Marvin and Integrity at AIA

The AIA Convention begins today, May 12, in New Orleans. This is an exciting trade show and a chance for architects and design professionals to discover new products and ideas.

Running through May 14, AIA 2011 promises to be full of information and education. According to AIA, the Exposition “introduces you to more than 800 exhibitors to discover new products, technologies, and services—professional resources that you can implement in your practice or project.

Marvin will be there (along with Integrity Windows and Doors). Stop by booth 1453 to see great products like the Ultimate Glider with the new White Painted Interior Finish and the ever-amazing Ultimate Lift and Slide. And don’t forget that we offer more than 150,000 product options that meet or exceed the stringent federal ENERGY STAR standards.

And the learning doesn’t stop there! The Conference has “200+ planned program offerings, including pre-convention workshops, theme presentations, continuing education learning units (CEUs) and expo education—all specifically designed to be convenient, plentiful, and well rounded. The diversity of offerings, from business planning to marketing and business development, from zero net energy design to building codes, allows you to enhance your knowledge of design, practice management, and career development.

Extending the learning opportunities beyond the convention center, AIA New Orleans will host a variety educational tours that explore the soulful flavor of the city’s architecture—from historic and modern, to recently restored. In just four days, and in a single location, you can earn all of the CEUs you need for 2011.”

If you can’t make it to the show, follow Marvin Windows for details about our new products, cool things we’re finding at the show and relevant 2011 trends.

Warroad, Minn., October 28, 2010 – From a farmhouse in Vermont to a restored Victorian in San Francisco, the 10 winners in this year’s myMarvin Architect’s Challenge vary widely in design.

What they have in common is beauty, creativity and sustainability — as well as windows and doors from Marvin, the nation’s leader in made to order wood and clad wood windows and doors.

Marvin Windows and Doors is proud to announce the winners of the 2010 myMarvin Architect’s Challenge, an annual contest recognizing the best in modern design.

“These winning projects are an inspiring display of architecture,” said Brett Boyum, director of marketing for Marvin Windows and Doors. “Whether a faithful historic restoration or a completely original creation, these architects show what’s possible with inspiration and a focus on quality.”

Dining room in Palo Alto home, one of this year’s winners. More photos of this and other winning projects here.

A brief list of winning projects follows. More complete 2010 Architect’s Challenge winning case studies are available, along with downloadable photos.

Judging for the challenge was done by acclaimed architects Carson Looney, FAIA, of Looney Ricks Kiss, Memphis, Tenn.; William Kreager, FAIA, of Mithun, Seattle; and Mark McInturff, FAIA, of McInturff Architects, Bethesda, Md.

• Vermont Farm Villa: John Tittmann (Albert, Righter & Tittmann, Boston)
• MD Residence, Santa Rosa, Calif.: Kent Chilcott (Kent Chilcott Studio, Santa Rosa, Calif.)
• Family Home, Palo Alto, Calif.: Catharine Fergus Garber and Daniel Garber (Fergus Garber Group, Palo Alto, Calif.)
• Vacation Home, Pomfret, Vt.: Jeff Stetter (Gossens Bachman Architects, Montpelier, Vt.)
• Smyrna Opera House, Smyrna, Del.: Jay Cooperson (Cooperson Associates, Wilmington, Del.)
• Quick Residence, Jaffrey, N.H.: Frank Riepe (Building Arts, Sudbury, Mass.)
• Island House, New York: Jacob Albert (Albert, Righter & Tittmann, Boston)
• City Market Restoration, Kansas City, Mo.: Susan Richards Johnson (Susan Richards Johnson & Associates Inc., Kansas City)
• Victorian Conversion, San Francisco: Alexander Seidel (Alexander Seidel FAIA, San Francisco)
• Minnehaha Creek Addition, Minneapolis: Todd Hansen and Christine Albertsson (Albertsson Hansen Architecture Ltd., Minneapolis)

About the 2010 myMarvin Architect’s Challenge

The myMarvin Architect’s Challenge recognizes the best architecture by practitioners in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. The decisions of the judging panel are based on solution-driven design, classical beauty, innovative use of windows, and sustainability. Use of Marvin windows or patio doors in the project is a requirement.

Winners are flown to Minneapolis for an AIA tour of architecturally significant buildings in the Twin Cities. They also visit the Marvin factory in Warroad, Minn., where they learn more about how skilled craftspeople build every Marvin window and door precisely to order.

Consider these findings from a recent study of older Americans (age 55 and up) by the Mature Market Institute:

• Nearly two-thirds (63%) plan to stay in their current home as long as they can. That number rises to 78 percent for those aged 75 and older
• Eight in 10 prefer a single-story home to a two-story or split-level, with 75 percent preferring to have the master bedroom on the main floor
• Windows that open easily rank among the top features that consumers said would help them remain in their homes longer, with 81 percent of consumers citing them as important. Other key desired features include a washer/dryer (90%), ample storage space (84%), and an easily operated thermostat (73%)
• Energy efficiency also ranked high on the list of desired features, with 73 percent of consumers saying that features such as windows with low-emissivity glass and EnergyStar-rated appliances are important to them

Those findings highlight why more than 80 percent of the builders surveyed in the same study indicated that they included Universal Design features in their 55+ community homes.

These features include:

• Wider doors and hallways
• Lever door handles
• Lower kitchen cabinets
• Larger medicine cabinets
• Attached garages with garage door openers
• Non-slip floors
• Larger medicine cabinets
• Easy opening windows

Recent census data shows that more than 29% of Americans aged 64 and over suffer some form of physical disability that makes it difficult for them to climb stairs, open doors and windows, or use a historically designed bathroom. That number reinforces the need for Universal Design when it comes to home building and remodeling for an aging – yet still independent – population.

Marvin Windows and Doors is responding to the growing need for Universal Design with products like:

• The Ultimate Casement line of windows, which swivel 140 degrees in “wash mode” to allow owners to wash the outside of the window from inside the house
• The Ultimate Push Out Casement, with wash mode plus the added ease of a simple push to open – no crank to turn
• The Low Profile, High Performance Sill – fits flush to the floor for easy access to patios and decks
• Unsurpassed hardware that makes opening even the largest windows a breeze

For more information on Universal Design, visit the Center for Universal Design