What’s So Luxurious About Luxury Vinyl Tile, Part II: How LVT Supply Chains Are “Built on Repression”
CategoriesArchitecture

What’s So Luxurious About Luxury Vinyl Tile, Part II: How LVT Supply Chains Are “Built on Repression”

This article was written by Burgess Brown. Healthy Materials Lab is a design research lab at Parsons School of Design with a mission to place health at the center of every design decision. HML is changing the future of the built environment by creating resources for designers, architects, teachers, and students to make healthier places for all people to live. Check out their podcast, Trace Material.

This article is Part II of a three-part series on the hazards of vinyl flooring.

  • Part I explores “dirty climate secret” behind the popular material and shares some healthier, affordable alternatives.
  • Part II, this article, the long history of worker endangerment by the vinyl industry and how this legacy continues in China today.

Part One: Import Limbo

Warehouses and docks at the Port of New York and New Jersey are filled to the brim with shipping containers full of products like solar panels, textiles and flooring. These containers are stuck in import limbo. The bottleneck has had a particularly dramatic impact on the booming vinyl flooring industry as hundreds of millions of dollars worth of “luxury” vinyl tile collects dust or is returned to sender. They are being meticulously inspected by Customs and Border Protection–part of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act recently passed by the federal government. Customs is looking for products whose life cycles begin in China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR).

This region has become the center of human rights abuses against Uyghurs [pronounced WEE-gur], an ethnic minority group indigenous to Xinjiang. The XUAR is an industrial hub for electronics, pharmaceuticals, apparel and technology fueled by state-sponsored forced labor of Uyghurs. A recent report called “Built on Repression” from the Helena Kennedy Centre for International Justice at Sheffield Hallam University and Materials Research L3C highlights a new and concerning industry in the region: PVC production. According to the report, The Uyghur Region has become a world leader in the production of PVC plastics in recent years. The seven PVC manufacturers in the XUAR produce 10% of the world’s PVC. China, as a whole supplies 63% of U.S. vinyl flooring.

There are many products coming out of the XUAR that are manufactured using forced labor, but none compare to PVC flooring when it comes to human and environmental health effects. According to “Built on Repression” author Jim Vallette, “There’s nothing like it on Earth in the combination of climate and toxic pollution. And workers are living there 24/7.”

Part 2: A History of Abuse

Image generated by Architizer using Midjourney

The toxicity of vinyl production has been a well documented fact for decades and labor abuses have been part and parcel of the industry from the start. As the chemical industry began ramping up PVC production in the ‘60s and 70’s, laying the groundwork for its eventual widespread use, they discovered that vinyl chloride monomer (the building block of PVC) was a carcinogen. They chose to hide these findings from the public and their workers. The story of this global coverup is revealed in the groundbreaking book, “Deceit and Denial: The Deadly Politics of Industrial Pollution” by historians Gerald Markowitz and David Rosner. By the 1970s, PVC workers across the U.S. contracted a rare form of liver cancer and the pattern forced industry leaders to go public about the dangers they had kept hidden. For more on this story, take a listen to the episode of HML’s podcast, Trace Material, entitled “The House of Documents” that features interviews with Gerald Markowitz and other key players that pulled back the curtain on the early PVC industry.

While working conditions have improved in the U.S.,there is unfortunately no safe way to produce, use or dispose of PVC. Workers, residents and fenceline communities continue to be exposed to cancer-causing chemicals. In China, the situation is even more dire. Chinese makers of PVC use an outdated and extremely toxic production method that is far more dangerous to people and the planet. The Uyghur Region has become a locus of PVC production in part because of the plentiful coal resources in the region. Factories are set up adjacent to coal mines and use coal fired power plants as an energy source. They incorporate an incredibly toxic mercury-based catalyst in the production process. This is one of the last remaining places on the planet where this method of production is utilized. The plants in the XUAR will release an “estimated 49 million tons of global warming gasses, each producing more than any other similar plant” and the estimated air emissions are equal to more than half of the air releases of mercury (14.8 tons) reported in all manufacturing in all of the United States in 2020, according to the “Built on Repression” report. At grave cost to our planet and bodies, XUAR-manufactured PVC and the products made from it have become absurdly inexpensive. U.S. manufactures are unable to compete and Chinese PVC has become the most common material in all new floors sold in the U.S.

Global demand for luxury vinyl tile has meant massive growth for a toxic industry in China. To keep up with demand, the government of the People’s Republic of China has instigated a sweeping program of forced labor in the XUAR. One of the primary methods used by the government are “labor transfer” programs. According to the “Built on Repression” report, “Through state agency labor recruiters, the PRC government compels people to be transferred to farms and factories across the Uyghur Region. Others have been ‘transferred’ thousands of miles into the interior of China to work in factories. The XUAR government estimates that it has deployed these programs 2.6 million times.”

The report states that refusal to participate in these programs can be considered “a sign of religious extremism and punishable with internment or prison in the Uyghur region.” Uyghurs are effectively unable to refuse a “transfer” or leave a job assigned to them. Millions have been separated from their families in what is tantamount to human trafficking and enslavement.

