From the architect. This house, whose name refers to the brightest star in the Aquila constellation, is located in Cap-à-l'Aigle, in the region of Charlevoix. Altaïr means “The Flying Eagle.” What makes the house stand out is its “V” shape and long facades that are suspended over nature. While discrete from the street and closed to the north, it unfolds toward the river, as though to take flight.
Regarding the form, two longitudinal prisms are laid up one on top of the other. A voluntary misalignment allows contemplation of the scenery. The long glass facades provide different perspectives and framings of the river, the forest, and the city of Malbaie below.
Close up, the house remains mysterious, as it is camouflaged by the trees. The second floor massing casts over the entrance for protection. The hall faces a large south-facing window with a view onto the cement pool, which seems to extend out to the river. The first floor has a guest wing, as well as a living room. The expended steel staircase is inviting and bright, and leads to the living areas.
The second floor is cantilevered and protrudes toward the river. The living areas succeed one another, and the completely open space provides a breathtaking view of the horizon. A vast terrace was built on the roof of the lower floor. The master suite is also located on this floor, slightly set back in the woods.
In terms of material, both storeys are covered with a grey wooden facing. The facades that are hidden or protected by the roof over-hangs are covered with Western cedar. This warm wood extends indoors to the ceiling, emphasising the continuation effect from the inside out.
This house promotes peacefulness and contemplation of the view. There is now a new shining star in the scenery of Charlevoix.
Ponds fed by the Yellowstone River provide natural water features around this home by Hughes Umban Hower Architects, located on a ranch in Big Timber, Montana (+ slideshow). (more…)
Committing your firm to BIM may seem daunting, especially with the time and cost investments that come with adopting new sets of software and a new workflow. There are hidden parallels however, between BIM and other processes within a firm, and therefore these changes to a new way of working may not be as demanding as they first seem. Here are five ways you may already be halfway to BIM.
When you draw a wall, you don’t think of it just as a set of lines, but as a real wall; BIM works the same way. The object-based system used by BIM means it shares the same understanding you have of the real-world translations and behaviors of 2D representations. More than just a collection of lines, BIM knows there’s more than just one dimension to building components, helping you accurately model and understand how each element works in your design. For a quick overview of BIM, watch this BIM 101 video.
There have been a plethora of improvements to communication taken up by firms over the years. From familiar old-school aids like speed dial to more recent platforms like Google Chat, Facebook groups and Slack, office communication has come a long way since the Rolodex. Whatever systems you are using in your firm, chances are they are already improving communication. BIM could easily be considered a part of this improvement – the engineer may only be a speed dial away, but the sharing of changes within a collaborative model can be just as instantaneous, and often more accurate.
Time and cost investments are an inevitable part of adopting a new system. But from small changes such as a new computer operating system to big moves such as a new office, investing smartly is a natural part of any firm’s growth. A switch to BIM often involves three key changes: new hardware, new software and staff training, and for many firms, one or more of these three things is probably already high on the wish list. It may therefore be possible to make these investments with BIM in mind. You can learn more about the strategic ROI of BIM for architecture firms here.
In architecture, things that once seemed like new, useful but ultimately unnecessary additions to your practice can quickly become indispensable tools; this is rarely as true as when the new tool helps you communicate with your client more effectively. If your clients aren’t aware of BIM and the advantages it brings, they can’t tell you how much of an improvement it would be. By providing clients with accurate visualizations and 3D models they can understand more easily, you might find out just how ready they were for BIM, even if they didn’t realize it. Just as clients these days expect emails instead of snail mail and computers instead of (or at least alongside) drawing boards, BIM is the latest step in expectations of technology.
Whether it’s you or someone else, or even a whole variety of people depending on the project, there are people in your firm who are carrying out the boring jobs – changing annotations, checking scales, updating page numbers and sheet indexes. It is almost certain that they are very much ready to give these tedious jobs to someone else – or to BIM. Ask around your colleagues; by taking care of the housekeeping with automatic, coordinated updates across drawing sets, someone in the firm is likely to be especially ready for BIM.
Download the Definitive Guide to Growing your Architecture Firm with BIM to learn how to build your business with BIM.
This article was sponsored by Autodesk
Sig Nordal 