WASH, DC — A team entry submitted by design firms WATG and IDEO earned the top honor in the U.S. Green Building Council's inaugural Sustainable Suite Design Competition.
The USGBC, which conducted the contest with the American Society of Interior Designers and hospitality industry group NEWH, announced the winner of their competition yesterday.
The winning professional entry and the top student entry, an effort by a team called Starter Kits from the Parsons New School for Design, were among a pool of 65 entries in the contest.
Competitors were tasked to come up with a hotel suite that features the ultimate in environmentally responsible interior design -- and pays particular attention to energy and water conservation -- while providing an outstanding guest experience.
The WATG-IDEO entry (pdf), called Hapik for the Greek term for experiences that are based on touch, features an "all-off" switch that shuts of lights automatically throughout the suite with the help of passive infrared sensors; a Trombe wall in the shower that harnesses solar heat to warm the shower water; and a graywater irrigation system to capture used shower water, filter it and recycle it to water gardens and landscaping.
The professional team is to build its design. It is scheduled to go on display at the 2010 Hospitality Design Expo and Conference in May in Las Vegas.
Original image courtesy of the USGBC.