Part 3: New Cancer Alleys

Image generated by Architizer using Midjourney

The U.S. government has responded to these atrocities by passing the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act. The act effectively bans all imports whose origin can be traced to the Uyghur region. Tracing the origins of LVT has become increasingly difficult as China has made their supply chains even more complicated and opaque. PVC resins created in the XUAR are shipped to Thailand or Vietnam to be turned into flooring before export. The U.S. flooring industry has responded by returning as much production to the U.S. as possible. But, without forced labor and cheap coal, manufacturers can’t match price and capacity demands. While the steps to divest from an industry propped up by forced labor are certainly positive, ramping up domestic production of PVC brings risks to the health of U.S. workers and communities living near the factories. The heart of plastics production in the U.S. sits along the Mississippi River in Louisiana. The area has become known as Cancer Alley because residents are about 50 times more at risk of developing cancer than the average American. As the plastics industry vacates China and returns to the U.S., it’s building new cancer alleys in Ohio, West Virginia and Pennsylvania. Our demand for inexpensive flooring outsourced cancer, now that demand is bringing cancer home.

So what should be done? According to Gerald Markowitz, we need to stop using PVC altogether. Here are his suggestions:

“The United States should begin eliminating PVC by categories of use. Legislation has been floated in California to prohibit PVC in food packaging — a ban that could be expanded to other nonessential needs. Though PVC is inexpensive, it is replaceable in most cases. Alternatives include glass, ceramics, linoleum, polyesters and more.

Also, discarded PVC should be labeled a hazardous waste. The designation would put the burden on users for its safe storage, transportation and disposal, creating an incentive to accelerate its elimination.”

We at Healthy Materials Lab agree. LVT is durable, easy to install and maintain, inexpensive and toxic. Its low purchase  price is outweighed by a massive cost to human and planetary health. By refusing to specify LVT, architects and designers act as advocates on behalf of the health of all communities. Attractive, affordable, healthier flooring products exist. Take a look at part one of this series (or the healthy flooring materials collection on our website) for a list of some alternatives that include healthy materials like cork, hempwood and linoleum. And, stay tuned for the final installment of the series where we will take a closer look at what happens to LVT at the end of its life and the limits of its circularity.

Architizer is thrilled to announce the winners of the 11th Annual A+Awards! Interested in participating next season? Sign up for key information about the 12th Annual A+Awards, set to launch this fall.

Reference

Architectural Details: Why Metal Is the Perfect Material for Dynamic Educational Projects
CategoriesArchitecture

Architectural Details: Why Metal Is the Perfect Material for Dynamic Educational Projects

As designers imagine the future of educational buildings, the values and materials of today will inform school environments for decades to come. With priorities around durability, longevity, cost-efficiency, and ease of installation, metal plays a starring role in high-traffic education spaces.

For its renewability, durability, and ever-evolving versatility, architectural metal offers long-term solutions that bring beauty, reliability and safety to schools. At Presidio Knolls School in San Francisco, and the Seattle Academy of Arts and Sciences in Seattle, Washington, leading metal manufacturer BŌK Modern’s solutions have set a new standard for how educational spaces are designed and experienced.

Presidio Knolls School. Photo by Ken Gutmaker

Nestled in San Francisco’s SoMa District, Presidio Knolls School is a serene escape from the bustling city. Studio Bondy Architecture was tasked with renovating the PKS campus, including two historic buildings and the main U-Wing building containing the interior courtyard.

The team wanted to design a new public-facing identity while creating a safe, enduring environment for kindergarten through eighth-grade students. They called on BŌK Modern to design custom metal treatments for the building’s exterior façade, front gate, interior stairs, and balcony guardrails to strike that balance.

Presidio Knolls School. Photo by Kevin Quach

The distinctive element of the façade and interior courtyard is the perforated metal screen used across all solutions. The pattern is based on a Chinese ice-ray design, a common motif in wood lattice window designs in the Ming and Qing Dynasties,” says Laura Rambin, Principal at Studio Bondy Architecture. “On the street-facing façade, the pattern decreases in density as it rises to the third story of the building, giving a feeling of lightness. Within the interior courtyard, the pattern creates dynamic shadows and has the effect of standing in a bamboo forest.”

Presidio Knolls School. Photo by Kevin Quach

Designing patterns for kid-centric environments can be challenging, so BŌK and Studio Bondy Architecture carefully selected a pattern that didn’t prohibit climbing but naturally discouraged them from doing so. The custom ice-ray design also has holes too small for toes and feet to fit, and narrow vertical openings prevent anyone from crawling through.

Seattle Academy of Arts & Sciences. Photo by Rachel Godbe

In the common areas of the Seattle Academy of Arts and Sciences’ new STREAM building, The Miller Hull Partnership tapped BŌK Modern to collaborate on guardrails, stairs, and louver covers for the school’s interior. The fun and open patterning, combined with a consistent look, helped to unify the space for students and faculty alike.

Seattle Academy of Arts & Sciences. Photo by Rachel Godbe

Turning structural staircases into textural focal points, BŌK Modern fabricated their panels from 14GA steel with a primer and powder-coated finish for durability. Specified in the A26 pattern across all solutions, the finished products elevate the staircases beyond essential elements of the complex while letting the student’s art installations shine.

