Swisswoodhouse, an innovative concept for sustainable modular housing

The Swisswoodhouse concept was born out of the crossover of several lines of thought concerning issues of urban densification, flexibility of housing, adaptability of buildings and sustainable construction. The approach aims to provide an alternative to the suburban individual houses, via the integrated design of a sustainable building of 3-4 storeys high. This size is sufficient to contribute to the urban densification process, whilst to avoid the danger of anonymity present in large housing complexes. The building’s concept is based on the aggregation of 22 m2 wooden prefab modules. An entire catalogue of options has been devised, allowing for multiple combinations of apartments. On a technical level, the concept devotes a great deal of attention to energy issues and thus complies with the requirements in the vision of the 2000-watt society. This high energy efficiency is achieved thanks to high compactness; an efficient building shell; the specific use of renewable energy (solar/thermal, solar panels, geothermal) and materials whose life cycle assessment is environmentally friendly (e.g. use of native wood).