The kid in all of us has always dreamed of living in a tree house. Now that dream can come true, even in an urban environment.

Designed originally as urban infill housing, the urban treehouse can also be set on an open lot in multiples to create a larger complex of homes with minimal modifications. Controlled grade level views from the first floor are intended to give the effect of the home emerging from the soil. The high windows direct your view upward, but still flood the space with natural light.

The fireplace and kitchen cabinets have a twisting helix design, emulating the roots of a large tree. The second floor allows the structure to be exposed like supporting branches. Non-traditional window placements on this level give the impression of light filtering though a tree. The floors give way to a large wrap-around balcony and rooftop garden with grand views. A green roof and central shaft combine with specific window combinations to provide passive cooling.

The structure of this design is celebrated rather than hidden. Like the branches of a tree, the support structure on the second floor (the engineered timber supports) is exposed and part of the space.

NOTES FROM THE DESIGNER: As a child, I spent considerable time climbing trees. I loved to climb high into the canopy and view the world from a different perspective. It was not just the view from the top that excited me, but the glimpses of what was to come as the leaves and branches gave way to views beyond my backyard.

I can still feel the solidness of the trunk underfoot and the graceful sway of the upper branches as I clung tight to them in the breeze. I built many “tree houses” as a child, but that was only a means to stay in the tree longer. It was the tree that I loved and that is the essence I wanted to capture in this design.

The central fireplace on the first floor provides warmth and a special design element when combined with the climbing helix design of the kitchen cabinetry. High windows on the first floor provide light, but restrict views from the street level. As one climbs to the upper levels, the windows open up first with glimpses, but eventually yield unrestricted views like those of a tree.

Integrated balconies, passageways and decks blur the line between indoor and outdoor spaces, making the compact design feel much larger than the 2,205 square feet of conditioned space it holds.

A view a PDF containing all features of this plan, click here.

SPECIFICATIONS:

SQ FOOTAGE: 2772 sq. ft. plus auxiliary spaces
MAX FOOTPRINT: 30’-0” x 35’-0”
# BEDROOMS: 3
# BATHROOMS: 3
SPECIAL FEATURES: “Green” design, open stair tower, helix configuration cabinetry, modern “themed” design
OPTIONS: Stand alone design or multiple unit configurations
MISC: Themed design is that of a tree; level 1 is the trunk, 2 is the branches, 3 is the canopy and the roof is the treetop

Like it? Don’t like it? Think something should be changed or added?
Please feel free to comment on this design by leaving a comment below.

Some of you may get the reference made in the title of this post. 100 percent of those in real estate sales should get it, because it’s a classic bit of advice offered by the cut- throat motivational salesman, Blake (played by Alec Baldwin), brought in to fire up a group of underperforming real estate salesmen in the movie Glengarry Glen Ross.

While selling homes isn’t always the bleak, do-or-die lifestyle portrayed in the movie (some sales people might disagree), it is a high pressure environment and one that requires lots of training and people skills.

The May 2009 issue of Professional Builder included a great article on the importance of sales training. To uncover salesperson flaws, Pro Builder asked three secret shoppers to pose as potential home buyers and report their feedback on what the sales teams could be doing better.

Some of the best insight (you can read the entire article here) revealed that many sales pros have lost some of their skills now that the housing market has slowed down. The reasoning is, they’re not using the skills as much, so they’re not staying sharp. It’s ironic, considering now is precisely when your sales team should be at its sharpest.

Pro Builder also points out the need for increased oversight and involvement by sales managers and the need for sales staffers to come right out and ask potential buyers for the sale. In other words, plainly asking customers if they’d like to buy the home. 19.6 percent of sales people observed by one secret shopper did that in 2005, compared to just 13.2 percent in 2008.

Of course, we believe a strong sales staff is the key to the success of any home builder (followed closely, or tied with, a strong product). We’re sure Alec Baldwin would agree.

Builder magazine gets passed around a lot here at the Excel offices, and for good reason. It’s chock full of insight into the things builders need to know about how to succeed (or at least stay above water) in today’s tumultuous economic climate. Excel Homes works with more than 600 builder partners throughout the U.S., so any nugget of information we can absorb and pass along is good for both us and them.

Recently, Builder magazine published an article entitled “6 Lessons For Builders From the Housing Bust.” It contained suggestions for ways builders can change the way they work in order to maximize profits and make better homes.