Providing architects and designers with endless possibilities to create engaging and resilient educational environments that can withstand the test of time, architectural metal provides sustainable, cost-saving solutions that will be part of a school’s identity for decades to come. Inspiring creativity and enhancing learning, BŌK Modern’s educational projects embrace metal materials as catalysts for resilient structures and compelling design.

To see more architectural case studies and learn more about how metal could be utilized in your next project, visit BŌK Modern’s website.

Credits & Key Information

Presidio Knolls School

  • Architect / Designer: Studio Bondy Architecture
  • Contractor: Plant
  • Construction Photography: Ken Gutmaker and Kevin Quach
  • Location: San Francisco, CA
  • Product Type: Wallscreen, Stair Guardrail, Gate, Balcony Guardrail

Seattle Academy of Arts & Sciences

  • Architect / Designer: Miller Hull General
  • Contractor: GLY Construction
  • Photography: Rachel Godbe
  • Product Type: Stair Guardrail, Balcony Guardrail, Louver Cover
  • Location: Seattle, WA

Reference

Brewing protein to make sustainable materials
CategoriesSustainable News

Brewing protein to make sustainable materials

Spotted: Textile production is a major user of energy and water resources – as well as a major source of CO2 and pollution. While progress is being made to develop less energy-intensive materials in some areas of textile production, it has been difficult to replicate the benefits of fibres derived from petrochemicals or animal-based fibres like silk, cashmere, and wool using lower-energy materials.

Japanese company Spiber, however, has developed a novel process for creating fibres and other materials through fermentation (brewing) of plant-based ingredients. Company representative Noriko Fukushima, described the Brewed Protein process as “utilising sugars and microbes, rather than petrochemical or animal-derived raw materials.”

Spiber currently uses sugars obtained from agricultural products such as sugarcane and corn as the main feedstock for the production of Brewed Protein materials. The company is aiming to shift to a regenerative and circular system involving the use of agricultural and textile waste, such as end-of-use fibres.

Spiber was founded initially in 2007 but began mass production in 2022 at a plant in Rayong Province, Thailand and is collaborating with ADM on the construction of a second mass production facility in Iowa. Since 2019, the company has also been working with well-known apparel companies and brands, including The North Face, Goldwin, and Pangaia, as well as introducing a new mascara with Shiseido that incorporates Brewed Protein fibres.

While fermentation is a novel way to produce fibres, Springwise has also spotted a wealth of plant-based alternatives to animal fibres. Recent innovations in the archive include footwear made from food waste and regenerative fibres.

Written By: Lisa Magloff

Reference

What’s So Luxurious About Luxury Vinyl Tile, Part I: The Dirty Secret Behind a DIYer's Dream Material
CategoriesArchitecture

What’s So Luxurious About Luxury Vinyl Tile, Part I: The Dirty Secret Behind a DIYer’s Dream Material

This article was written by Burgess Brown. Healthy Materials Lab is a design research lab at Parsons School of Design with a mission to place health at the center of every design decision. HML is changing the future of the built environment by creating resources for designers, architects, teachers, and students to make healthier places for all people to live. Check out their podcast, Trace Material.

This is Part I of a three-part series on the hazards of vinyl flooring. In Part II we’ll explore the long history of worker endangerment by the vinyl industry and the ways that legacy continues in China today.


If you’ve stayed in a recently renovated AirBnB, stumbled upon quickly-flipped properties on Zillow, or tuned into the DIY corner of YouTube in the last couple of years, you’ll recognize a common interior design trend: imitation wood or stone floors branded as “Luxury Vinyl Tile.” These floors are everywhere and for good reason. LVT is affordable, durable, easy to maintain and quick to install — a DIYer’s dream! But it’s not just DIYers that have hopped on the LVT train —vast numbers of high-end hotels, schools, affordable housing units and office buildings have plasticized their floors.

Behind the slick rebrand and influencers’ stamp of approval, LVT manufacturers are hiding a “dirty climate secret,” according to a recent report from the Center for Environmental Health, Material Research L3C, and Autocase Economic Advisory.

What’s in a Name?

Image generated by Architizer using Midjourney

Vinyl flooring has been around in some form since the plastics revolution of the early 20th century. It became a residential interior staple during the postwar housing boom. Sheet vinyl was a quick and affordable option for developers racing to house a growing population. Today’s vinyl can look quite different, but at its core, it’s still a petrochemical product made with chemicals of serious health and climate concern. The addition of the luxury classification in vinyl branding is a recent marketing term, and it is hoodwinking hordes of purchasers. It typically designates vinyl tiles or panels (LVT or LVP) that are made to imitate the look of wood, stone or ceramic.

The popularity of these tiles and panels, particularly of the loose lay variety, have exploded thanks to another boom period: pandemic renovations. In 2021, LVT sales grew by a whopping 37.4%. By 2022, vinyl flooring made in China alone became the most common flooring sold in the United States, accounting for over one- quarter of all flooring sold in the U.S. According to the report from Center for Environmental Health, there are serious issues with lack of transparency and accuracy around the human and environmental toll of the LVT boom.

