Tag Archives: Prefabricated Architecture

Top 10 prefab architectural designs of 2022

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Prefabricated architecture has been gaining a lot of popularity and momentum in 2022! It basically involves making buildings or building various components at a particular location, one that is better suited for construction, and then once completed, transporting it to the final site or location. Prefab architectural designs have a multitude of benefits – they keep costs down, ensure projects are more sustainable and efficient, and they also prioritize and pay attention to simplicity and modularity. And we have curated a collection of our favorite prefabricated designs for you – from a prefab tiny home that is a smart mobile unit designed to help you escape city life to the Tesla of prefab homes– these prefabricated designs are a part of an integral growing trend in modern architecture, and could be the future of it in 2023!

1. Coodo

A couple of years ago, German entrepreneur Mark Dare Schmiedel got pretty fed up with the chaos of Berlin and decided to move to the countryside, building his own quaint loft along the banks of the River Spree. The peace, calm, and zen that followed, got him wondering whether it would be possible to create a similar, but a mobile form of home, that could provide the same sanctuary to others. In his quest for such a retreat, he came across a mobile home concept designed by a group of Slovenian architects called ‘Coodo’. Schmiedel went on to procure the design rights of the concept, through his company LTG (Lofts to Go) and kickstarted the production of the units. The modular homes aim to bring you closer to nature, to a space away from the crowds, where you can truly enjoy the beauty of a moment.

Why is it noteworthy?

It features a curved and minimal steel frame with rounded edges and stunning floor-to-ceiling glass walls. The beautiful glass walls allow a generous stream of sunlight to enter the home. Whether on rooftops in the city, on beaches, on mountains, or alongside a river, the Coodo can be easily installed almost anywhere.

What we like

  • Integrated utilization of smart home technology.
  • Adherence to Passive House standards.

What we dislike

  • With its focus on natural settings, we wish there was a way to enclose the open patio space to close up when away from the home

2. OM-1

Don’t you just wish sometimes that you could “build” a house online and then order it just the way you like it? Well, now you actually can to some extent as a company called Dimensions X is aiming to be the Tesla of prefabricated homes. Plus, just like the environmentally friendly car company whose model they are following, the houses they will be offering homes that are energy efficient and will offer less carbon footprint.

Why is it noteworthy?

Australian entrepreneur Oscar Martin partnered with architect Peter Stutchbury to create a company that can offer people their prefabricated homes with a few clicks on their website. The process isn’t yet as simple as ordering a Tesla but they do have an online configurator that will tell you how much it will cost you as soon as you build your prefab home and make certain changes to it. There are modules and elements that you can modify to make it your own.

What we like

  • An energy-efficient home with a small carbon footprint
  • You can choose things like the length and size of the entire house as well as placements of doors and windows, finishes, orientations, and other elements that you can personalize

What we dislike

  • No complaints!

3. Koto Design x Adobu’s prefab home

Based in the English seaside village of Westward Ho!, the architecture studio Koto Design captures the mellow vibe of a day spent at the seashore and translates it into a home space. Inspired by Scandinavian simplicity and Japanese minimalism, the result comes through breezy, open floor layouts and organic building materials.

Why is it noteworthy?

The architecture studio is known for its extensive catalog of sustainable, prefabricated tiny homes that can be transported to locations across the globe. In a recent collaboration with the USA-based, backyard home-building company Adobu, the two studios worked together to construct a tiny, prefabricated home that marries Scandinavian design with a Californian twist.

What we like

  • Provides a semi-outdoor lifestyle
  • Is carbon-neutral, and provides off-grid capabilities

What we dislike

  • No complaints!

4. The Nokken Cabin

Called the Nokken Cabin, these prefab cabins can be purchased by anyone, but the designer duo has bigger plans for them. They want clusters of them to be placed in beautiful and remote locations to create “landscape hotels”, that can provide a luxurious glamping experience. You would be able to connect with nature and unwind, but in a comfortable and cozy space – without having to roughen it out basically.

Why is it noteworthy?

The Nokken Cabin was created for the purpose of expansion and was meant to be a pretty flexible structure. It can be used as a travel accommodation, a workspace, a retail element, a spa, a restaurant, or even as a simple home.

What we like

  • A beautiful picture window in front of the bed provides surreal views of the landscape.

