#living

Affordable living in contemporary homes

Architect Nerma Linsberger is known for designing top-quality social housing. One of her projects, titled “WILLLI”, is another model of affordable yet highly attractive city apartments.

#greenbuilding

Urban apartments off the peg

Apple’s former design head BJ Siegel has developed a concept for a timber modular house. The urban prefab named Juno is designed for mass production – and hopes for success on the scale of the iPhone.

#smart office

In the service of biological diversity

Good news for local fauna: The dedication of not-for-profit organization CABI to combatting climate change through innovative agricultural solutions is reflected in the architecture of its new headquarters in England.

#greenbuilding

Village life in the city

Communal vegetable patches, car sharing and a timber building that overtops many others. Sweden’s largest housing cooperative is celebrating its 100th anniversary with a project called Västerbroplan that shows how people will live in the future.

#greenbuilding

A superlative tree house

Bearing the name Tree House Rotterdam, Holland’s new landmark-to-be looks like a gigantic stack of wooden shelves with glass lofts added on top. It aims to take the sustainability of timber high-rises to a new level.

#living

Co-housing 2.0

Three tonnes of lettuce and vegetables annually will be farmed on top of the We-House, a timber construction project in Hamburg’s HafenCity. The on-site restaurant serves meals for residents of this sophisticated eco-house at cost price.

#city planning

KCAP is building on Fashion House

Urban densification is experiencing a fresh take in Amsterdam West, where a new neighbourhood is being built on existing buildings. It is a mega-project with extravagant architecture, apartments and public green space. One of the sections will be the OKU House, designed by KCAP for above the Fashion House.

#smart office

“Smart means something is communicating with me”

Alan Hofmann is a building engineer and timber constructor from Austria. His company Woodplan occupies a digital niche for building projects around the world. In this interview he describes his interpretation of intelligent offices, and how an office can be smart in an old Austrian building.

#smart office

The parametric office

The design for the urban office building Saint Denis in Paris shows the potential of parametric design in timber construction. Architect Arthur Mamou-Mani is a luminary in this new discipline, and we were able to meet him online.

#smart office

In full control

In everyday office life, automation is especially key to success. Lighting, sound, shading, heating, cooling, ventilation and access systems can be operated centrally with intelligent controls by Loxone.

Die grünen Türme von Beverly Hills (Bild: DBOX / Foster + Partners)

#greenbuilding

The green towers of Beverly Hills

The district where film stars like to congregate is now the setting for one of the biggest environmental projects in the USA: “One Beverly Hills” is creating green towers and gardens alongside legendary VIP hotels. A green “triangle” with master plan by Foster + Partners will offer public zones and – naturally – new luxury.

Die vertikale Kleingartensiedlung von Studio Precht

#city planning

Vertical allotments for urban farming

Self-sufficiency is no longer a dream reserved for downshifters. The modular building system named The Farmhouse designed by Studio Precht allows residents to grow food in big cities.

#greenbuilding

Timber pavilion with high-tech design

Homerton College at the University of Cambridge has chosen the design by Alison Brooks Architects for a pavilion that combines modern timber construction with high-tech facilities. It is expected to be a future-facing answer to their needs.

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