A Dirty Climate Secret

Image generated by Architizer using Midjourney

CEH’s report, titled “Flooring’s Dirty Climate Secret”, uncovers issues with the accuracy of reported carbon emissions by manufacturers of LVT and a lack of transparency around toxic chemicals used in production of vinyl flooring. Here are the four key findings from the report:

1. Carbon Emissions from producing PVC are underestimated by between 8% and 180% in Manufacturer Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs).

According to the report, manufacturer EPDs use outdated data and rely on carbon emission estimates from a single U.S. based production plant that doesn’t accurately reflect global emissions.

2. Workers all along the supply chain, along with frontline and fenceline communities in the U.S. and abroad are endangered by exposure to hazardous chemicals used to make LVT; Vinyl flooring manufacturers use significant quantities of highly toxic chemicals like PFAS and mercury to produce PVC.

PFAS, Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances also known as “forever chemicals,” are toxic to humans at extremely low levels of exposure. The production of PFAS chemicals releases greenhouse gasses that degrade the ozone layer while mercury, also used in PVC production, produces climate warming greenhouse gas emissions. You may have seen recent coverage of a report from the U.S. Geological Survey that found PFAS in nearly half of the tap water in the U.S.

3. Asbestos is used to produce chlorine to make PVC flooring in the United States – importing asbestos for PVC production represents the last remaining legal use of this toxic mineral fiber.

Yes, you read that right: asbestos. The U.S. imports approximately 373 metric tons of asbestos from mines in Russia and Brazil each year specifically to fuel the production of PVC. There is risk of exposure and release into the environment at all stages of this global supply chain. The EPA, which has partially restricted asbestos use in the U.S., proposed a ban on asbestos in 2022 that has been met with fierce opposition from the chemical industry.

4. Increased use of coal has resulted in higher carbon dioxide emissions because US manufacturers have shifted the majority of vinyl flooring production to China.

U.S. vinyl flooring manufacturers have shifted the bulk of production to China where coal is used to produce PVC instead of natural gas, which is used in the U.S. The use of coal as a feedstock releases massive amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

So, according to the CEH report, the LVT boom is causing an enormous increase in carbon emissions and is exposing workers, fenceline communities and residents to extremely toxic chemicals. All of this is under or mis-reported by vinyl manufacturers. Where does this leave architects, designers, and DIYers choosing flooring? We have to ask what is the true cost of this “inexpensive” product and why would we ever want to use this product? Fortunately, there are plenty of beautiful, healthy, and affordable alternatives to LVT.

Healthier, Affordable Alternatives

Image generated by Architizer using Midjourney

When choosing flooring materials, look for materials containing benign, regenerative ingredients and use non-toxic finishes. Here are some options to specify instead of vinyl:

  1. Linoleum (tiles, planks, and poured) is made primarily from plants—linseed oil from the flax plant and wood flour from trees. Other ingredients are added to ensure durability.
  2. Cork comes from the bark of the Cork Oak tree, which is harvested and regenerates without injuring the tree.
  3. Hempwood is a plant-based option that supports carbon sequestration through growing hemp. Its durability is equivalent to hardwood.
  4. Solid hardwood can be finished using products free of toxic solvents, allowing it to breathe and help regulate the interior climate and improve indoor air quality.
  5. Engineered hardwood made with soy-based binders is often more affordable than a solid wood option.
  6. Porcelain tile is benign and fully vitrified, making it highly durable and chemical-resistant.
  7. Reclaimed flooring, when made from healthy materials and found locally, saves materials that would end up in landfills and reduces carbon emissions and health impacts.

For more in-depth guidance on healthier flooring, check out the Healthy Materials Lab flooring materials collection. You’ll find detailed spec guidance and a list of rigorously vetted flooring products that have been holistically evaluated by our team for their content and performance.

This is Part I of a three-part series on the hazards of vinyl flooring. In Part II we’ll explore the long history of worker endangerment by the vinyl industry and the ways that legacy continues in China today.

Reference

Interior of dining room with chunky wood table with bench seating, set with plates and wineglasses plus decorative plants; room has large window, white walls with framed art and wood floors - photo
CategoriesSustainable News Zero Energy Homes

Selecting Sustainable Materials: An #EcoRenovate Guide

Beneficial use

Interior of dining room with chunky wood table with bench seating, set with plates and wineglasses plus decorative plants; room has large window, white walls with framed art and wood floors - photoWhether they’re structure, infrastructure, or comfort and decor, we are selecting sustainable materials for how they will be used in our homes. It’s important to identify the key factors that impact how long you will utilize and enjoy a product. Here is where cost-effective and eco-friendly come into harmony. A product that is expensive to run is likely consuming energy and/or excessive resources and materials throughout its usable life. Interestingly, people are inclined to hold on to—or pass along for reuse—a product or building that functions flexibly, is durable, or brings delight. If you are less than satisfied, it’s likely headed for the curb no matter how much it cost.

Considering the amount of time you will need a particular product can help determine whether it might be better to pay for use as opposed to owning it outright. Paying for use can take the burden of maintenance away, while giving you the flexibility to change things up. Renting furniture versus outright purchases keeps quality, usable pieces out of landfills and in homes. And if you love the piece, there are options like rent-to-buy.