What we dislike

  • While we love the minimal black structure, would be great if there was an optional open space/terrace space to better appreciate the surroundings

5. Rock Cabins

Nestled in the heart of Csóromfölde, Hungary is six stunning polygonal cabins called ‘Rock Cabins’. Designed and constructed by architectural firm Hello Wood in collaboration with TreeHouses, the brains, and brawn behind the immensely popular cabins in Noszvaj, the cabins have an almost mystical and mysterious appeal to them! Each cozy cabin accommodates two people, making it the ultimate romantic getaway.

Why is it noteworthy?

Quite interestingly, the cabins are inspired by the shape of rocks. The intention behind these raw and real cabins was to create something that would harmoniously blend with nature, functioning as a natural extension of it. The cabin’s rock-like aesthetic helps it to effortlessly merge with the natural landscape surrounding it.

What we like

  • Creates job opportunities for the local people, thereby boosting the local economy
  • Attracts tourists

What we dislike

  • No complaints!

6. CABN.CO

Today, more and more people are veering towards homes that are green and energy-efficient. Words like net zero, prefab, and Passive House standard are thrown like confetti while describing their dream home! In an age, where sustainable architecture is thriving more than ever, CABN.CO by Jackson Wyatt is a much-welcomed upcoming project.

Why is it noteworthy?

CABN.CO is on a mission to build energy-efficient and smart homes that can be placed in unique and diverse locations all over the world. These versatile cabins can be a home for you almost anywhere in the world – whether in the city or on a remote island in the Bahamas! These cabins focus heavily on solar shading and roof overhangs.

What we like

  • Energy-efficient
  • Equipped with smart technology

What we dislike

  • No complaints!

7. The Folding Dream House

Michael Jantzen, a multidisciplinary artist based in New Mexico, is one artist who seems endlessly inspired by geometry. Merging sustainability, architecture, and technology, Jantzen developed an adaptable modern home called The Folding Dream House that expands from an enclosed, cubic structure into a multi-layered, dream home.

Why is it noteworthy?

From its initial conception, the Folding Dream House was designed as a place to sleep. Amounting to the size of a conventional hotel room, the Folding Dream House consists of two prefabricated, portable modules. Each rectangular module is envisioned mounted atop an elevated, triangular foundation that connects the home’s expandable support beams to its frame. On each facade of the Folding Dream House, Jantzen envisioned triangular overhangs and partitions as foldable panels that expand from the home’s frame.

What we like

  • The panels can be folded open or closed in many different ways around the modules in order to accommodate various functional and/or aesthetic requirements

What we dislike

  • It’s still in the conceptual phase!

8. Lushna Cabins

Slovenian company Lushna builds tiny triangular cabins that function as the perfect nature retreat while providing you with the comfort and shelter of a modern cabin. These micro-cabins were designed to create the warmth of old-fashioned camping trips without compromising on comfort and much-required necessities.

Why is it noteworthy?

They quite literally function as bedrooms in nature, with an impressive wall glass opening that allows sunlight to generously stream in through the day, making the cabin feel quite open and spacious. Movable beds and shades provide flexibility and privacy. They are built from pine wood or durable massive larch.

What we like

  • The cabins are manufactured off-site and have concrete-free foundations, hence transporting them from one location to another is extremely easy.

What we dislike

  • No complaints!

9. Azure’s ADUs

Azure, essentially specializes in ADUs or Accessory Dwelling Units, which are usually placed next to the main residence, or in the backyard of a home. Azure creates several models of these ADUs – from backyard office studios to a two-bedroom tiny home. The structures are modern and futuristic, amped with glass walls, recessed lighting, and pocket doors, providing them with the feel of a complete home.

Why is it noteworthy?

Within 20 hours, Azure 3D prints the homes – including their structural skeleton, exterior sheathing, water control barrier, exterior finish, utility passageways, and the grounding for interior finishes.

What we like

  • Over 60% of Azure’s printing material will comprise a waterproof plastic polymer, which is usually found in plastic bottles or food packaging.

What we dislike

  • No complaints!

10. iHouse

Montevideo-based architecture firm iHouse constructs prefabricated homes using the latest dry construction methods currently trending on the international stage. With only 70 days to build a home for Conrado, an Uruguayan living in London, on his family’s property in Colonia, iHouse was well-equipped to take on the project. Formed by the merging of two modules, Casa ZGZ was constructed offsite and then installed on the family’s property in just five days.

