A rendering of Missouri S&T’s 2021 solar house. Image submitted by S&T’s Student Design and Experiential Learning Center
Missouri S&T’s Solar House Design Team recently earned a second-place finish in the U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Decathlon Design Challenge. The virtual competition was held in mid-April.
Missouri S&T’s house, named the Freedom to Live Independently, Green Housing for Tomorrow (FLIGHT) Home, earned second place in the Suburban Single-Family Housing Division. Seventy-two teams from 12 countries competed by designing energy-efficient homes that were presented virtually to energy and construction industry experts.
The team says the FLIGHT home represents a net-zero, single-family housing project that combines an environmentally friendly design with technology to grant veterans who have lost lower limbs full mobility in their daily activities. The design includes systems to make cooking, using the restroom and getting dressed easier.
The team’s design brief states that it would locate the home where there would be optimal access to resources for veterans. S&T’s home was designed for the Rolla area due to the close proximity to Fort Leonard Wood, as well as several veteran organizations such as Disabled American Veterans.
The team’s advisors are Dr. Stuart Baur, associate professor of civil, architectural and environmental engineering, and Dr. Heath Pickerill, assistant teaching professor of civil, architectural and environmental engineering at S&T. The team also received design feedback from Daniel Vargas, president and founder of Operation Triage, and Matt Belcher, an officer in Operation Triage. Operation Triage is a non-profit organization that provides home remodeling and renovations to disabled veterans, first responders and active duty service members.