Quality counts

For lasting useability, we’re selecting sustainable materials for their quality, innovative design, and durable construction. Often these attributes will cost more up front than less-expensive commodity goods (that’s why they call them cheap). But higher quality products and materials usually withstand the test of time. Materials that last are far more sustainable, avoiding the landfill or recycling plant for longer. And durable furnishings that you love can follow you on your next move, or be sold or passed along for someone else to use and enjoy. The Transformer Table, for instance, offers six-in-one flexibility, extending for large gatherings or breaking down into small sitting pieces. Flexible design and beautiful hardwood construction mean you’re more likely to use it, love it, and take care of it.

Reference

A sustainable composite lumber made from waste materials
CategoriesSustainable News

A sustainable composite lumber made from waste materials

Spotted: Imagine the ability to transform millions of tonnes of rubbish into useful materials, without any onerous sorting and cleaning processes. Waste technology company Ecogensus’ patented waste-derived lumber does just that. Using unsorted household waste, including organic material, the company’s Dynamic Organic Repolymerization (DOR) process creates sustainable, composite lumber strong enough to replace traditional building wood. 

Called EGS-6, the composite lumber is structurally reinforced, and the company is continually researching ways to increase the material’s strength and load-bearing ability. As well as building materials, Ecogensus provides a suite of additional waste management solutions.  

Introduced in 2023, the Rhino Recycling facility is a distributed hardware system that processes municipal solid waste. Available in a range of sizes, from 300 to 5,000 litres, the recycling facility handles everything from wastewater sludge to organic food waste and unsorted solids.   

As well as industrial recycling, Ecogensus also provides recycling as a service with its WeRecycle modules. The modules help upgrade current processing facilities and can work directly next to landfill sites for continuous energy and material production. A platform for monitoring sustainability goals and waste management, along with bioenergy fuel and home décor and furniture lines, are also part of Ecogensus’ broad range of products and services that help put municipal solid waste to good use.  

From artificial intelligence (AI) food waste management to river waste collection, Springwise has spotted a variety of examples of innovations in the archive seeking to find alternative uses for rubbish.

Written By: Keely Khoury

Reference

Modern Masterpiece: Architect David Strand on Designing the Perfect “Home in the Woods”
CategoriesArchitecture

Modern Masterpiece: Architect David Strand on Designing the Perfect “Home in the Woods”

If there is one thing that architects and their clients can agree on, it’s that architecture should always work in harmony with nature. When it came to Silver Residence, a stunning modern home located in Minneapolis, nature wasn’t just a consideration — it was the starting point for developing the architectural concept.

Local architect David Strand, Principal and Director of Strand Design, was tasked with creating a private residence that remained intimately connected to its site, while providing light, open spaces and high-end finishes to meet the needs of its client. The resulting house comprises an elegant arrangement of three volumes, cleverly oriented to provide a sense of privacy while maintaining uninhibited views of the surrounding forest.


Architizer’s Editor in Chief Paul Keskeys sat down with Strand to discuss the conception and development of Silver Residence, including the material choices and product specification decisions that helped make the design a reality.

Paul Keskeys: How did the client brief and the project’s unique site help to shape your initial concept for Silver Residence?

David Strand: This was a truly unique site. The lot was essentially an established woodland in the backyards of the neighboring homes. Encircled by their neighbors, our main goal was to utilize the large wooded site while maintaining discretion for the neighbors and our clients. Careful site placement and rotation, focused view corridors and room placement was our initial goal.

What most influenced your choice of materials and products for the project and why?

We wanted the house to stand stoically, but also fade into the surroundings. Getting two large, flat roofed volumes to blend in with nature isn’t that simple. The soft tone of the siding and mixed palette of dark brick and concrete helped reduce the impact. The vertical siding has a very calm and natural look that mimics the linear trees and sky.

The expansive windows reflect the woods, so it appears that you are seeing through the home to woods beyond, helping to minimize the mass of the structures. The home changes throughout the seasons, with the warm glow of the windows in the evening accentuating the natural wood ceilings and cabinetry.

For this project, we chose Marvin windows for several reasons. Firstly, both the builder and Strand Design are familiar and comfortable with the brand, and they know they can trust Marvin to stand behind its product. We were also aiming to maintain the crisp and clean aesthetic of the home, and wanted a product that was more streamlined for the windows within the primary spaces of the living room and kitchen.

The Marvin Modern line brings a refined option to the residential market and allows us to intermix supplier and installer within one brand, facilitating multiple sizes and styles of windows throughout the home. These windows allow for massive pieces of glass with minimal structure between them.

In the Silver Residence, the clean lines and minimal articulation create a truly modern and elevated experience for the public spaces of the home. To be cognizant of the budget and quality we established, we chose Marvin Ultimate due to its durable exterior aluminum extrusion and finish.

In terms of the building envelope, what were your goals and how did you achieve them through detailing?

The expansive glazing of the Silver Residence creates movement and intrigue within its harmonic envelope. From the exterior, during the day, the windows reflect the trees and sky surrounding the home, adding tones of green and blue to the otherwise neutral exterior palette. At night, they allow for the warm interior light to filter out to enliven the facade as it blends into the fading light.