Why is it noteworthy?

As Colonia is one of Uruguay’s oldest towns, the team behind Casa ZGZ hoped to maintain the spirit of the region’s historical architecture while contemporizing the cabin to accommodate modern needs. The single-level residence is clad in black in an effort to present hide the home in plain sight amongst the many elements of nature that surround it. The black exterior also warms up the home’s wooden interior, which is paneled with wood certified by the Forest Stewardship Council.

What we like

  • Minimizing the home’s impact on the region’s environment and land, Casa ZGZ was constructed offsite in two modules
  • Coexists in harmony with a space alien to its language

What we dislike

  • It could have been equipped with another story

The post Top 10 prefab architectural designs of 2022 first appeared on Yanko Design.

Tiny, prefab, foldable house is a dream for nomads

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When I was a young kid, one of my naive dreams was to have a house that I can pack up in a suitcase and bring out to wherever I’m traveling. I thought I would be able to save up on hotel fees since I can actually bring my house everywhere. Or maybe I watched Mary Poppins too many times and thought that I can actually fit things in a bag like an entire house and all the other furniture. Well of course that is still an impossibility right now, at least the Mary Poppins’ bag part. We do have tiny homes that we can pack up and technically bring wherever we want.

Designer: Vika Living

A Los Angeles company has now come up with a tiny home that you can assemble, fold up, and then relocate, almost as easily as you would a tent (well, at least on paper). Vika One is the company’s very first product, a prefabricated house that is also foldable and can be used for areas that may need temporary housing. This is very much a niche market but they believe that people are on the lookout for “small living spaces that can be transported efficiently” and can be folded up and moved over and over again.

The house itself has a 144-square-foot open plan that includes a living area, a bed for sleeping that can be turned into a couch for sitting, a full kitchenette, a small bathroom, and various storage spaces that can maximize the little space that you have. Almost everything that’s part of the basic space can be folded up and transported into a four-by-twelve-foot package. This includes fixtures, fittings, and even the built-in furnishings. A standard flatbed trailer can actually fit in up to six folded Vika Ones.

Both the design and manufacturing is meant for efficiency and the space is inspired by Swedish and Scandinavian architecture which maximizes both space and natural light. These houses can also be used for situations where emergency response is needed as it only takes around 2 hours to be assembled. It uses fiberglass sandwich panels so they are strong enough to withstand various weather conditions. There’s also an off-grid model that comes with solar panels and batteries, which is of course more expensive than a standard unit.

That being said, it’s still pretty pricey since there are a lot of factors involved, so maybe emergency response isn’t the main market for these foldable tiny houses. Since I am single and would like to have something portable, this will go in my wish list (but will probably remain a wish for now).

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This prefabricated steel structure is a multipurpose communal hub that can be flat packed like IKEA furniture

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The Hithe is a prefabricated, demountable structure located in London’s Rotherhithe community designed to support local businesses while bridging the city’s communities with modern changes.

Meaningful social infrastructure typically challenges the existing schema of neighborhoods while providing innovative solutions to modern problems like urbanization and climate change. These issues generally lead to gentrification, which is rapidly changing cities across the globe, prompting city architects and planners to draw attempts of bridging the gap created between existing communities and new developments. Rotherhithe, a historic riverside district of London, faces the ongoing threat of gentrification and urbanization.

Designer: IF_DO Architecture

New social infrastructure is rising in the London neighborhood, providing residents with a meeting hub that could function as the very bridge that maintains the neighborhood’s identity while connecting it with imminent modern changes. The Hithe is a new, fully demountable, and re-locatable multipurpose structure designed by IF_DO Architects to bring the community of Rotherhithe together.

Described by IF_DO architects as, “A community hub, in a neighborhood undergoing rapid change,” The Hithe is a 200sqm is located on Albion Street, the neighborhood social hub. Prefabricated by design, the structure consists of five modules that were constructed offsite and then assembled on Albion.

Comprised of ten micro studios, The Hithe is designed to provide city residents with a common space for work, social, and commercial purposes. Constructed from a combination of lightweight steel and a timber frame, The Hithe was propped up on the site’s preexisting foundation to eliminate the need for any new concrete elements.

