A flexible house designed for the flexible families of the future, where later marriage, divorce, and longer life expectancy are creating a larger number of smaller households. So the living accommodation can be subdivided for multi-ownership, bathrooms can be en suite or shared, and living and bedrooms can be re-sized with sliding storage units.

Design

Tall storey-height windows let light deep into the house, with triple glazing contributing to the “passivhaus” strategy of high insulation and low space-heating needs. The glazing units would be fabricated as completed modules offsite, allowing the incorporation of high specification seals, gaskets and computer-controlled opening mechanisms. The timber frame is conceived as a flexible chassis, with integrated cabling and ducting for electrical power, extract and input fans, wireless broadband, and sound systems. The house would therefore be enabled with the technology capacity for the future.

Technical

Double height spaces can be opened up between the floors by the removal of a knock-out panel
Heating provided through an integral capillary tube heating system threaded behind all internal surfaces.
Integral window shutters give added insulation

Innovations

The flexibility of the four-storey design allows purchase and running costs to be shared between several mini-households

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