From the interior, the glass connects the home to its site and allows the family to interact with nature, even while inside the home. By drawing natural light deep within the home, we created a dynamic and inviting quality that energizes the interior and enriches the time spent at home.

It is always about purposeful material usage and clean transitions. We strive to design each home within its own scale, allowing for quality material usage inside and out.  We aim to create a jewel box, whatever size that may be. The main problem with what is often perceived as the modern architecture aesthetic today, is the patchwork application of trendy materials that serves no purpose and has no correlation to the massing of the structure.

This home, like most of our homes, is thought of in terms of overall massing to create a relevant aesthetic for the site, with consideration for the scale of the project and also the clients. We created interest by using textural and material changes rather than jarring transitions. By maintaining one primary tone, we were able to create a refined yet tactile material palette. These elements carry subtly into the home, reminding you of what you are inhabiting.

What was the biggest design challenge you faced during the process, and how was it overcome?

For this question, we need to go back to the site. What seemed like a large and blank canvas became very compact and directional when taking all of the neighboring homes into account. Managing the sightlines and drawing the natural light into the homes was the main priority.

Which elements of the project do you feel are most successful and may influence your future designs?

From both the exterior and interior, the large expanses of glass that cleanly transition from one to another add depth and refinement to the home. Blurring that line of transparency and reflection is something we feel this home does well and will aim for in future homes. Purposeful material transitions are a huge part of the success of this home. Simplicity starts and stops with the absence of adornment.

Another programming element that is incorporated very well with this home is the screen porch. Protected between the wings of the house and backed by the glass breezeway, this space allows for intimate family moments and transitions from an open deck to a screened porch seamlessly. Watching the screen slice through the building façade is a satisfying moment.

What has the client’s response to the project been like?

Our clients truly love their home and utilize the residence to its fullest. It’s a home that selflessly demands little of their time and thought, while encompassing comfort, space and warmth. The home serves as the “form and function” backdrop, enriching their own free flowing lives within it.


To explore more case studies featuring Marvin Modern and learn how to harness windows and doors like these for your next project, click here.

Photographs by Chad Holder Photography; plan drawing courtesy of Strand Design.

Reference

Eight interiors that feature reclaimed and recycled materials
CategoriesInterior Design

Eight interiors that feature reclaimed and recycled materials

For our latest lookbook, Dezeen has selected eight examples of interiors that were created with reclaimed and recycled materials, including a restaurant in Bangalore and a brick house in Ghent.

Recent decades have seen more awareness and reflection on environmental and sustainable issues both inside and outside the design world, leading a number of designers and architects to choose sustainable design for their projects.

From the use of unwanted items to the application of reclaimed bricks and recycled plastics, the eight projects in this lookbook present ways in which designers have rediscovered the value of waste.

This is the latest in Dezeen’s lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring sunny yellow interiors, beds that have been built into interiors and tiled kitchen worktops.


Photo by Ishita Sitwala

Circus Canteen, India, by Multitude of Sins

Bangalore studio Multitude of Sins designed this restaurant interior, which was shortlisted in the sustainable interior category of Dezeen Awards 2022, to showcase a collage of unwanted objects.

The salvaged objects were sourced locally from a donation drive in a few weeks. The studio categorised them, then organised them into a colourful, stylish interior.

Find out more about the Circus Canteen ›


Kamikatsu Zero Waste Centre, Japan, by Hiroshi Nakamura

The Kamikatsu Zero Waste Centre (above and main image) was created as an eco-friendly community and educational space for recycling activities, and features a facade made of 700 windows donated by the local community.

Architect Hiroshi Nakamura attached harvesting containers from a mushroom factory to the wall to be used as bookshelves. Unwanted objects were also collected from abandoned houses, previous government buildings and schools in the local area.

Find out more about the Kamikatsu Zero Waste Centre ›


Silo restaurant designed by Nina+Co
Photo by Sam A Harris

Silo, UK, by Nina+Co

The dining tables of this zero-waste restaurant in London consist of flecked recycled-plastic tops and sustainably-sourced ash wood legs, with mycelium pendant lamps dangling above.

The dining space also features a long bar counter made from recycled plastic packaging.

Find out more about Silo zero-waste restaurant ›


Photo by Magdalena Gruber

Urselmann Interior’s office, Germany, by Urselmann Interior

The renovation of the ceiling in this Düsseldorf office was completed using poplar wood sourced from a tree felled in the nearby city of Krefeld. The studio preserved the existing wooden and terrazzo flooring.

The refurbishment of the office, which is the studio’s own, also included the use of biodegradable materials, glueless joinery and cellulose-based cladding.

Find out more about Urselmann Interior’s office ›


The Wendy House by Earthscape Studio
Photo by Syam Sreesylam

Wendy House, India, by Earthscape Studio

This vaulted residence in Bangalore, which sits among eight acres of dense forests, was covered with recycled mudga tiles. Its glass walls were framed with recycled rods.

Earthscape Studio also constructed the building with sithu kal bricks, a traditional technique that is currently not in use. This design revisited the neglected technique to help bring work opportunities to the local community.