Inside, the micro studios are configured around the structure’s ground floor central gathering space that ties the kitchen and outside yard to the site’s north side, providing two larger workspaces on the first floor. In an effort to reduce the need for built-in circulation spaces, each of the ten micro studios is accessible from the building’s exterior.

Conceived as a communal hub, The Hithe building is “One that both supports local businesses, by providing them with the type of space that they need and enables local people to forge meaningful long-term connections, by providing a place for them to come together to work, socialize and play.”

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These geodesic domes built from bioceramics are a form of regenerative architecture

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Geoship is a home building cooperative committed to innovative construction methods that use bioceramics to produce geodesic domes.

As environmental needs continue to influence the trajectory of modern architecture and design, the process of building homes continues to evolve. Vertical forest complexes punctuate city skylines with teeming gardens and prefabricated construction systems are turning into the preferred building method for many architects.

Enter regenerative architecture, a branch of construction that aims to reverse the toll that home building takes on nature, while also producing a net-positive impact on the environment. Geoship, a homebuilding cooperative, uses regenerative building methods for their collection of bioceramic, geodesic domes to carve a new path towards environmentally responsible construction.

Inspired by “the geometry of life,” Geoship’s construction system is defined by the dome’s geodesic shape, chosen for its proximity to several aspects of life, from molecules to the force of gravity itself. Each geodesic dome is also built from nature’s composite, a bioceramic material that forms using, “the same chemical bonding occurs in bones, seashells, and even the ancient pyramids of Giza.”

From the outside of the domes to their insulated interior spaces, Geoship applied a seamless construction process for each material to naturally blend into each other. The building process behind the geodesic domes is affordable and highly efficient to further Geoship’s green initiative.

Supported by a system of struts that outline the dome’s geodesic shape, exterior panels and insulated window frames clad the dome’s frame with weather-resistant and mold-proof facades. Each module that comprises the dome’s structure is connected by a hexagonal hub to ensure secure fastening.

Each module of the geodesic dome is comprised of ceramic crystals that are molded into a triangular shape. Then, the modules are pieced together to form the dome’s geodesic shape.

During the construction process, the carbon required to construct geodesic domes and the modules is far less when compared to traditional home building methods that use sandstone or even passive solar energy.

Amounting to a fire and flood-proof, hurricane and earthquake-resistant home dwelling, the regenerative construction process behind Geoship is also sustainable. Generating zero waste, less CO2 emissions, and a recyclable structure, Geoship’s domes have a 500-year life and can be installed within a very short time frame.

Designed to produce home structures that will remain in place for centuries, Geoship’s regenerative building process is backed by materials science with aim of creating micro-factory and village design platforms to prove the innovative building method’s feasibility.

Designer: Geoship

Geoship’s collection of geodesic homes are constructed using bioceramic building material.

A system of internal struts support the exterior facades of each geodesic dome. 

Geoship also conceptualized their geodesic domes in different colors to appeal to different uses. 

The geodesic domes form Geoship come in an array of different sizes, from small studios to larger family homes.

Ideated as a village of geodesic domes, Geoship will progress their home building system to clusters of domes to prove the system’s large-scale feasibility. 

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A black-clad tiny home rises above the ground on a metal frame

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Topol-27 is a prefabricated, modular home clad with a black exterior to provide a cozy retreat from the wild outdoors.

Joining the tiny house movement, Moscow-based Bio Architects has finished work on Topol-27, a prefabricated, modular tiny home designed to “be picked up from the warehouse by the client, installed the same day, and be ready to live.” Comprised of five functional areas, Topol-27 is named after the square meterage it covers. With the aim of maximizing the available living space, Bio Architects fills Topol-27 out with a bedroom, kitchen, living room, bathroom, and dressing room.

Designer: Bio Architects

Built entirely offsite, Bio Architect’s prefabricated construction process cut down on the energy otherwise required for the shipping and handling of building material. Once transported to its final location, the home was positioned atop an aboveground metal frame that gives the home a lofty appeal. Walking through the front door, the home’s residents are greeted by the kitchen and dining area that merges seamlessly with the single sleeping space. Then, on the other end of the home, a bathroom and dressing room host all of the amenities needed for comfortable living.

