you are hiring an architect to do.

Phase two, Schematic Design, is the first stage in designing. In this phase the architect will take all your requirements and come up with some floor plan sketches, elevations of the project, some perspective or 3D drawings showing what the project might look like. This is a dialogue stage. You and your architect work through all the specifics in order to arrive at a solution that is satisfying to you.

Before proceeding too far into the project though, make sure that you understand the direction the project is taking. Your architect should be able to enlighten you through sketches and pictures. It’s very costly and frustrating getting too far into the process only to realize that you’ve not really understood what the architect has been drawing for you. Always ask questions. Today, most architects work with elaborate computer software that can generate 3D images complete with lighting effects and finishes. If the budget allows, and you think that these images may help you, ask your architect if they can provide that service to you.

The Design Development phase is really an extension of the previous phase. In smaller projects, these two phases meld into one. In this phase, the architect finesses the project through details and sections and works out potential problems. Once the client signs off on this stage, the course is set and the final phase of the drawings begin. The Construction Document phase is where all the instruction to build the house comes together. This phase may take as long as all the other phases combined, depending on the complexity of the project. Some architectural firms will go to great lengths and spend many months detailing the project so that there are very few questions and minimize surprises during construction, while other firms feel more comfortable sketching loosely and resolving issues in the during construction by providing field sketches. Either method works. You probably want to know up front how your architect works in order to prepare yourself and feel comfortable.

Somewhere within this phase, the architect may submit plans to the planning department or building department for governmental review and approval. During the coarse of waiting for permit approval and finishing the drawings, you and your architect should be talking to contractors. As I’ll describe later on in the series, it’s sometimes better to hire a contractor early on in the process, but sometimes that’s not practical. There are various ways of selecting a contractor and you should discuss the options with your architect to figure what works best for you and the project.

In the final phase, Construction Administration, the architect will provide you with construction oversight by working with the contractor during construction to resolve any field conflicts or work through last minute changes. Other typical services associated with this phase include progress payments to the contractor, shop drawing review for specialty items, and general construction progress reports. The intent of these services is to help you manage the cost of construction and the scheduling for finishing the project.

The method of approaching each of these phases can vary dramatically, but the phases should always be there in some way. Also, each project is different and may require slight modification to the process each time.

Understanding this process is critical. The profession of architecture is regulated, and there is no reason that you should work with an architect that is not providing you with the quality of service that is expected within the codes of professional ethical practice. Architects are very creative individuals. Their approaches to problems are solution driven and their methods of work are very different from one another. A good client architect relationship should be exciting, fun and pleasing. You should develop a good working relationship with your architect, as you’ll be in constant contact for many months throughout the design, drawing phase and construction of your project.

Installment 4

Adding value through good design

I’ll start by stating although taste is a matter of preference, there are some basic things to look for in good design. Not everyone can agree completely on that matter either. Some of my clients have been pretty confident about what from their point of view constitutes good design, while others admit outright that they have not given it much thought. All clients have one thing in common though, that a project be designed to suite their needs, regardless of the project style, size or budget.

In a nutshell then, good design can mean different things for many people. From the outside, residential design has many faces. A contemporary home, a mid century modern home, a classically designed home, a Victorian home, or a home that fits nicely into a neighborhood. What I’m really talking about here is style. But style is just the wrapper. Style is the image of the project. And style, or taste, is only part of the package that will be used to yield a good design. So let’s separate out style for a moment and focus on other aspects of what makes for good design, such as floor plans. This is really where design begins, good or bad.

Floor plans are the generator of the building envelop. Almost all architectural projects begin with a sense of spatially laying out the plan and then working up from there. Good design then is a matter of starting with a good floor plan. An entire volume can be written in relation to just residential floor plans, as they are the most important component of gluing a project’s coherency together. There is no right or wrong answer to this question, only that which feels good and makes sense to you.

Real estate agents know that a house with a well designed floor plan will sell easier than one that is not, a floor plan the flows. In today’s market, the key to a well designed floor plan, particularly with the cost of construction being so high and in today’s tight physical constraints, is something I like to refer to as economy of space. A layout that reduces the number of corridors and makes more use of the livable floor area is more suited to today’s lifestyle. Proximity of one room to the other is a factor contributing to good floor plan design. For example, a bathroom door opening up directly into a kitchen may not be considered particularly attractive. Most people like entering a home into a formal entry foyer, or an area off the living room reserved for entry. A floor plan whose main entry is directly into a kitchen or long hallway for example just isn’t attractive.

