The Adaptable House : Designing Homes for Change

Author Avi Friedman believes that rather than being unchangeable, physical environments should be designed and constructed to easily adjust to the evolving lifestyle of their inhabitants. A home, he contends, should be structurally flexible enough to adapt to changes such as children "leaving the nest," elderly relatives moving in, or the need for home office space..

. Written by an internationally recognized flexible housing advocate, The Adaptable House provides specific design approaches and techniques that facilitate flexible design--both on the inside and outside--making it simple to alter a dwelling layout, demolish partitions or build new ones, upgrade heating systems, change the locations of stairs, etc..

. The book is divided into three logical sections: the first sets the stage for adaptability, the second outlines relevant principles, and the last shows their actual application. Packed with floor plans, drawings, photos, and charts to fully and clearly illustrate his suggestions, The Adaptable House includes detailed coverage of:.
* Interior layouts and room configurations.
* Exterior elements such as roofs and facades.
* New building materials and methods.
* Easy add-on and remodels.
* Single-family and multiple dwelling housing.

. The Adaptable House is a master blueprint for those interested in creating homes that can be quickly, easily, and inexpensively redesigned to meet the dynamic nature of the occupants' life.

Avi Friedman received his Bachelor of Architecture degree from the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, his master of Architecture degree from McGill University, and his Ph.D. from the Universite de Montreal. He cofounded the Affordable Homes Program at the McGill School of Architecture, where he is an Associate Professor..

. Avi Friedman is the author of the books The Grow Home and Planning the New Suburbia: Flexibility by Design. He has written extensively on subjects ranging from prefabrication and construction technology to suburban planning and space management..

. Dr. Friedman has worked as the head of design for a homebuilding firm in Montreal. He has designed housing prototypes that were constructed by homebuilders in the private sector. The Grow Home, a narrow-front rowhouse, received immense media attention and has since been built in communities across North America. The Next Home, also the subject of much media scrutiny, is a flexible and affordable housing type. Dr. Friedman's design work and projects have been covered extensively on TV shows such as ABC's Good Morning America, Dream Builders, and Stewart Brand's How Buildings Learn (British Broadcasting Corporation), in magazines such as Popular Science, Architecture, and Home, and in newspapers including The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and San Francisco Examiner. Avi Friedman has been a speaker at meetings of government officials, development authorities, university faculties and students, homebuilders, architects, and planners. He has received numerous awards for his research, design, and teaching, including the American Institute of Architects Education Honors, the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture Creative Achievement Award, the Progressive Architecture Research Award, the Manning Award for Technological Innovation, and the United Nations World Habitat Award. He is also Wallpaper's designation as one of the 10 people who will change the way we live--an award shared by noted architect Rem Koolhaas, Ingvar Kamprad, founder of Ikea, and Sven Mattisson, co-developer of the Bluetooth microchip..