VI and Stevens Institute of Technology Showcase Sustainability and Resilience at AIA Expo

At this year’s AIA Expo in Atlanta, Georgia,  the Vinyl Institute showcases the Stevens Institute of Technology’s 2015 U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon entry: SURE HOUSE.

The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon challenges collegiate teams to design, build, and operate solar-powered houses that are cost-effective, energy-efficient, and attractive. The winner of the competition is the team that best blends affordability, consumer appeal, and design excellence with optimal energy production and maximum efficiency. Collegiate teams spend two years creating and building houses to compete in the content. The SURE HOUSE is Stevens Institute of Technology’s third consecutive entry in the Solar Decathlon Competition. The Vinyl Institute sponsored a Solar Decathlon team in 2011, 2013 and now in 2015.

“By showcasing SURE HOUSE as part of the Vinyl Institute’s exhibit, we can tell the story of how a house can be resilient and sustainable, utilizing innovative and contemporary materials,” says Michael Signorile, architecture project manager on the Stevens’ collegiate team.

SURE HOUSE is an example of a sustainable and resilient home for coastal neighborhoods at great risk from rising sea levels and increasing severe storms. The Stevens collegiate team merged the inherently efficient indoor/outdoor rooms and open floor plan of the quintessential 60’s style modern beach cottage with state of the art building science, the latest renewable energy technologies, and fiber-composite materials repurposed from the boat building industry. The SURE HOUSE is designed to use 90 percent less energy than conventional homes of its size. It is a net-zero energy structure, and it is fully solar powered, including a resilient energy hub.