Archinect - News

Food for thought on circular design and who should own the built environment

2022-10-11T12:43:00-04:00

Back in June, we covered news of research set to be undertaken at Penn State on the subject of embodied carbon in cities. The research, one of many stories this year focusing on embodied carbon, signals a growing awareness in academic and professional circles of the need to include whole-life perspectives on buildings when calculating their environmental impact: from conception and construction to demolition and reuse.

Given the sizeable 40% impact of the AEC sector on global carbon emissions, it is no surprise that conversations on embodied carbon, life-cycle analyses, and our attitude towards waste in buildings have also garnered mainstream attention.

This week, The New York Times published an article by freelance writer Jessica Camille Aguirre titled ‘How to Recycle a 14-Story Office Tower.’ While the title may evoke ideas of an IKEA-s...

Check out the process behind Apex Plaza, the new tallest mass timber building on the East Coast

2022-05-05T16:17:00-04:00

William McDonough + Partners' new mass timber Apex Plaza project recently celebrated its completion in Charlottesville, Virginia. The 187,000-square-foot structure is now considered to be the largest such CLT project in the eastern United States.

Its completion is a major milestone for the use of the increasingly popular material in the U.S. and marks the end of a journey begun twenty years ago when the firm published a text from McDonough and EPEA International founder Michael Braungart outlining the “possibility of developing healthy and creatively interactive relationships between human settlements and the natural world.”

Apex Plaza, completed. Image © William McDonough + Partners

Construction images provided by the firm tell a narrative of its design features and the process behind McDonough's concepts of "Building like a Tree," "Design for Disassembly," and "The Five Goods." The timber products you can see below are said to be sustainably harvested and Cradle to Cradle-certifie...

William McDonough + Partners unveil their first Latin American Cradle to Cradle-designed building in Bogota

2017-09-07T17:39:00-04:00

The architecture firm of William McDonough, who co-developed the Cradle to Cradle design philosophy, unveiled the scheme for a new 20,000 square-meter academic building at the Universidad EAN in Bogota. The project marks the firm's first signature building in Latin America. They also hope the new building will be a catalyst for integrating more Cradle to Cradle Certified products in Colombia's building industry.

The building's main feature will be a colorful, perforated sun shade, which will be constructed using McDonough's WonderFrame™ technology. The panels will block glare while provide views, and energy, water, and resource use will be optimized. For natural ventilation, solar chimneys will draw air through the building and exhaust it at the roof.

Featuring 10 floors above ground, the scheme comprises science labs, classrooms, administrative offices, seminar rooms, as well a...

Brave New Recycling Economy: Movement Turns Trash to Treasure

2014-08-18T17:14:00-04:00

Every piece of garbage can be turned into raw material that can be used in future products. With his influential Cradle to Cradle movement, Germany's Michael Braungart espouses a form of eco-hedonism that puts smart production before conservation.

Recently on Archinect: Student Works: This house made of trash teaches a lesson in green housekeeping

Make It Right unveils new designs for Native American housing in Montana

2014-06-23T13:10:00-04:00

The Make It Right foundation has unveiled its new home designs for the Sioux and Assiniboine tribes of Fort Peck, Montana. Following LEED Platinum certification and Cradle to Cradle practices, the foundation is known for building sustainable homes for people in need. For the Ft. Peck project, Make It Right plans to build twenty solar-powered homes for tribal members, and develop a sustainable master plan for the reservation of over 6,000 people.

Designers and architects involved included GRAFT, Sustainable Native Communities Collaborative, Architecture for Humanity, Method Homes and Living Homes. The homes will be available to tribal members with a household income of 60% or lower than the area's median income.

Find more information on the Ft. Peck project from Make It Right here.

Cradle to Cradle Innovation Challenge 2013 Winners reinvent safe, sustainable building products

2013-11-18T13:59:00-05:00

Cradle to Cradle Products Innovation Institute and Make It Right honored the winners of their Innovation Challenge on Nov. 15 at the Innovation Celebration in New York City. The challenge was established in 2012 as a chance for innovators to reinvent and respond to the issues on how building products are designed, manufactured, and consumed.

Starting from 144 applicants to 10 finalists, the jury chose four winners:

1st place: bioMASON biobrick
2nd place: Ecovative Mushroom Insulation
3rd place tie: ECOR Universal Construction Panels and ROMA Domus Mineral Paints

Ecovative is also the winner of the 2013 Buckminster Fuller Challenge.