Rpa Firm Brochure

RICHARD PEDRANTI ARCHITECT

Architecture + Building Science

Photography by Rick Wright

Introduction 1

Khabensky Residence

Thank you for taking time to review the RPA firm brochure. RPA is an architecture firm specializing in high performance buildings and Passive House design and engineering. But when people ask me what RPA does, the first thing I think of is the story of how Fred Meyer started his shipping company FedEx. Fred had a revolutionary idea in the shipping industry using one location, Memphis, TN, to ship everything from no matter where it started. This insight helped overcome the logistical challenges of delivering quickly. However, given all of this, when asked what made FedEx successful, Fred replied “We are in the business of satisfying customers.” At RPA we put our clients’ interests, budget, and goals first. A successful project is defined by a delighted client. We look forward to learning about your project and discussing how RPA can help you achieve your goals.

Richard B. Pedranti, AIA ,CPHC, PHCB, HERS, PHlUS+, LEED President

Photography by Rick Wright

Firm Description 2 Richard Pedranti Architect (RPA) is a full service architecture firm serving the Upper Delaware River Region as well as Philadelphia and New York. Since 1998, we have been creating environments that combine our client’s unique values with the extraordinary natural landscape of our region. Located in the historic village of Milford, Pennsylvania, RPA specializes in Passive House and high performance design putting modern building science to work creating beautiful, healthy, comfortable, and energy efficient buildings.

Scranton Passive House Dickerman Residence

Keffer Residence

NY Passive House Conference 2014

Working with Us 3 The foundation of our work is rooted in the understanding that Architecture is about people. Our clients drive our process.

RPA aggressively pursues the partnerships necessary to create buildings that bring joy to their inhabitants.

We strive for simplicity and clarity in our work. Our innovative and elegant design solutions are without stylistic preconceptions and are as unique and diverse as our clients.

We understand designing and constructing successful buildings is a collective effort. RPA brings our clients together with select consultants and partners to create a collaborative design process. Active dialogue from beginning discussions through final construction ensures an outstanding outcome.

Dickerman Residence Site Selection

Philosophy 4 People and Place Our objective is to carefully connect people’s lives with their place. Most of our projects begin by walking the site with our clients. This is an essential first step in creating fundamental connections between the project brief and the site. By identifying site conditions such as solar orientation, views, and landscape characteristics we are able to discover the “essential nature” of the place. The building form grows from these underlying qualities and ensures that each project achieves a unique unity of climate and form.

Sustainability RPA is committed to being at the forefront of sustainable building practices. By incorporating building energy performance standards, we develop timeless architecture that offers unparalleled comfort, while being cost effective, light on resource consumption, and beneficial to the environment.

We specialize in Passive House design, engineering, and construction. Passive House offers today’s most advanced technological approach to creating responsible, comfortable, and healthy buildings.

Case Study 5

Dickerman Residence “I wanted a contemporary design that complimented the natural lakeside setting–a house that was both visually arresting but also extremely functional.

The result is a house with open spaces for entertaining, an easy flow into the landscape, and enough private spaces to work in. The fact that RPA was able to accomplish this with a pretty strict budget still amazes me. Working with Richard has been a dream. He not only listened to all my ideas, but he always pushed them to a better, more interesting place. In my experience, it’s rare to find an architect whose designs are equally informed by aesthetics and the practicality of construction.

The entire process has been deeply satisfying and I ended up with a house that was better than I could have ever imagined.”

Colin Dickerman, homeowner

Dickerman Residence

Case Study 6

Dickerman Residence DESCRIPTION A modern weekend retreat for a New York City publishing executive interested in enjoying the outdoors. Built near a secluded lake outside the village of Narrowsburg, NY in the Upper Delaware River Valley, this compact house sits on the edge of a sloping, densely wooded and boulder-strewn escarpment with filtered views of the lakeshore.

DESIGN The design goal was a cost and energy efficient retreat house that settled lightly on the landscape. The building is on piers and has the feel of a tree house set on the edge of a wildflower meadow with views to the lake and forest. Primary features of this weekend retreat house are its simple, open form and clean aesthetic. It emphasizes natural materials including a stone fireplace, Douglas Fir interior finishes, and indoor / outdoor rooms with a visual connection to the natural setting. The open plan also includes private spaces and features that make it a perfect writer’s retreat.

Case Study 7

Loughnane Residence “This house embraces the beauty of nature, while leveraging the comfort of modern systems. As a lifelong city dweller, this is my oasis of serenity and quiet in the country. I could not have been more pleased with the outcome.�

John Loughnane, homeowner

Photography by Rick Wright

Case Study 8

Loughnane Residence DESCRIPTION A spacious weekend retreat home on a large wooded lot in an established lake community in Pike County, Pennsylvania.