Next we can consider the buildings skin, or wrapper, the style. As your architect develops the elevations of the project, or the exterior and interior look and feel, they should be thinking in terms of a style. Ok, so now I hear a lot of architects out there going, “we don’t need no stinking style”. That’s because, on an academic level, at the turn of the 20th Century, American architects were embattled with a dilemma of how to set American vernacular design apart from our European progenitors. Up until the early part of the 20th Century, architecture was a reshaping of many styles, such as Gothic, Victorian, Tudor, Classical, Eclectic (the mixing of more than one style), etc. Along came Mies Van de Rohe, a 20th century architectural giant who migrated from Germany and Philip Johnson, an American born intellectual whose prolific architectural firm has built at least one building in almost every major city in the world, and declared an end to style through modern design, which in itself had been dubbed “International Style”, or that style without style. Modern homes are based upon this premise. So you see, you just can’t get away from it.

What constitutes good design can be debated, even on an academic level, for years. It actually is. All universities that turn out architecture graduates are in a constant state of defining the values of design. What was considered appropriate 50 years ago is today considered inappropriate. That aside, the question for a homeowner considering a remodel or expansion, or a property owner considering a new home is, what style is suited for you? If you’ve done your homework and selected the right architect, you will more than likely be rewarded with a design that suites your taste.

Be that as it may, architectural characteristics, as in every other aspect of modern life, is categorized and catalogued under a heading definable enough to be recognized by the least academic intellectual out there. If style is important to you, you should be talking to your architect about that.

A good way to start the ball rolling is to subscribe to home magazines and journals that appeal to you. Cut out articles and pictures and keep them in an organized file folder. Discuss design direction with your architect, this is a great way to break the ice and begin a creative dialogue. This is where set the direction and mood for the design intent is set. You should be open to ideas as architects often times see things in a way you might not have thought about. By the same token, discuss your ideas openly with your architect, as they may not be thinking about things that may be on your mind. The design of a new home or remodel is a creative process and takes considerable thought. Being part of the process is actually a lot of fun.

If you’re an adventurous type of a person, you might want to allow your architect to experiment a little and to break some rules, you may be surprised by the results. There is one thing that you should keep in mind. The greatest ideas are impractical if they can’t be built. Venturing into unknown territory is not for the faint of heart.

A real estate firm in Southern California calling itself Real Estate Architects has caught on to the hot market of mid 20th Century design and is marketing homes of some of California’s greatest modern designers. Their advertising pages read like the who’s who of mid century residential modern design. They recognize that homes command higher prices if they are designed by a well known architect. Some go so far as to become stewards of masterpieces, and then have a moral obligation to preserve the heritage of a masterpiece as one would a Renoir or a Picasso. Such is the case with Frank Lloyd Wright or Richard Neutra homes.

For most of the would be clients out there, the prospect of working with a well known architect is not on the forefront of their mind. But just think how lucky you’ll be if you hired that young rising star to design your home and who someday turns out to be a famous architect. You can be assured that the price of that home will far exceed the neighboring homes of equal size, if only for the fact that an architect of reputable note designed it. Given this very likely and often times repeated scenario, you’ll probably know you have something unique right from the get go. Something will feel special. Something will stand out as unique. Something about that design will capture your attention, and the attention of others.

The bottom line is that a well designed home is usually what you get when you have done your homework and had a good working relationship with your architect.

Installment 5

Selecting a contractor

On small to medium sized residential projects, selecting a contractor early on in the process is a pretty smart way to go. It’s also a way to build a team of professionals around you that you know will work well together in order to deliver a quality project. 

During the course of working with your architect, there will come a time when the design of the house is acceptable to you and the architect will then need to detail the project specifics sufficiently enough for a contractor to build. There are several pieces of information that go into a set of construction documents. Floor plans, exterior and interior building elevations, building sections, foundation details, roof details, and a host of other drawings that visually show how the house is fit together. There may also be structural drawings, mechanical drawings, electrical drawings and any number of other types of drawings required depending on the complexity of the project. With smaller projects, architectural drawings usually suffice.

