SMART HOME OF THE FUTURE : FLEXI-HOME

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Design Approach

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Our Smart Home for Tomorrow is a flexible home where planning, construction and a wide range of integrated smart technologies allow the house to adapt to the changing needs of the inhabitants throughout each day, the seasons and as they grow older.

 

An essentially simple, passive approach is combined with innovative smart technology, to produce a classic design that balances the familiar and the cutting edge: a  low-tech, robust, adaptable skin combined with a “smart heart”.

 

A simple zoning strategy supports this approach, with a defined ‘wet zone’ along one side of the plan, so that all other spaces can be reconfigured flexibly to suit the wide range of household types including multiple occupancy, growing families and multi-generational house shares.  A central, light-filled ‘movement zone’ with a two-storey void, structural glass landings and glazed roof, brings natural daylight and ventilation to the centre of the plan, and animates adjacent living spaces.  The adjacent open stairwell has a raised roof lantern over, which draws air up through the house,; provides access to the roof;, and allows space for a possible lift installation, without compromising the void to the living spaces. 

 

Urban transformation

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The simple massing and plan zoning, and structural approach, ensures that the house can transform easily from the detached house typology into an urban terrace or courtyard. 

 

External spaces at the upper levels, provide balconies, terraces and green roofs helps adapt to restricted urban sites, or alternatively can be in-filled to provide more dense accommodation.

 

The roof lantern can be built to suit the optimum orientation on each site for solar collectors, and flat panels PV cells can be re-located on roof or façade, to suit site orientation without change to the main arrangement.   

 

The panelised cladding system can be finished in a range of recyclable?? naturally sourced materials to give zero waste to landfill  (eg clay tiles, reclaimed brick, recyclable standing seam metal, timber) to suit different locations and typologies. to give zero waste to landfill?

 

Technology and Construction

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Industry prototype: Our house is low carbon impact, eEntirely demountable,  zero carbon,and incorporates future-lookingoptimises energy efficiency and renewable technologies as a prototype for the industry.

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Our energy strategy aims to capture the maximum positive aspects of the environment (renewable solar and ground energy), and use smart easy to use management to minimise energy consumption, incorporating the following:

Ground energy captured via water-filled capillarity tubes, connecting the ground to the building, topped up with heat from a 7.5KW ground source heat pump.  Capillary flow can be reversed to provide passive cooling in the summer. We aim to  achieve a timber frame house with a high thermal mass.

• Ground energy captured via water-filled capillarity tubes, topped up with heat from a 7.5KW ground source heat pump.  Capillary flow can be reversed to provide passive cooling in the summer. This achieves the benefit of high thermal mass with timber construction.

• Thermally efficient timber shell, with dynamic insulation of U-value <0.1W/m2 K.  FEEP<32 kWh/m2/yr.   

• Phase Change Material:  carbonSstores greenn and excessive heat through Phase Change Material in plant room.

• Enhance the summer natural ventilation via the central void with the aid of solar collectors

• Maximise air tightness - Ssealed building in the winter. 

• Thermally efficient timber shell, with dynamic insulation of U-value <0.1W/m2 K.  FEEP<32 kWh/m2/yr.   

• 7.5kw Ground source heat pump with extract and heat recovery, and highly efficient equipment, rated A+.   

• SDP glazing.

• 3m3 of Rainwater harvesting and localised grey water recycling.

• 100% LED lighting of  >90lm/w.

• 20/30m2 Photovoltaic panels on the roof / facade to suit orientation.

• 4m2 Solar collectors panel on lantern pop-up.

• Smart Storage/leveraged micro generation/ Diagnostic applications:

• Thermal ( PCM and ground)

• Electric batteries with intelligent port for DC storage, peak reduction and leverage micro-generation

• Smart Control for lighting, equipment & electronics – easy, intuitive, centralised control network panel in kitchen, & services to grid (DSM).

• Smart Intelligence - system learns, targets advice and automates.

• Smart grid connection with EV charger: systems communicate across community to achieve energy load balancing..

• Designed Optimised for fire, security and crime prevention whilst creating open plan living..

• Assisted living

• AAA/A++ rated equipment.   

• Water reuse: 3m3Rainwater harvesting and localised grey water recycling.

 

Our proposed construction materials are based on a Fabric First approach, avoiding wet trades to be demountable and recyclable, as follows:

• Sub structure: screw piles that adapt to any ground condition with steel ring beam.

• Super structure: floor slabs, and structural walls are pre-fabricated cross laminated timber panels. These contribute to a negative carbon building through approx 40 tonnes of sequestered CO₂ stored within fabric (allowing deduction 8 tonnes of emitted CO2 for transport).

• Non-load bearing internal walls , other than stair/service zone, for flexibility.

• Dynamic insulation (Energyflo): integrates insulation and ventilation to capture heat energy escaping through the building fabric and pre-warm incoming air.

• Cladding: Panelised system of reconstituted clay tiles with larger panels at ground floor.

 

Steel screw piles and ring beam to allow demountable sub-structure, to suit all ground conditions.

Super-structure of off-site fabricated CLT panels, providing breathable frame, robust internal finish, fast site erection, 40 tonnes sequestered CO₂.

Internal walls non-load bearing, other than stair/service zone, for flexibility.

Dynamic Insulation to walls, to recover & recycle heat loss through fabric.

Panelised cladding system: rain-screen of lapped recycled clay planks on timber battens and OSB board, timber framing to edges of panel.  Panels can be clad in alternative finishes to suit different locations / typologies.

• Glazing: Smart SDP for roof glazing and large windows. Alternatively for smaller windows triple-glazed FSC certified, with U-values of 1.1 W/m2 K and low e value.

• Dry finishes: timber flooring, exposed CLT external timber walls.

• Green roof.

Triple-glazed, timber framed windows & doors, FSC certified, U-values 1.1W/m2 K,

Sedum mat green roof on flat roof area.

 

Further detail of these systems is given on our technology board

 

Compliance

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• CSH Level 5 Compliance

   We confirm that

• Our design is Pre-assessed to achieve Code for Sustainable Homes Level 5,- with a predicted credit predicted  score ≥85.53.

• The design works to bothMeets current and 2016 Building Regulations.

• Predicted Fabric Energy Efficiency 33Kwh/m2/year.

• Lifetime homes throughout.

• Carbon compliance: energy efficient design and minimised CO2 emissions on-site.

• Remaining carbon emissions: mitigated through Allowable Solutions linked to local projects.

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