10/10/11
One of our clients was recently awarded with the winning design in several categories for the St. Johns Builders Council Parade of Homes, including the overall best Single Family Design, known as the ‘Pick of the Parade’. These designs were the product of our Production Home Design Department, and you can read more by following the link below. We would like to congratulate Lennar Homes for thier success and would like to thank the judges for finding so many of the designs that we produced worthy of the attention.
View Story: Parade of Homes
3/23/11
For immediate press release:
The South Beach Cottage, an exciting new residential construction project that will be constructed in Jacksonville Beach, Florida.Building an affordable sustainable home from the ground up.
Project name:
The South Beach Cottage, an affordable energy efficient home
2700 St. Johns Blvd, Jacksonville Beach, FL
Owner: True House, Inc.
Builder: Advantage Homebuilders
Design Team:
Project Designer: True Design Studios
Structural Engineer: Apex Technology
Mechanical Engineer: Yorgos Gaitantzis
It seems everyone has an opinion of what Green Building means and it’s easy to understand why. There are so
many Green Building certification programs, Green Building materials and Green Building practices it is no wonder most folks don’t know where to start. Once you consider the amount of time required to educate yourself on this subject it can become a bit overwhelming. It is precisely this subject matter that served as the impetus for our project, The South Beach Cottage.
From the beginning our goal has been to design and build a home that provides a clear solution to the challenges of building an affordable energy efficient home with high quality architectural appeal that would be cost competitive with prevalent construction practices. Obviously we wanted to meet the requirements of the Florida Energy Code but we also wanted to produce a design strategy that would allow for meeting more stringent requirements as defined by Florida State legislation H.B. 7135. This legislation requires a 20% increase in energy efficiency based on the 2007 Florida building code by 2010, increasing to a 50% performance improvement by the 2019 edition.
Beginning with the foundation we decided to use a raised wood floor design. We found this type of foundation to offer considerable advantages over a conventional concrete slab. The first advantage is an enclosed crawl space to allow access to plumbing and provides a cooler temperate environment, as opposed to a hot attic for location of the homes air conditioning ductwork. It also enhances the homes curb appeal by increasing its height to allow for livable elevated porches as well as providing protection of the exterior wall finish from the weathering effects of rain.
We also chose to incorporate advance framing techniques and innovative structural design to minimize the total number of wood framing materials required for the walls, floors and roof. An Integrated Project Delivery (IPD) process was followed and allowed the design team to value optimize the entire structure and make efficient use of building components including wood floor panels, wall panels and roof trusses. The IPD process was facilitated by the use of Building Information Modeling (BIM) software specifically formatted for residential construction projects.
The use of these materials and methods improves several facets of the design and overall operation of the structure. By striving to exceed the minimum code standard for energy efficiency, we have created a home that is less expensive to maintain. Through choosing a raised wood floor foundation, the visual appeal was increased and it also gave us the room to facilitate an enhanced mechanical system. Last but not least, the use of effective building components allowed us to keep construction cost and time at a minimum. The inevitable conclusion is a home that is cost effective to build, less expensive to operate and possesses a high quality aesthetic.
Construction is scheduled to commence the last week of March. The American Plywood Association will be hosting two site events at the house. The first will be for individuals directly or indirectly involved in the home building industry and is scheduled for April 21st, 2011. The second event will be open to the general public and is tentatively scheduled for sometime in late May or early June.
1/14/11
For immediate press release:
Damon Roby of True Design Studios wins the Grand Prize Design award at a reception hosted by APA at the 2011 International Builders Show.
Who can design a home with the lowest carbon footprint? That question, posed by APA to residential designers in the Carbon Challenge 2010 Florida Design Competition, was answered when the Grand Prize Design Award was presented to Damon Roby of True Design Studios in Jacksonville, Florida.
Roby and five other winners were recognized on January 13, 2011, at a ceremony and reception sponsored by APA at the 2011 NAHB International Builders Show in Orlando, Florida.
“The winners really put a lot of thought into the carbon footprint and operational energy of these homes, as well as proper design and constructability,” said Clark. “If any of these six designs were built, it would have a positive impact on the carbon footprint of home construction today.”
Cash prizes totaling $15,000 were awarded to the top three finalists and the winners of three design categories: Best Use of Wood Products, Best Curb Appeal and Most Cost-Effective Design. All six winning designs were displayed at the ceremony.
I was just honored to be here as one of the finalists,” said Roby. “I looked around the room when I arrived and knew that all of the designs were really good.”
The Carbon Challenge Grand Prize Winning Design from Damon Roby, True Design StudiosRoby’s design featured a raised wood floor with a closed conditioned crawl space and advanced framing, including 2×6 wood framing with wall studs spaced 24 inches on center – a method that provides extra space in the wall cavity for added insulation. Additional energy enhancements included radiant barrier roof sheathing, raised heel roof trusses (also known as energy trusses), and spray-foam insulated crawl space walls.
“We were so impressed with the level of innovation shown in the Grand Prize winning design, as well as the other finalists,” said Ritter. “These designers really demonstrate how to use wood-frame construction to design homes that optimize our forest resources and minimize our impact on the climate.”
Thirty-six single-family house designs were entered into the competition and evaluated by a panel of five judges. Winners were determined by a performance score based on a scientific life-cycle assessment (LCA), cost-effectiveness, and adherence to the architectural standards of a typical Florida development, among other criteria. The judges, noting that any one of the six finalists could have been selected as the Grand Prize Design winner, said that Roby’s design was “chosen for the way it squarely addressed the dual criteria of energy awareness and aesthetics without compromising affordability.”
This reception and awards ceremony was a huge success,” said Clark in regards to the 80 attendees. “Many of the designers brought fellow associates and family members. There was a real sense of camaraderie among the design community here tonight.”
Clark and Ritter presented the awards to the six finalists, including:
- Grand Prize Winner: Damon W. Roby, True Design Studios
- Second Place: Greg Beere and Jason Fisher, Content Design Group
- Third Place: Mark Straite, Mark Straite, Architects, Inc.
- Best Use of Wood: David Pillsbury AIBD, Keesee and Associates, Inc.
- Best Curb Appeal: Russell Ervin, Ervin Lovett & Miller
- Most Cost-Effective: Nicholas Renard, Cote Renard Architecture
In addition to a cash prize, Roby’s design will be evaluated in a comprehensive LCA study comparing the design in full wood-frame construction to construction on concrete slab with concrete block walls. The results of the study will be presented in a series of APA seminars this spring throughout Florida.
The Carbon Challenge is being conducted in conjunction with the Raised Floor Living program, a cooperative promotion effort between APA and the Southern Forest Products Association. Program sponsors and contributors include the Advanced Housing Research Center: Forest Products Lab, Forest Products Association of Canada, Cellulose Insulation Manufacturers Association, St. Joe Company, NEFBA Wood Council and the Florida Wood Council.
Pictures of the event can be viewed in the Carbon Challenge Photo Gallery.
Carbon Challenge Florida Design Competition information and updates are available online at www.apawood.org/CarbonChallenge.