Along with all these drawings, there are also specifications. This is usually a compilation of all the minutia of information about the various pieces of the project gathered together and bound into an 81/2 x 11 booklet. With all this information now ready, you can begin the process of defining how much the project will cost, pretty accurately. Up until now, your architect should have had a sense about the cost, some ball park figure, but remember, that the architect does not hire plumbers and electricians to build the house, so the exact cost is unknown until you have a contractor bid the project more specifically.

In some cases you want to create a level playing field and in doing so validate the best possible price with the highest possible quality for that money. Identifying as many as 4 or 5 contractors to have them bid on the project provides you with a comparative method of what the project will cost. This is called the Bidding and negotiating stage. You ask contractors to provide you with bids on the entire scope of the project. In order to be as accurate as possible, it’s best to have as a complete set of drawings and specifications as possible.

Expect this process to take several weeks, and prepare to make your home available to the general contractor’s subs in order for them to take a look at what they are bidding on.

Installment 6

Financing Options

Home remodeling can be costly, particularly in the Bay Area where construction prices outpace the rest of the country. Construction costs keep spiraling up, but at the same time, home values follow suite. That doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t keep cost control methods in place throughout the entire project process. You don’t want to overbuild and sink more money into the property than what it might turn out to be worth after you’re done, unless of course you plan to live there for a very long time and you’d rather just have exactly what you want and willing to pay for it.

With home prices holding strong and interest rates still relatively low, financing the construction portion of the project is still a pretty good prospect. Talk to your financial adviser to determine how much money you should spend out of pocket and how much you should borrow. Your options are many. If you’re remodeling, you may be able to borrow against your house in a line of equity credit to do the construction, which will provide you with the opportunity to finance the professional fees as well.

If you are taking out a more traditional construction loan, you should be aware that most lenders don’t allow you to apply construction loans towards professional or government fees. So budget accordingly. Keep in mind that the cost of the project includes all fees paid as well as what it costs to build. Oh yes, you might also want to budget for that extra furniture you’ll probably need to buy to furnish that new room.

You can expect architectural fees vary from firm to firm. As a general rule of thumb though, expect to spend in the neighborhood of 12% to 25% of the cost of construction to professional and governmental fees. If you are remodeling and you are required to move out of the house during construction, you’ll need to consider rental costs for the duration of time you need to be out of the house, unless of course you’ve got that fabulous getaway house you never have the chance to take advantage of, here is your chance.

To help with financing there are many products and ways of financing your project available. Home lending institutions are your best bet. Sometimes your local bank may have a deal on a product that may work right for you. Do some shopping around. Don’t settle for the first term loan you come across. In today’s market, money is cheap. If you have the opportunity to take advantage of the low interest rates, you’ll be doing great.

Timing is everything and depending on how long it takes to get the set of drawings put together for construction, you may find yourself outside this great window of opportunity of low interest rates. Be mindful of the changes in market conditions. It takes a long time to develop a set of plans for a well designed home and you should plan accordingly. Predictions of future trends in finance is not everybody’s forte, but if you can glean some broad perspective from financial trade journals and newspapers or through watching financial new channels, you might want to do yourself a favor and think about where you think interest rates will be in 6 months. You’ll need a reasonably complete set of plans before you can get a construction loan. And you don’t want to take it out too early as you have a limited time before you’re options of turning it into a lower standard mortgage loan is up.

Installment 7

Design Build Firms vs. Design Only Firms

In this installment, I wanted to look at two types of architectural firms. The first type is what most of us have come to expect from an architectural practice. You hire an architect, get a great design, some really fabulous construction documents then you bid the project out to a number of contractors who bid against each other to see who gets to build the house.

The other approach is through something known as a Design Build firm. These firms typically have a staff of licensed architects as well as a licensed general contractor. The benefit for hiring a design build firm is that you get a one stop shopping place for all your needs. The world of the Design Build firm is small, but growing. In our previous articles, we’ve discussed the more common practice of design only firms. Architectural firms that provide you with design quality service and leave the construction portion up to another firm. This has been working in our country for over 100 years and there is no reason that it wont’ work for you. If you are interested in going to a firm that provides you with one stop shopping though, then the idea of Design Build may work for you.

