ReSOLution- Solar Decathlon 2002
Carnegie Mellon's participation in first-ever Solar Decathlon in 2002 was truly a unique experience, actually enabling students to engage in the design and construction of a solar house. It generated new levels of student awareness, as well as heightened interest in sustainability within the Pittsburgh community. The first decathlon house was designed with a systems engineering approach, utilizing three parts-1) improved unit design, 2) flexible and adaptable technologies, and 3) a rationalized construction process. The team was concerned with integrating those three ideas, with a particular focus on the urban context of solar designed homes.
Pittsburgh Synergy-
Solar Decathlon 2005
http://www.pittsburghsynergy.org The interest generated by the 2002 Decathlon lead to the collaboration between three Pittsburgh-area schools that became 'Pittsburgh Synergy': Carnegie Mellon, The University of Pittsburgh, and The Art Institute of Pittsburgh. The 2005 design continued on previous Decathlon themes of Urban Housing Design. The team was committed to an urban house, as they saw urban design as a fundamentally sustainable design strategy, unlike continuous suburban sprawl. In combination with passive and active solar design (such as house orientation and PV panels), they believe urban communities could be created with an improved quality of life for current and future generations. 2005 also saw the start of Carnegie Mellon's collaboration with students from Technische Universitat Darmstadt (TUD) in Darmstadt, Germany. The collaboration began when Barbara Gehrung, a German student, came to work for Carnegie Mellon architecture professors in the early 2000's. There she learned of the Solar Decathlon competition and expressed interest for her school to work with Carnegie Mellon on the project. Thus a collaboration between TUD and Carnegie Mellon began.
Solar Decathlon 2007
TUD submitted its own proposal for the 2007 Solar Decathlon, with agreed plans for Carnegie Mellon and TUD to collaborate. The two schools selected adjacent lots on the National Mall and have designed a shared deck community space between the two school sites.
Carnegie Mellon Solar Decathlon has grown to included multiple colleges within the University and enlists the talents of other area schools, including The University of Pittsburgh and The Art Institute of Pittsburgh. Read more in Team, Design or at the TUD SD Website.
