Archives for the 'Green Building' Category
Fall Design Links
Here are some links to some interesting articles related to residential construction, design and innovative new products:
$50 Million for Drywall? Serious Materials is a company that is best known for sound attenuation construction products. Recently they announced development of a new type of drywall that will take 90% less energy to produce resulting in a [...]
11 November 2007 | Construction, Design, General, Green Building | Comments Off
Concrete Progress Made in Ghana
Stephen Kanner, a principal of Kanner Architects in Los Angeles, and his friend Joe Gaddo, an architect based in Ghana, are helping to develop a cement additive that could decrease construction costs there by a one third—no small accomplishment in a country where concrete is the preferred building material and yet few people are able [...]
13 September 2007 | Construction, Green Building | Comments Off
Wozniak’s New Goal is Efficient Housing
Some of our readers may not be familiar with Steve Wozniak. “Woz”, as he is affectionately referred to, together with Steve Jobs, basically invented the personal computer in the form of a computer company known as Apple Computer in a garage in 1976. Wozniak has since gone on to support various educational and human interest [...]
21 August 2007 | Business, Construction, General, Green Building | Comments Off
Materials Matter Celebrates 2nd Anniversary With Home Improvement Outlet Half-Off Blowout Sale
CORONA, CA–(Marketwire – June 19, 2007) – Materials Matter (www.materialsmatter.org), a multi-faceted nonprofit organization dedicated to helping other nonprofits gain access to low and no-cost building materials, invites the community to explore its home improvement treasure trove by celebrating another successful year at the “2nd Anniversary 50% Off Blowout Sale” on Saturday, July 14.
This annual [...]
20 June 2007 | Construction, General, Green Building | Comments Off
First zero-emission home unveiled in UK
The UK has unveiled its first zero emission home that will set the environmental standard for all new homes in the future.The two-bedroom house is insulated to lose 60% less heat than a normal home.
It also features solar panels, a biomass boiler and water efficiency devices such as rainwater harvesting.
The design, unveiled at the Offsite [...]
12 June 2007 | Construction, Green Building, Technology | Comments Off
The Enertia Building System
The History Channel and a division of the Inventors Hall of Fame recently announced their awards for a national inventors challenge for 2007. The winner of the top prize was Michael Sykes, for his invention of the “Enertia Building System”. The revolutionary home design is actually a model of the Earth itself incorporating a sunspace [...]
29 May 2007 | Construction, Green Building, Technology | Comments Off
Compare and Contrast: Two Mega-Developments In The Desert
Two new massive tourist/residential/commercial mixed-use developments are underway in the desert. One in the Middle East and one in Las Vegas. The number factor in the viability of any desert project is accounting for the environmental conditions presented by temperature extremes that would be considered inhospitable by most. This usually means expending energy on an [...]
13 May 2007 | Business, Construction, General, Green Building | Comments Off
Are old houses really built to last?
While it’s often said that consumer products—from electronic devices to Ikea furniture—are “made to break,” a little over a year ago I started wondering about buildings. Do real estate interests, I wondered, plan for obsolescence in the same way product designers do?
Carrie McLaren, at Stay Free!, posted a fascinating interview recently with Robert Zagaroli III, [...]
24 April 2007 | Construction, General, Green Building, Technology | Comments Off
Bacteria could steady buildings against earthquakes
Soil bacteria could be used to help steady buildings against earthquakes, according to researchers at UC Davis. The microbes can literally convert loose, sandy soil into rock.
When a major earthquake strikes, deep, sandy soils can turn to liquid, with disastrous consequences for buildings sitting on them. Currently, civil engineers can inject chemicals into the soil [...]
22 February 2007 | Construction, Green Building, Technology | Comments Off
A Few Green Building Links (2.21.07)
Going through the news today, a number of stories on the topic of green building showed up:
“Does your office environment get you down? Then you might want to consider working with Tom Hicks. In buildings that receive USGBC’s “platinum” certification, its highest rating, natural light permeates the entire floor. Sometimes, cubicles have their own thermostats, [...]
21 February 2007 | Green Building, Technology | Comments Off
