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Merit Award in Architecture ished concrete floors while the modules were being fabricated.”
The modules are designed to accept a variety of exterior and
bm Modular One interior finishes. For these clients, external materials included cor-
Bethesda, MD rugated metal siding, stucco, and Spanish cedar, while interior
materials included maple flooring, walnut millwork, and an alu-
Robert M. Gurney, FAIA, minum stairway. The result is a residence that is difficult to distin-
Architect guish, both inside and out, from the many beautiful (and award-
winning) conventionally built houses that Gurney has designed
Interior Designer: Baron Gurney Interiors for other clients.
Landscape Architects: Campion Hruby Landscape Architects “Both modern and filled with light, the house employs all of
Structural Engineers: D. Anthony Beale LLC the intended benefits of modular building without compromising
Pre-Fab Contractor: Nationwide Homes proportion, light, scale, and texture,” Gurney said. Future clients
General Contractor: Sandy Spring Builders could combine the modules in different configurations and choose
other finishes to produce houses meeting their own space needs,
While the Four Pavilions house is an example of modularity in material preferences, and budgets.
architectural form, the bm Modular One house in Bethesda, Pre-fab houses have been gaining some traction in the market
Maryland, is an example of truly modular construction. Designed in recent years, but modular systems like Gurney’s could help
by Robert M. Gurney, FAIA, a protégé of Hugh Newell Jacobsen, accelerate that trend. And perhaps not a moment too soon:
with firm member Kara R. McHone as the project architect, the Productivity gains in the construction industry have lagged far
house was constructed by a builder/developer who had substan- behind gains in other industries. In the United States, according to
tial experience building modular houses designed in the one study by the McKinsey Global Institute, the constant-dollar
Craftsman and colonial styles, but who sought a modular design value-added per hour worked in the construction industry has
for a modern, airy residence desired by time- and budget-con- actually dropped by half since the 1960s. Modular systems like
strained clients. Gurney’s could help reverse that trend, making housing more
The 4,760-square-foot, three-bedroom house consists of 13 affordable for people of all income levels.
modules that were built in two weeks at a plant in southern
Virginia, then shipped to the site on flatbed trucks and assembled The bm Modular One house was previously covered in the Summer 2014
on site within two days. issue of ARCHITECTUREDC.
“The energy-efficient shells arrived on site with windows,
plumbing, electrical, and HVAC ducting in place,” said Gurney.
“The interiors were dry-walled, primed, and ready for finishes.
The foundation and basement were constructed on site with pol-

Living room.

Exterior of bm Modular One.

60 BREATHING ROOM Photos © Maxwell MacKenzie Architectural Photographer