The advantage of hiring on a firm that does design build can range from cost savings to personal preference. Each Design Build firm takes full responsibility for every aspect of your project whereas the Design firm will take responsibility for the design portion of the project, including detailing such as waterproofing, flashing and other architectural matters, leaving the methods for execution entirely up to the general contractor. In other words, the architect does not instruct the contractor “how” to build, only “what” to build.

Installment 8

Prefab homes; what’s it all about.

Prefab homes are more common than you think. And they don’t have to be those ticky tacky boxy vinyl sided eye sores you’ll sometimes see rolling down a California highway. Today, prefab is associated with cool, hip, up to date modern and environmentally friendly approach to building. Dwell magazine is a national publication that has successfully publicized some of today’s coolest architects from around the globe that are engaged in prefab modern housing.

Installment 9

Case Studies

Bibliography

American Shelter, Lester Walker

The Not so Big House, Susan Susanka

Home, A Short History of an Idea, Witold Rybczynski

Japanese Homes and their Surroundings, Edward S. Morse

Modern House, John Welsh

American House Now, Susan Doubilet and Daralice Boles

The New Bungalow, Bialecki, Gladu, Kessenich, McCord & Bacon

Modular Prefabricated Housing Gets another Champion

Modular Prefabricated Housing Gets another Champion

Leave it to Bjarke Ingels the BIG thinker guy, to put his efforts towards formalizing yet another segment of his creative talent by structuring a company associated within, or at least with, BIG, that he says will revolutionize the way we design and build homes. The future of housing is certain, we need more of them, thus continuously finding means and methods of building custom or speculative homes of better quality that more people can afford is a critical goal. The idea of modularized prefabricated standardized home construction has been around for the past one hundred and fifty years. Too many attempts at modular homes brought very mundane and low grade finished products to market have not yielded any real impacts on changing housing mass customization. Turns out most companies that mass produce modular homes do so with very low quality at an affordable price, or increasing the pricing for high end quality that then begs the question of viability against traditionally built homes. At least with factory controlled component manufacturing a certain level of quality can yield better results, but that’s not to say that even in traditional stick frame site construction quality control isn’t built in, most good general contractors continuously manage quality as the project progresses, the opportune cost savings though should come in the framework of repeatability and mass production. James Parkes wrote a really nice article in Dezeen.com about Ingel’s new venture, Nabr. A quick review of this website reveals that in this context, housing is not limited to single family suburban sprawl, the images are of multi story housing projects, so modularization in this context is inclusive of multiple levels of housing types.

Mass Timber: A New/Old Technology

Mass Timber: A New/Old Technology

I wrote this article on mass timber technology in December of 2019, explaining what mass timber is and why it matters to us. As a relatively recent trend in the United States, both in new construction and large commercial project expansions, it has captured the attention of sustainable and green movers by storm because of the many touted features of green and sustainable potential of wood. If you’re interested in knowing a bit about this technology, click here.

Resilient Corners: Syracuse, NY

Resilient Corners: Syracuse, NY

Resilient Corners is a project consisting of eight single family workforce homes whose heating system is intended to be augmented by a neighborhood distributed geothermal system, the first of its kind in New York State. The project also includes a community center and laundromat for use by the local community. See the Resilient Corners project booklet describing the project’s evolution and success.

This project took a community effort to realize, being nothing short of a great experience during the process. For each phase of the project, our team set up community gathering presentations whereby the process and design we developed was shared with the community at large. Two of the houses are built, and the remaining are awaiting funding. The houses do stand out in the neighborhood as exemplary housing prototypes of what can be accomplished when private and public entities join forces to provide community shared ideas.

Double Skin Glass Facades

Double Skin Glass Facades

I prepared this dissertation on Double Skin Glass Facades was prepared while attending Syracuse University M. Arch II program in 2007. The technology didn’t seem to have too much relevance at the time here in the United States, initial costs outweighed perception of long term savings, if there were any to be had at the time. As we see energy prices spike, and environmental considerations become more mainstream, this type of passive envelope solutions may be seeing more advantages. Time will tell. Read my thesis in booklet format or the PowerPoint presentation given at the Syracuse Center of Excellence Symposium in October of 2007.