Cradle to Cradle
Kutscherhaus, Dresden
…imagine a closed production loop. Imagine products that are utilized and enjoyed and produced with intelligent manufacturing and finishing processes. Imagine these things do not end up discarded in rubbish bins, garbage transports or incinerators, but rather are returned to the production loop to create new and useful beautiful products.
And if you can imagine that, then you can imagine new ways to efficiently and mindfully utilize our natural resources. With the idea of cradle to cradle, we renovated the carriage house. The elements are conceived to be sleek, light and are produced to be space-efficient, while at the same time they should provide a high level of user comfort, be relatively maintenance free and aesthetic.
The result is a Gesamtwerk based on holistic design and an interdisciplinary union of experience, knowledge and talent. It is the result of an intense exchange and development process between the designers and contributors. Design and engineering are closely linked; advanced industrial processes and CNC machines were combined with skilled craftsmanship and an understanding of materials to produce new building elements.
After a period of 36 months of intense development, mock-ups, testing, production and construction including interior fittings and design, a monolithic yet complex timber structure was created. A demonstrator of a new building type with built-in storage space was produced from renewable resources, and a combination of almost single-origin materials, as well as structural elements which can be dismantled, integrated heating elements in the form of carbon fleece to regulate surface temperatures and voice-activated bio-dynamic lighting. In the near future organic solar films will be installed to produce energy.
85% of the used building materials can be returned to the production loop implementing the CRADLE TO CRADLE idea. The remaining 15% of materials present a challenge that is to be addressed in upcoming projects.
Diverse rooms with varying geometry, surfaces, views and lighting are spaced over seven levels and a total of 170m². The spatial structure lives from the play between expansiveness and narrowness in addition to the varying colors of the interior window frames found in the three wooden structures that merge the masculine construction with the feminine.
A building was created, that coveys a joy in new experiences, offers a healthy living environment and brings the smell of nature indoors. It is simply fun to work and live in. We will continue on the CRADLE TO CRADLE path and slowly transform the consumer to a user.
85% of the used building materials can be returned to the production loop implementing the CRADLE TO CRADLE idea. The remaining 15% of materials present a challenge that is to be addressed in upcoming projects.
Diverse rooms with varying geometry, surfaces, views and lighting are spaced over seven levels and a total of 170m². The spatial structure lives from the play between expansiveness and narrowness in addition to the varying colors of the interior window frames found in the three wooden structures that merge the masculine construction with the feminine.