Find out more about the Wendy House ›


GjG House built of reclaimed bricks by BLAF Architecten in Ghent, Belgium
Photo by Stijn Bollaert

GjG House, Belgium, by BLAF Architecten

Built without supporting interior walls, this house was constructed with reclaimed bricks and features a curved form and brick bonding.

BLAF Architecten designed the unusual curvilinear walls in order for the house to fit in between surrounding trees on the site in Ghent.

Find out more about GjG House ›


10K House by Takk
Photo by José Hevia

10K House, Spain, by Takk

In the context of global climate change and the energy crisis, 10K House was built on a material budget of only 10,000 euros and features rooms built inside each other to maximise insulation.

Spanish Architecture studio Takk used recycled white table legs to lift one of the interior rooms in the Barcelona apartment, creating space for water pipes and electrical fittings without the extra cost of adding wall grooves.

Find out more about 10K House ›


Rylett House by Studio 30 Architects
Photo by Agnese Sanvito

Rylett House, UK, Studio 30 Architects

Studio 30 Architects transformed an old carpenter’s bench into a kitchen island for this London house extension, which includes a living, kitchen and dining area.

The extension was built on the site of a previous conservatory and overlooks the garden through a timber window decorated with plants.

Find out more about Rylett House ›

This is the latest in Dezeen’s lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring sunny yellow interiors, beds that have been built into interiors and tiled kitchen worktops.

Reference

Designing with Light: 6 Ways Architects Are Using Swisspearl's Progressive Cladding Panels
CategoriesArchitecture

Designing with Light: 6 Ways Architects Are Using Swisspearl’s Progressive Cladding Panels

Architects: Want to have your project featured? Showcase your work through Architizer and sign up for our inspirational newsletters.

We first understand architecture through it’s façade, the face that it presents to us. This first impression is deeply tied to the materials and building systems a structure is made of. As designers and architects collaborate with manufacturers and fabricators, they continuously reimagine what this “first impression” can be and how buildings perform. A global provider based in Switzerland, Swisspearl is a manufacturer known for rethinking cladding and façades. The company’s guiding principle is to develop and produce forward-looking, functional and aesthetically convincing designs with architects, craftspeople and building material suppliers.

The headquarters of today’s Swisspearl Group is located in Niederurnen, where one of the first production facilities for fiber cement was founded in 1903. For many years, Swisspearl has been developing products made of natural materials for use in building envelopes, interior design and landscapes. The company’s products from their workshops in Niederurnen and Payerne have shaped Swiss building culture and, over time, have been used in projects worldwide. Swisspearl became well-known for cement composite panels (formerly called fiber cement panels or fiber-reinforced cementitious panels) offered in a wide color range. The following projects highlight their panels and product innovations used in architecture worldwide.


Denver Botanic Gardens Science Pyramid

By EUA, Denver, CO, United States

This iconic Science Pyramid was inspired by nature. The team wanted the façade of the building to mimic the hexagonal structure of a honeycomb. The pyramid’s two peaks and 16 facets twist and turn towards the sky as if it was a result of the earth’s colliding tectonic plates. Located in the center of the gardens, the pyramid’s proportions are a inverse of the adjacent amphitheater, made to create harmony between the building and the surrounding landscape.

Faced with the task of designing a transparent pyramid, as specified in the competition brief, the architects of the winning competition entry drew their inspiration from the geological processes causing the ragged rock formations of the nearby mountain ridges. The envelope of the structure informed by a biological metaphor and features almost 500 dark gray, hexagonal Swisspearl panels interspersed with thirty photo-voltaic collectors and multiple windows and skylights.


US Land Port of Entry, Warroad MN

By Snow Kreilich Architects, Warroad, MN, United States

Snow Kreilich designed the Warroad Land Port of Entry to support the mission-driven demands of US Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The 40,108 square foot facility was conceived as a specific response to the vast open landscape along the Minnesota-Canadian border. In turn, its form reiterates the dominant horizon of the landscape while making reference to the East-West border.  Inflected building forms facilitate intuitive use by visitors, the officer’s ability to survey the entire site, and vehicle access to secondary inspections.

Swisspearl was used along the building façade, along with cedar planks stained black. Surfaces that face inward, in contrast, are an auburn-colored cedar. The Warroad Land Port of Entry sets a new standard for remote, small ports in achieving the highest design standard for public buildings. While embracing CBP’s operational procedures and inevitably changing technologies, the design advances the dual mission to protect national security while facilitating trade and travel in a comfortable, efficient facility.


Davis-Harrington Welcome Center

By Dake Wells Architecture, Springfield, MO, United States

Dake Wells designed the Davis-Harrington Welcome Center as a new “front door” welcoming visitors to Missouri State University’s campus. The 13,000 square foot facility includes a two-story lobby and 100 seat presentation room to provide a multi-purpose venue for special events. Tasked by the University with providing a “signature piece of architecture”, the design solution was made to be both economical and monumental. The building program is arranged in a two-story scheme, placing administrative functions on an upper level in order to increase the building’s visual presence as it reinforces the campus edge.