The city-based owners desired that the architecture echo the style of their previous mid-century house but better integrate into the woodland surroundings. The project also demanded state-of-the-art home automation systems, heating, cooling, and security features.

DESIGN Connection with the natural setting was critical. The views of the forest from inside the house are as important as those from the outdoor spaces. Key features are open continuous space, room transforming shoji screens, abundant natural light, George Nakashima influences, natural materials, a repository for art, literary, and film collections, and stone fireplaces. The lower level is for entertainment with a home theatre, billiard room, wine cellar with tasting area, and exercise room. The house includes fully automated smart systems and remote monitoring capabilities. The well-blended exterior includes cedar siding, standing seam metal roof, and a landscape with native Pennsylvania bluestone walls and paths.

Photography by Rick Wright

Case Study 9

Mullane Residence “As a professional building contractor based in New York City, I wanted my country home to capture the essence of this spectacular setting and integrate with the vernacular building forms of the region. Details matter to me and Pedranti’s design hit the nail on the head.”

Lawrence Mullane, contractor and homeowner

Photography by Rick Wright

Case Study 10

Mullane Residence DESCRIPTION The site for this weekend retreat house is a decommissioned bluestone quarry near Woodstock, New York. The quarry, with views reminiscent of 19th Century Hudson River School of Art painting, provided a dramatic and unique design opportunity.

DESIGN The exterior style reflects the vernacular barn shape and scale of the mid-Hudson region. Hybrid construction of exposed post and beam allows an open floor plan. The dramatic floor-to-ceiling glass front faรงade provides jaw dropping views of the Catskill Mountains from every room in the house. These high tech glass walls with sliding panels provide passive solar heating, a seamless connection to the landscape, natural light, and fresh mountain breezes in summer. The well-insulated walls and ceiling along with an energy efficient ground source heat pump system with radiant floor heat provides comfort in the winter. A woodstove helps take the chill off on spring and fall mornings. A ground mounted PV solar system will someday make this residence net zero energy.

Photography by Rick Wright

Passive House 11

Imagine living in a comfortable, modern house with no cold drafts, no temperature variations from room to room and, astoundingly, virtually no heating or cooling bills. It might sound too good to be true, but these pleasant conditions are the norm for people who live in a Passive House.

“Passive House” is today’s most energy efficient building standard. Buildings that meet the Passive House standard use 80% less energy for heating and cooling than conventional buildings yet are markedly more comfortable and healthy than traditional buildings. A Passive House conserves energy by creating a virtually air-tight, super insulated, compact building enclosure that uses the sun and the heat emanating from people and equipment in the house to achieve a comfortable indoor environment. A ventilation system including what is called a heat recovery ventilator or HRV is used to provide a continuous supply of filtered fresh air. Added all together, Passive House offers a triple bottom line: (1) personal health and comfort, (2) energy efficiency, and (3) affordability.

“Maximize your gains, minimize your losses” These are the basic tenants of the Passive House approach. A Passive House project maximizes the energy efficiency of a buildings basic components: the roof, walls, windows, floors and utility systems. By minimizing a building’s energy losses with smart insulation, the heating and cooling system is not called on nearly as frequently, saving resources and operating costs, while reducing the homes impact on the environment. Unlike other structures, Passive House buildings maintain occupant comfort for more hours of the year without relying on active heating and air-conditioning equipment.

With a history of inexpensive fuel and undisciplined construction techniques, there has been little need to consider the impact of energy losses through poorly engineered building enclosures. Typical construction is plagued with low levels of insulation, high air infiltration, and thermal bridging between interior and exterior. Today’s enlightened homeowner is seeking a new approach for better living.

Exploded axonemetric of Scranton Passive House

Scranton Passive House

RPA Services 12 ARCHITECTURE PASSIVE HOUSE CONSULTING CPHC

Certified Passive House Consultant

CPHB

Certified Passive House Builder

PHIUS+ Rater

Certified Passive House rater

BUILDING PERFORMANCE CONSULTING Certified HERS rater through RESNET Energy Auditing Energy Modeling Building diagnostics

HISTORIC PRESERVATION Preservation Rehabilitation Restoration Adaptive reuse

MASTER PLANNING LANDSCAPE DESIGN

Contact 129 Sawkill Avenue Milford, PA 18337 Office

(570) 296-0466

www.richardpedranti.com

For inquiries or to learn more about working with RPA contact: Richard Pedranti richard@richardpedranti.com Mobile

(294) 294-9818

© COPYRIGHT 2016

RICHARD PEDRANTI ARCHITECT ALL RIGHTS RESERVED