When we saw this home - with its east-west exposures and windows that could be seen on both sides - we were immediately sold. It was the third house we looked at, and we were so lucky the owner accepted our offer. It was a very competitive moment for home sales in the neighborhood, and the fact we were able to make it happen felt like a dream.
Photovoltaic (PV) solar energy represents a modular technology that can be manufactured in large-scale facilities, generating economies of scale, while also being adaptable to small-scale applications. From residential rooftop systems to large-scale power generation installations, photovoltaic solar energy has established itself as a cost-effective option for electricity production in many countries around the world.
Picture this: four robotic arms working in perfect harmony, tracing circular patterns like some kind of futuristic dance performance. But instead of creating art, they're printing the walls of an actual farm. Welcome to Itaca, a project that just wrapped up its construction in the hills of Northern Italy, and it's changing how we think about building homes. WASP, the Italian company behind this audacious venture, just finished printing the walls of what they're calling the first certified 3D-printed construction in Italy.
In the nineteenth century, entire railway networks became obsolete almost overnight, not due to physical deterioration, but because of changes in the technical standards that supported them. The expansion of railroads across Europe and North America adopted different track gauges, and as a dominant standard gradually emerged, these infrastructures became incompatible with one another.
All of the appliances and systems are brand-new: the HVAC, the lighting, the entertainment. Touch screens of various shapes and sizes control this, that, and the other. Rows of programmable buttons sit where traditional light switches would normally be. The kitchen even has outlets designed to rise up from the countertop when you need them, and slide away when you don't.
When you think about building a house, what materials come to mind? Brick, wood and metal all come to mind; there are also some very distinctive glass houses out there. (Even if their occupants should refrain from throwing stones - though honestly, that's a good tip for indoor living in general.) A group of MIT researchers have come up with a very different way of making buildings, and it's one that also addresses an ongoing waste issue."We've estimated that the world needs about 1 billion new homes by 2050. If we try to make that many homes using wood, we would need to clear-cut the equivalent of the Amazon rainforest three times over," explained AJ Perez, who conducts his research in the MIT Office of Innovation. The title of a paper written by Perez and his colleagues - "Design, Manufacture and Testing of Structural Trusses Using Additively Manufactured Polymer Composites" - gives a sense of the solution that they have in mind.
One of the earliest large-scale examples of composite materials can be found in the Great Wall of China, where stone, clay bricks, and organic fibers such as reeds and willow branches were blended to create a resilient and lasting structure. These early techniques reveal a timeless intuition: distinct materials, when combined thoughtfully, produce properties unattainable by any single element.
The home isn't just where we live anymore. It's a mechanism for living longer. In this AD PRO LIVE report, we'll examine how residential design has become the next frontier to a healthier, longer life. Delve into the industry's expanding catalog of non-toxic materials, the architectural elements shaping conscientious builds, and the luxury amenities promoting physical and mental well-being in every room of the house.