Though all the tips are valuable (feel free to read them here on the ProSales website), the first tip was perhaps the most relevant to today’s climate (no pun intended). It was called “Build Smarter,” and it talked about the need for builders to create homes that are more energy efficient, especially as regulations on new homes becomes stricter.

As the builder of modular homes, we couldn’t agree more. In fact, we’ve been shouting this advice from the roof tops for the past decade or more. Modular homes are among the most energy efficient homes available, and much more efficient than comparable stick-built homes.

The same “Build Smarter” tip also suggested building smaller homes (yet still energy efficient) to lower pricing and remain competitive. This again falls right in line with the teachings of modular construction. Modular homes can be purchased in various sizes, from smaller two-person dwellings to massive mansions capable of housing a small army. The good news about small modular homes: They’re easy to upgrade later on.

It’s almost as if Builder magazine was reading our minds.

If you want news and views about modular home building, you can stop by Modular Musings. Everyone knows that. But Excel’s architects – in particular, Excel’s new Director of Architectural Design and Innovation, Steven Saffell – come up with outside-the-box designs all the time, but many of them never see the light of day.

That’s why we created another blog, called The Excel Drawing Board. On the Drawing Board, we’ll feature some of these innovative designs and allow readers to comment on them. If it gets positive reviews, it might join the Excel catalogue. If not, it’s back to the drawing board.

The blog features everything from single-family residential designs to commercial residential designs to office space concepts. Feel free to check it out, and don’t be afraid to tell us what you really think of some of those designs!

One of the things we’ve always prided ourselves on is our ability to create homes that meet the design needs of builders and homeowners. And not only do we want to meet those needs by staying one step ahead when it comes to the best that home design has to offer, we want to do it in a cost-effective manner that helps modular homes maintain their edge over stick-built homes when it comes to comparing price tags.

To help us live up to those expectations, Excel Homes has created a new position in its front offices: Director of Architectural Design and Innovation. The position will be devoted to developing and marketing innovative new home designs and products for Excel Homes and we’ve named our current Director of Engineering, Steven Saffell, to be the first to step into the important role.

We asked Steven a few questions to explain his new position and offer some insight on modern design in today’s home building industry.

MODULAR MUSINGS: What do you hope to accomplish in this new position and how will it benefit Excel Homes?

STEVEN SAFFELL: The expectation with this endeavor is to set Excel Homes apart from the competition in both the stick built and the modular industry by providing a level of design rarely experienced at this level.  We will design and bring to market homes that are not just laid out well and pleasing to the eye but take advantage of the latest technologies in building and efficiency.  We want to demonstrate that modular constructed homes can be beautiful, good to the environment and a better value than a site built home.

MM: What’s the biggest challenge facing the modular home industry today?

SS: For the short term the economy has been and will continue to be the biggest challenge.  This downturn will however benefit those companies that survive it.  As Americans are forced to tighten our belts, we have started to look for more economically appealing building methods.  The consumer is doing their homework and many are discovering that the modular industry builds a product that is equal to or better than traditional site built products. It’s not just the fact that we build a stronger structures, it is the reduced time to build and the resulting reduction in the construction loan cycle, less waste, tighter structures and limitless design possibilities that all come together to provide a better value.

The longer term challenge will be to continue to educate the buying public and provide an understanding of what a modular product is and is not.  Too many people still think of this industry as single wide trailers (HUD units) or simple ranches for entry level buyers.  The truth is that we are closer to the traditional site built in construction practices and offerings than we are to the HUD industry any more.  That may be where we got our start, but it is a very different product today and we need to educate our buyers and the building professionals to this fact.

MM: Which trends in modular home design will you and your staff be watching closely?

SS: Energy efficiency and “green” building are the hot terms being bounced around today.  However, this can mean a lot of different things to different people and regrettably to some in the building industry it is simply a new marketing ploy. The consumer must be careful of companies that “green-wash” their product in an effort to sell more. Here at Excel, green building is not a marketing ploy but a way of doing business.

MM: How will the economy affect housing design?

SS: No one can say if it is the economy, greener thinking or simply the consumer’s current trend but it appears Americans are starting to look for better quality over quantity. We will always have those looking for massive homes and we are prepared to provide those too, but we are seeing a growing trend toward smaller, high quality designs with nice amenities.  “More bang for your buck” does not always mean larger homes anymore.

MM: Is it possible to continue to create innovative home designs and products while still allowing modular homes to maintain an edge over stick-built homes when it comes to cost and efficiency of construction?