Throughout Topol-27, subdued gray flooring adds to the home’s cozy appeal and durability with wear-resistant and hypoallergenic Forbo Flotex material. Breaking the barrier between the solid oak walls and the outdoors, expansive glass windows run the perimeter of the home. Culminating to a pentagonal window that borders the bed, the largest window of the home replaces an entire wall.

Adding to the environmental benefits of constructing a prefabricated home, Topol-27 is constructed from environmentally friendly and durable materials fit for the wear and tear of daily use. Solid oak and natural oak veneer clad the exterior of Topol-27, and a black metal overcoat gives the tiny home an obscure profile from the outside.

Built entirely offsite, the home’s construction included a spacious outdoor terrace that offers views of the surrounding landscape. While the outdoors offer a rugged backdrop for Topol-27, the home’s interior embraces furnishings that are made from sophisticated, quality materials to provide a comfortable respite from the wild terrain just outside.

Inside, a fireplace is included to heat the entire home and provide heating equipment for cooking. 

Black marble countertops provide the home with an air of sophistication. 

All about function, durability, and comfort, Topol-27’s main bedroom comes with accessible electrical outlets right beside the window wall.

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Stackable prefabricated modules are here to create futuristic LEGO-inspired buildings

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PolyBloc is a prefabricated, modular housing solution designed to confront the demands of rapid urbanization and globalized lifestyles.

As the ways we work and live evolve, so do the ways we confront architecture. In direct response to rapid urbanization and the fall of the nuclear family, city architecture, in particular, is seeing major changes. In collaboration with pioneering companies who share their goal of “reimagining today’s habitat,” Paris-based architecture studio Cutwork developed PolyBloc. Designed as a prefabricated building system that implements industrial production and modular construction, PolyBlock is a “means [of] confronting the rising housing crisis.”

Designer: Cutwork

Noting the world’s inevitable pull towards shared spaces and mobile lifestyles, the creatives behind PolyBloc set out with the aim of revolutionizing urban architecture. Initially conceived as PolyRoom, a prefabricated single-room, 21-square-meter (226-square-foot) unit defined by its flexibility and multi-use nature, PolyBloc marks the studio’s larger-scale progression.

Focusing on the reproduction value and modularity of PolyRoom, Cutwork went about developing PolyBloc as a means of “creating adaptive, flexible housing solutions in different contexts, from urban to rural.” Adaptive and flexible in its very purpose, each PolyRoom is outfitted with concealed, multi-use pieces of furniture that save and create space for growing needs.

Designed to be a centralized room without an established purpose, PolyRoom takes cues from Japanese design concepts like ‘washitsu’ and ‘tatami room,’ design modes that reconfigure spaces to accommodate residents’ needs. With this in mind, each module comes stocked with multifunctional furniture like disappearing beds, foldable storage cabinets, and telescopic rail systems that transition partitions and doors to create more floor space.

To further each module’s appeal to cohabitation and multi-usability, PolyRoom is outfitted with living roofs and facades that utilize automatic irrigation systems to embrace different cities’ unique biodiversity. Finding flexibility and multifunctionality in a modular building method, PolyBloc is composed of modules that stack together like LEGO building blocks.

The PolyRoom units from Cutwork essentially can be constructed in bulk and stacked together to form full-sized residential complexes in different cities much quicker than traditional building methods allow. Forward-thinking in their creative process and mission, Cutwork explains, “It’s not only about building objects and spaces; it’s about crafting the systems to build [objects and spaces]–systems to help solve the challenges ahead.”

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This prefab home constructed from six modules features one floating shipping container

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The Amagansett Modular house is a 1,800-square-foot prefabricated home constructed from stacked shipping containers.

As pandemic-related circumstances continue to change global industries, we are seeing the transformation of architecture take shape in real-time. While some architects and designers are working quickly to keep up with the shifting scope, others have been ahead of the curve for long before it became popular.

For the past ten years, the Manhattan-based MB Architecture firm has been research-prototyping their latest and most intricate prefabricated residential home yet. The Amagansett Modular home is a 1,800-square-foot home comprised of multiple shipping containers stacked together to form a unique, seemingly cantilevered structure.

Located in Amagansett’s East Hampton village, the Amagansett Modular is one of many modern homes that take disused shipping containers to construct modular houses with little waste. Considering the durable and inexpensive nature of shipping containers, they’re the ideal option for building prefabricated homes and MB Architecture is no stranger.

