April 29, 2008 at 12:25 pm · Tags: Michelle Kaufmann, Michelle Kaufmann Designs, Smart Home
Michelle Kaufmann’s blog has an update on an exhibit of one of her homes in Chicago:
During my visit last week to the Smart Home: Green Wired exhibit at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, there was a lot of exciting work going on. The landscaping, side decking, roof decking, and permeable pavers for the driveway (which allow rainwater to pass through, thereby reducing runoff and it’s negative effects) were being installed, furnishings were being delivered, and the home automation system was getting wired.
michelle kaufmann’s blog » Blog Archive » smart home’s smart design
July 10, 2007 at 4:25 pm · Tags: Glidehouse, Michelle Kaufmann, Michelle Kaufmann Designs, Oakland, US
MICHELLE KAUFMANN BELIEVES THAT buying an environmentally friendly home should be as simple as ordering a pair of sneakers. Sitting at her laptop in her Oakland, California, office, the architect goes to the Nike Web site, chooses a shoe, and clicks a few buttons. Moments later her customized sneakers are ready for review: white with orange laces and an orange swoosh, the initials “MK” stitched on the tongue.
The process for ordering one of Kaufmann’s solar-ready, sustainably built, water- and energy-efficient modular homes isn’t that different. She offers three basic designs, each of which uses ecofriendly materials like bamboo flooring, recycled-glass tiles, and efficient dual-flush toilets. Clients choose a model, then Kaufmann meets with them to figure out the details and price. They can customize finishes, select the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, and decide whether to have the house fitted with solar panels. A few months after final permits have been granted, trucks roll up to the client’s building site and deliver the house in sections. It takes only a couple of hours to position the modules, and another four to six weeks to complete the finish work. The prefab model costs 20 percent less than an identical site-built house and takes a third less time to construct. All this is key to Kaufmann’s mission: making green architecture accessible to everyone. “People want to do the right thing,” she says, “but it has to be affordable.”
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