The design practice of Los Angeles architects Leo Marmol and Ron Radziner, founders of Marmol Radziner and Associates, extends well beyond buildings and into jewelry and furniture. Whatever the project, green ideas reign supreme. The duo’s prefab design and manufacturing business is but another example.
The prefab operation launched with this vacation home prototype — owned by Marmol and his wife — in Desert Springs, California. The sleek metal structure, hovering like an oasis in the desert landscape, quashes preconceived notions about what prefab architecture looks like.
The aptly coined Desert House employs both passive and active solar technologies; solar panels provide power while concrete floors deliver passive solar heat gain in the cooler winter months. Other sustainable elements include efficient triple glazing in the windows, low-VOC paint, triple-pane insulating glass, and an on-demand tankless water heater.
(via ArchDaily)
Photos: Joe Fletcher