SS:  While in college one of my architectural professors would say regularly, “Good design does not cost any more than bad design.” That statement is even more relevant when it comes to modular construction. 

The modular construction method has so many efficiencies built into the process that the end result can be nothing more than a superior product that is more cost efficient than stick built. A stable workforce of craftsperson’s, an environmentally controlled building environment, years of experience, and a continuous inspection process all work together to create a process that produces the best quality product at the best price on the market today.

This process coupled with Excel’s commitment to design innovation will provide our customers with a product that sets them apart as leaders in the housing and light commercial construction market going forward.  We have a reputation for providing top quality and service and we intend to be known as the industries innovators also.

MM: What’s next for Excel Homes?

SS: The possibilities are endless. Excel has assembled a team of leaders that have vision and are not restricted by the industries “old way of thinking.” We have some of the best modular industry professionals in the business today coupled with top leaders from other industries to create a fresh approach to doing business that is not willing to except the status quo.

We are not just looking at the design of our homes but the entire process from the marketing of our name and product to how we follow up with the customer after the home is set in place.  Everything is fair game for review as we are committed to finding easier ways for our customers to do business with us, improving our building process and product and following up to make sure it exceeds the expectation of our customers.

At every Excel Homes manufacturing facility , we build every home with attention to detail. That includes keeping each module as clean as possible, inside and out.

Cleanliness is actually one of the many benefits of the modular construction process. Building homes indoors prevents wind, rain and other natural elements (like tiny things with lots of legs) from getting into the home while it’s being built. That can happen in a stick-built home, but it can’t happen to a modular home. In fact, even when the modules are completed and are being transported to their final destination, they’re tightly sealed in a waterproof plastic wrapper.

While each module is being built, our workers are careful not to track in dirt or allow dust to settle in areas where it shouldn’t. And, at the end of the line, a finishing team goes through each modular to clean and touch up any areas that might need it.

Below is a photo of the base of a module at the beginning of the construction process. A plastic cover is used on the floor to keep dust and dirt off of it, even though this surface will later be covered with carpet or tile. That’s right – even in places where you’d never see the dirt, we take measures to make sure it stays clean!

Our friends over at ZN Custom Building, which builds modular homes in the Boston area, put together a video interview with Nick, a happy modular home owner who discusses the money he saved by choosing modular over stick-built. Nick says the $100,000 he saved “was like hitting the lottery.”

Like we talked about previously on Modular Musings (here and here), there are many reasons why a modular home can be built faster than a stick-built home of similar design. Among those reasons is the efficiency of the factory construction process and the fact that while the modules are being built, the foundation and other site preparations can take place simultaneously.

This time savings becomes clear in a pie chart on the Modular Today website. As you can see on the right, the design phase of both modular and traditional homes takes the same amount of time, but the site prep time for the modular home has been combined with the construction time. Though it may be hard to tell, the construction time in the top chart is also slightly less than the bottom due to the efficiency of the modular construction process.

All of this adds up to the ability to build a modular home in 25 percent less time than a stick-built home.

We’re used to thinking of modular homes as houses that are nearly indistinguishable from their stick-built cousins, but technically, a modular home can refer to any home that is constructed in parts at an off-site location and then assembled at its final destination.

Take the home pictured below in Woodland, Utah. It was designed by Gigaplex Architects and is constructed from two metal grain silos, joined together to create one very cool 1,800 square foot house. The circular exterior creates circular rooms inside, and, like many modular homes, the silo house is extremely energy efficient.

Excel Homes doesn’t have any designs that use grain silos, but after seeing this home, we might ask our architects to look into it.

The entire team at Excel Homes is proud to announce that Ray Cudwadie, Excel’s director of commercial sales, has just been appointed by Governor Ed Rendell to serve on the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s Uniform Construction Code Review and Advisory Council. The Council is responsible for monitoring and reviewing all feedback and amended provisions to any of Pennsylvania’s building code standards for construction projects within the Commonwealth.

What makes Ray’s appointment even better is that he’ll be the sole representative from the modular home building industry. It’s no surprise Gov. Rendell chose Ray. After all, he’s got more than 25 years of experience in the commercial construction industry, including architectural design training, engineering management, and sales leadership throughout the entire Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions.

We know Ray will represent the modular industry and Excel Homes well during his tenure on the Council. Said Excel’s own president, Steve Scharnhorst, “I can’t think of anyone better than Ray to do it.”