An Open Building Strategy for Achieving Dwelling Unit Autonomy in Multi-Unit Housing

Abstract

In the next 20 years, increasing numbers of American families will choose to live in urban areas for reasons such as proximity to work and cultural amenities. In light of that trend, this article reported on a model of a service-oriented building industry to help produce housing suited to individual household preferences in environments where the detached house is not possible. It specifically addressed the critical need to achieve autonomy of the individual dwelling in mulit-unit buildings to reduce social and technical conflict under conditions of change and distributed control.