Modeled after their circa-2008 insta_house, the Amagansett Modular home is a custom design for a family of four. While the insta_house is a scalable, prefabricated structure formed from four stacked shipping containers, the Amagansett Modular house takes on two additional shipping containers to meet the couple’s requirements.

Amounting to a four-bedroom, three-bath family home, an additional module is connected to the rest of the structure via a glassed-in walkway that leads the home’s residents from the main living spaces to the family’s children’s bedrooms. Whereas the couple’s main bedroom is stationed inside the home’s halved, 10-foot module, the children’s bedrooms remain ground-level.

While the 10-foot, cubic module appears to be cantilevered, the top of it is drawn back with tension to ensure steady support, as the founder of MB Architecture Maziar Behrooz describes,

“The structural design of the 10′ pop-out on the second floor is unique. There are no beams under it—it looks afloat. Technically it is not a cantilever—but it is structured from the top (roof) and held back in tension, down to the foundation on the opposite side. It’s kind of a structural breakthrough—we used the inherent structural strength of the containers to our advantage.”

Throughout the home, floor-to-ceiling windows take up entire sides of the shipping containers. The expansive windows help to bring the home’s residents closer to the surrounding nature while also making the home feel more spacious.

Designer: MB Architecture

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This tiny cabin’s asymmetrical roofline uses a Scandinavian-inspired interior to keep warm during winter

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The Luna is a tiny cabin from New Frontier Design that combines modern design elements with rustic appeal for a tiny cabin that’s destined for the winter.

‘Tis the season for tiny cabins. Growing in popularity, tiny cabins are the answer to our wanderlust amidst travel and other pandemic-related restrictions. The season is starting off strong with new tiny cabins that look more picturesque than ever in winter scenes filled with snow, pine trees, and candlelight. The tiny home builders at New Frontier Design Studio have been busy at work with their new tiny cabin, The Luna.

Defined by an asymmetrical roofline, The Luna embraces a geometric, angular profile to complement the natural ruggedness of snow-covered plots of land. Combining rustic energy with modern design, The Luna is clad in matte black, 100-year corrugated steel for a lived-in, yet contemporary look. New Frontier decided against filling up The Luna’s lengthier facades with windows, opting instead for a sweeping, floor-to-ceiling window wall on one end.

Immersed in the winter season’s full glory, the window walls drench The Luna with ample, winter light to bounce off the clean, white walls that line the interior. Walking through The Luna’s entry door, residents are immediately welcomed by a plethora of houseplants and Scandinavian-inspired design elements like white-wash pine wood flooring and minimalist furniture pieces. Just a few steps from the front door, a staircase leads to the main bedroom and doubles as a concealed storage system.

Leading from the cabin’s living room up to the main bedroom, the staircase brings homeowners to the main bedroom, where a king-sized bed awaits. Perched above the open-floor layout, guests of The Luna will enjoy unobstructed views of the surrounding landscape through a skylight and the window walls, where they’ll find the topmost views.

Just below the staircase, black cabinets and drawers provide enough storage space to fill up the cabin’s full kitchen. There, residents will find a full-sized refrigerator, laundry services, deep sink, induction stovetop, and oven. Just beyond the kitchen, the bathroom keeps a spacious shower and every amenity found in full-sized bathrooms.

Designer: New Frontier Design

Defined by an asymmetrical roofline, The Luna sweeping window walls find height through angles and geometric shapes.

Inside, the bright winter light pours in through the window walls.

The staircase’s integrated storage system provides space for kitchen goods while remaining hidden from view.

From the top-level loft, residents enjoy views through the window walls and skylight.

The asymmetrical roofline adds a touch of spatial coziness to the lofted bedroom while the skylight adds some height.

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This line of prefab tiny homes built from disused shipping containers proves that less is more!

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VMD (Vivienda Minima de Descanso) from STUDIOROCA is a line of prefabricated tiny homes built from disused shipping containers in Mexico, with an interior equipped with off-grid capabilities and simple luxuries.

These days, everyone’s downsizing. Tiny homes have become the answer to our neverending quest for a smaller carbon footprint and campers bring us that much closer to the mobile lifestyle each one of us dreams about. For Mexico-based architecture firm, STUDIOROCA, shipping containers hold the key.

