While actual job-site construction and completion takes about three months, the entire cycle time—from order placement to delivery—typically runs 14 months, during which Huf Haus not only encourages clients to be actively involved in their houses’ design, but also invites them, wherever they live, to visit its factory in Germany, where all of its homes are shipped to locations around the globe. “That’s really the best part of the process,” says Kolbe.
(While the logistics of a plant visit might be inconvenient for some customers, the concept isn’t far-fetched. In a recent interview with BUILDER, Jerry Smalley, CEO of Maryland-based modular manufacturer Haven Custom Homes, said that many of the builders to whom his company sells bring their buyer-clients to Haven’s factory.)
Huf Haus’ post-and-beam architecture—which Kolbe claims requires “three times the engineering hours” as a regular stick-built house—and the manufacturer’s attention to construction integrity and design, are features that dotGreen is promoting heavily in the States. When he spoke with BUILDER on Tuesday, Kolbe pointed specifically to steel-reinforced beams that can meet most markets’ wind- and earthquake-resistance requirements. The company adds an insulating layer to all of its wood panels in the exterior walls to reduce thermal bridges, and all walls are engineered for enhanced energy efficiency. (In its marketing, Huf Haus calls this combination of open architecture and energy efficiency its “green [r]evolution.”)
Inside, rooms are designed for comfort and utility. Floor-to-ceiling triple-glazed windows bathe the rooms with sunlight. Those windows that open and close are mounted on frames “with the heaviest hinges” to provide security and allow them to either swing like a door or tilt inward. Second-floor slabs are made with concrete and steel panels, as well as four inches of insulation to muffle noise. “So if you have hardwood flooring on the second floors, you can jump up and down on them and the people below won’t hear it,” Kolbe says.
John Caulfield is senior editor for BUILDER magazine
Learn more about markets featured in this article: Cleveland, OH, Seattle, WA.