The building enclosure combines a variety of materials in response to the surrounding campus context. The architects used a seemingly paper-thin layer of white Swisspearl panels to sheathe the fully glazed upper sections of the east and west façades. As the team explains, the latter extends slightly beyond the pointed corner of the building where the lower part folds slightly away to extend a welcoming gesture to visitors. Inspired by the pattern of a composition booklet, a seemingly random arrangement of circular perforations feeds dappled light into the atrium and allows views from the second-floor walkway.


Myriad Botanical Gardens

By Gensler, Oklahoma City, OK, United States

The design team wanted to transform Oklahoma City’s Myriad Botanical Gardens from an underused park to a vibrant center of activity for residents and visitors. By adding a new restaurant, open-air pavilion, bandshell and addition to the existing conservatory as well as redesigning the landscape, the design team set out to give the park new appeal. The buildings are linked through consistent geometry derived from the pure Euclidian form of the original botanical conservatory. The compositional elements that form the architectural language include single-story geometric forms, white cementitious panels, water-clear glass and extended overhangs.

Each structure has its own unique character informed by its distinct program. Swisspearl was used as siding for the project throughout. The restaurant is a perfect square, where cantilevered overhangs extend 18 feet on the west side to provide shade from the harsh summer sun. Twelve foot curved glass panels form the circular dining area. While the bandshell is a complex 3D sculptural and monumental form. Since the park’s grand re-opening, the new Myriad Botanical Gardens has added vitality to downtown Oklahoma City attracting visitors each year.


Kindergarten Cerkvenjak

By Superform, Municipality of Cerkvenjak, Slovenia

Desigend as a kindergarten is in the village of Cerkvenjak, this project is located in the center of the Slovenske Gorice region of Slovenia. The kindergarten was designed to be inseparably connected with the natural surroundings of the trees and playground equipment. The concept of the kindergarten is similar to its local surroundings with the rhythmic string of volumes and roofs. Because of this concept, the kindergarten does not surpass the scale of an individual house and gives the user — a child — a sense of home.

The architects drew the inspiration for this kindergarten from a nearby learning path running through the Slovenian village of Cerkvenjak. Intended to enrich the children‘s spatial experience, the hallway inside varies in width and each playroom unit boasts a unique, irregular and contorted shape. The design of the Swisspearl envelope support this idea. The kindergarten is a new program and function that upgrades the existing learning path. The result of using the principle of a learning path is a unique division and rhythm of the playrooms, where the kindergarten is closer to the scale of a child.


The Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts

By SPF:architects, Denver, CO, United States

SPF:architects took on the revitalization of the dormant Beverly Hills post office site to create a new performing arts center. Built on the historic site, the new project includes a 500-seat theater building connected via promenade and outdoor sculpture garden. The historic WPA building built in 1934 is repurposed to house a 120-seat studio theater, a café, gift shop, box offices, administration facilities and a 3-classroom theater school for children. Outside, a garden and courtyard connect the historic with the new building with direct visual connection to the shops and restaurants of downtown Beverly Hills.

Celebrating the history of the site, the skin is formed in copper-colored concrete panels. A 4 foot by 9 foot envelope-shaped panel is repeated across the façade. The result is an abstract textural pattern, engraved into the building skin. Made out of Swis­s­pearl cement boards, the team redesigned the façade to alter the size and mod­u­la­tion of the ​gaps between pan­els, result­ing in 30% sav­ings in mate­r­i­al. The plan preserves and celebrates the historic architecture, as well as affords the Center the opportunity to create a new, state-of-the-art, flexible performing arts facility with ample back-of-house amenities.

Architects: Want to have your project featured? Showcase your work through Architizer and sign up for our inspirational newsletters.

Reference

Storing biological materials without refrigeration
CategoriesSustainable News

Storing biological materials without refrigeration

Spotted: Storing living cells is a tricky and expensive process due to the necessity of temperature control to keep them stable, and the vast majority of biological material currently needs to be stored either in freezers, refrigerators, or more rarely as freeze-dried powders. One group of researchers hope to change this. 

Researchers at California Polytechnic State University have developed a new way of storing such biological materials, in a solid state. The solid-state storage transforms the material or protein into something that resembles a tablet shape that can then be dissolved and utilised, without the fear of it having degraded.  

The advent of solid-state storage represents a new ability in the scientific community to far more easily and cheaply store and transport biological material. Research lead Dr Javin Oza referred to the innovation as “easy as an Alka-Seltzer tablet, just drop it into water, mix, and it’s ready to go”. The storage technique has been demonstrated on RNA (a nucleic acid that’s essential for protein synthesis) and also on CRISPR-Cas9 (a genome-editing tool). 

While in its early stages, researchers are optimistic that further improvements will allow the solid-state storage to become refined. It will need to be developed for specific uses, with specific coatings to help it be resistant to extreme heat, humidity, and chemicals. The method could also allow biological material to one day be taken as a tablet rather than intravenously, potentially meaning that medicines like insulin would be taken orally, transforming the lives of millions of diabetics.

Springwise has spotted other innovators in the archive working to improve access to therapeutics, including some who’ve developed a vaccine printer and one startup delivering solar fridges for vaccination transportation.

Written By: Archie Cox

Reference