After asking the question of our times, “What would you do with less?”, Rodrigo Alegre and Carlos Acosta of STUDIOROCA pumped out a line of prefabricated homes, VMD (Vivienda Minima de Descanso) constructed from disused shipping containers.

STUDIOROCA designed the line of prefabricated homes to provide a “no-fuss, low-cost building solution,” outfitting the exterior and interior with environmentally friendly materials and smart home automation systems. Tracing the interior’s open layout, each one-bedroom shipping container provides an open-plan kitchenette, a dining area, and living space on one end, then a bathroom and storage space can be found in the middle, whereas the bedroom finds privacy on its own end.

The distinguishable corrugated siding on the shipping container’s exterior is constructed from black Hunter Douglass Quadroline aluminum, which merges into gray Valchromat Viroc cement-bonded particle board, giving the home a rich, industrial look amidst natural surroundings. Constructed to last, the exterior of VMD shipping containers is resistant against water and fire, non-toxic, thermally insulating, and sound-dampening, providing a quiet, safe retreat.

Following a minimal-impact assembly process, each shipping container from STUDIOROCA’s VMD line is constructed in an offsite factory over the span of three months to be installed within a time frame of only seven days. While each prefab home can be customized to fit the taste of each client, they also come with preset elements.

The flooring, for instance, comes from FSC-certified engineered oak and each home comes equipped with smart home appliances. After choosing between a 320-square-foot one-bedroom home, 640-square-foot two-bedroom home, or a 640-square-foot three-bedroom home, clients can add on elements like an outdoor deck and off-grid capacities.

Designer: STUDIOROCA

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This floating treehouse perched on steel stilts was inspired by the family’s young daughter’s sketch!

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Designed by a couple’s daughter, the Tree House was built by Ryan Street Architecture Studio to provide a fun and rugged, forested escape from the family’s main residence.

The imagination of children never ceases to inspire. Brimming with daydreams, children are constantly drawing up sketches and coming up with zany ideas. Inspired by the drawings of their own daughter, an Austin-based couple turned to Ryan Street Architecture Studio for help building a treehouse in their backyard. Primarily designed to be a backyard play space for their two daughters, the couple decided to turn the treehouse into something much larger.

Perched atop a system of stilts that mimic clusters of tree branches, the Tree House almost appears like it’s floating above the clearing below. Transforming the floor plans from a children’s treehouse into a much more refined, spacious, and functional guesthouse manifested through the Tree House’s dizzying exterior details.

Paneled with incongruent, uneven wooden slats, the Douglas fir timber chosen for the Tree House’s exterior facades closely resembles the wooden panels that line the couple’s main residence, stationed only a couple meters in front of the Tree House. Having worked on the couple’s main residence, Ryan Street’s choice for the Tree House to mimic the main residence seemed natural.

As project manager Jeremy Ristau notes, “We wanted the Tree House to feel special, while also keeping it relatable in color palette and materials to their main residence since they are in close proximity and it will ultimately feel like one cohesive estate.”

While the sketch became the Tree House’s main and primary source for inspiration, Ryan Street Architecture Studio promptly turned its gaze to the Tree House’s surroundings to better embody the sketches. Punctuated with mirror panels throughout, the Tree House literally reflects its surroundings.

Giving the illusion that trees and brush are closer than they may appear, the mirrors root the Tree House firmly in its natural surroundings. Even the underbelly of the Tree House is anchored with a large mirror to really send home the Tree House’s floating look.

Taking only around five days to reach its final form, Ryan Street asked the Escobedo Group, a local construction company, to develop a panelized prefabricated system called Dario. Constructed offsite, the panels were transported from the Escobedo Group’s factory to the Tree House, avoiding excess waste and streamlining the home’s assembly process.

Equipped with plumbing and electricity rooted in the home’s steel stilt supports, while the exterior might appear ruggedly refined, the interior is as comfortable as any hotel. With a single bedroom located on the home’s first floor and a loft bedroom with two beds, the Tree House functions as a getaway for the family of four and a whimsical house for guests.

Designers: Ryan Street Architecture Studio & Escobedo Group

The post This floating treehouse perched on steel stilts was inspired by the family’s young daughter’s sketch! first appeared on Yanko Design.