An idea whose time seems to have arrived is the use of stockpiled shipping containers as modular units for building homes. Because of the balance of trade in the United States, these hefty steel boxes are piling up in ports around the country and posing a storage problem. Several architects and builders are taking advantage of this surplus to recycle the containers.

According to David Cross of www.sgblocks.com, "a container has 8000 lbs of steel which takes 8000 kwh of energy to melt down and make new beams etc... Our process of modifying that entire 8000 lbs of steel into a "higher and better use" only takes 400 kwh of electrical energy (or 5%). Granted it takes a bit more "muscle" but we call this Value-Cycling which we feel is that next step up from Re-cycling."

Each container measures 8 feet wide by 40 feet long by 9 feet tall. SG Blocks sells the finished structural systems (also called SG Blocks) for $9,000 to $11,000 per unit. The finished units have one or two walls removed and include the necessary support columns and beam enhancements.

According to KPFF Consulting, a structural engineering firm in St. Louis with extensive experience working with shipping containers, the units are stronger than conventional house framing because of their resistance to "lateral loads" -- those seen in hurricanes and earthquakes -- and because steel is basically welded to steel. The roof is strong enough to support the extra weight of a green roof — which has vegetation growing on it — if the owner should want it.

As for their energy efficiency, they claim that when the appropriate coatings are installed, the envelope reflects about 95 percent of outside radiation, resists the loss of interior heat, provides an excellent air infiltration barrier and does not allow water to migrate in.

One idea that has occurred to me is that this system might benefit from the use of SIP's (Structural Insulated Panels) for the roofs, rather that standard truss framing. SIP's are very well insulated, install quickly, and use much less wood than convention roofs.

Shipping containers are self-supporting with beams and stout, marine-grade plywood flooring already in place, thereby eliminating time and labor during the home-building process. Cross said construction costs are comparable to those in conventional building. Four to seven units are used in a typical home, he said.

Instead of nailing the siding they use "Super Therm", a ceramic paint made by Superior Products of Minnesota; it can be used as a paint, an adhesive, an insulator, a fireproofing material and an acoustic barrier. With this ceramic paint, they claim the insulation capacity is equal to a conventional house.

Adam Kalkin, of www.architectureandhygiene.com , has also become enamored with shipping containers as an architectural solution. The idea to do something with shipping containers came to Kalkin, a New Jersey resident, when driving to New York City, where he saw sky-high stacks of the unused cargo containers in the shipyards he passed.

"The cargo containers, with a life span of about 20 years when used for their original purpose, have an “infinite life span” when stationary and properly maintained," Kalkin says. “To me they are like a treasured antique: they may not be inherently valuable, but the history and the storytelling add value.”

Environmentalists have embraced the design, applauding the recycling inherent to Kalkin's designs. And advocates for affordable-housing like the design, since according to Kalkin, "the total cost of a house—between $150,000 and $175,000 after the buyer settles upon the various options—works out to be between $73 and $90 per square foot, about half the cost of the conventional $200 per square foot for reasonable quality, new construction in the Northeast.”

Kalkin has recently opened a factory—“a hangar at a little airport in New Jersey”—to manufacture Quik Houses. “There are a lot of elbows flying in this process, and this is the best way to protect the quality of the house, to keep the accounting transparent, and to make sure I am not unwittingly responsible for heinous crimes to the built environment.” Once the factory is fully functional, Kalkin plans to export many of his products, commenting that “the possibilities of working on a world scale are exciting.”

Twenty-one thousand containers hit American shores every day of the year. Containers can be shipped to the interior of the country via trains and trucks. Shipping containers are like Lego toys and the modules can be assembled in thousands of ways.

In general it is a good thing to recycle materials that otherwise have no further use for their intended purpose, and this is true here. As for whether one can make a comfortable house out of these metal boxes, the biggest question is: insulation...it is essential, but there are many ways to insulate these containers, so this is not a big concern. Another concern that many people would have is whether a metal box would have adverse health effects because of EMF (electro-magnetic frequencies) generation or propagation. Some people are sensitive to these while others are not.

There is no doubt that these containers can be used to fabricate very strong shells that would withstand substantial abuse from the ravages of nature.

Concrete "Firebowl" - $4,200.00 CAD with fire

as part of the second nature exhibition held at 21, 21 the campana brothers created 'cristalina'.
curated by tokujin yoshioka the exhibition focusses on fusing nature with technology.


'cristalina'
image © designboom

for 'cristaliana' the brothers used the idea of nests of birds to create a seat with branches interwoven.
craftsmen worked for hours using various wood structures to create this unusual design.


sketch of 'cristalina'


the making process


craftspeople weaving the seat


image © designboom


image © designboom


branches woven into the seat
image © designboom

more:
http://www.campanas.com.br

designboom interview with campana brothers

Hey, DMI seems to slightly open up towards the social web! Something I’ve tried to convince them on a while ago ;-)

Therefore under the lead of Scott Lerman they’ve set up a Ning where you can socialize and get in touch with other Design Management professionals across the globe that like to hang out at DMI conferences once in a while. Well done, DMI!

So in case you’re planning to attend the annual DMI conference in early October 2008 you should definitively join. Otherwise for lurking and networking join as well at: JoIN the REMIX >>>

The title of this quick post came up in a recent discussion I had with a business partner. After further reflection, I find this very true. It is applicable to all forms of strategy including design. So let me reword this: A good design strategy is like a good movie. A beautiful [...]

a detail of one of the flying fish
image © designboom

just an update from experimentdesign amsterdam 2008. nothing design group, who just participated in
designboom's tokyo mart were also participants of the urban play exhibition which was part of experimentadesign.
the group of young korean designers, directed by koo jin-woog, presented 'fish in the sky' as their contribution
to the exhibition. along the IJ riverfront, transparent wind vanes in the shape of fish, were attached to flag poles
and soared above. the fish were meant to be a school of dutch herring, with the flag poles acting like
fishing rods, which have caught the fish swimming through the sky.


the fish are meant to be a representation of dutch herring
image © designboom


image © designboom


a member of nothing design group preparing one of the fish
image © droog design


fish flying high along the IJ riverfront in amsterdam
image © designboom

nothing design group: http://www.designnothing.com
droog design: http://www.droog.com
urban play: http://www.urbanplay.org
experimentadesign amsterdam: http://www.experimentadesign.nl

• Explaining Innovation through Illustration: Google Chrome
  For more than a year the use of illustrations in order to ideate and visualize innovation both in products and services has been part of my Design Management seminars.

  While preparing for the international version of this seminar in Lucerne/CH in November this year together with my colleague Erik over from http://www.zilverinnovation.com I've been happily stumbling across Google's announcement to release a new G-branded browser built from scratch. However it wouldn't be Google if they would have chosen the ordinary road of explaining innovation with plain fact sheets. Instead they've chosen the format of a 'Comic' in order to illustrate the new approach and rich features of the web browser.

  Thanks to Scott McCloud I do now have a new (and better) example of great use of illustrations for business purposes.

  (tags: web design software scottmccloud google browser illustration innovation)

Nice deck from Adam Cahill on Obama and social media. Lots of lessons here, many already known and recognized, but well worth a timely reminder.

kokuyo design group holds an annual workshop with student designers in japan called tukurite.
the workshop partners the student with in-house designers to create new product ideas for kokuyo.
products featured this year included jewelry, coasters, a tape measure and vases.


'instant pinhole jewelry' by sasaki taku
image © designboom