Green prefab firm goes Blu

Prefab green home company Blu Homes acquires all assets of Michelle Kaufmann's shuttered firm, mkDesigns.

Tue, Sep 29 2009 at 1:18 PM EST

After it was announced back in May that Michelle Kaufmann’s groundbreaking namesake green prefab design company was closing, I’ve been tracking the revered architect/designer/gingerbread genius’s quick rebound … it’s not hard to since she keeps her admiring fan base up to speed with an excellent blog. Currently, she’s zeroing in on the world of sustainable communities and net-zero energy homes, including work with Aria Denver, a large-scale project that includes an eco-friendly nunnery.

But whatever happened to mkDesgins?

Well, the green building community is abuzz with news that all assets of the company — including the right to build iconic mk homes like the mkLotus and Glidehouse — have been acquired by the Waltham, Mass.-based green prefab firm Blu Homes. Kaufmann will serve as design consultant and join Blu’s advisory board.

Says Blu Homes President Bill Haney:

We are proud to advance the sustainable clean living model that Michelle Kaufmann so courageously began. The addition of Michelle to Blu’s team strengthens our design abilities and adds mkDesigns to the homes we offer, giving consumers a broad range of luxury in the most economical, green and convenient way.

The acquisition announcement from Blu Homes goes on to state:

mkDesigns’ brands will offer customers an eco-luxury product while benefitting from Blu Homes’ innovative technology and building science inventions. Blu’s core brands will continue to focus on value-oriented customers looking for healthy, green living at a mainstream price.

Blu is committed to making homes healthy and affordable for the average American family. Through sophisticated computer modeling, analysis and innovative construction techniques, Blu is able to build beautiful homes, while improving environmental performance, optimizing construction efficiency, and minimizing costs.

Wonderful news. I'm certainly glad Kaufmann's masterworks won't disappear into the ether and will instead evolve under Blu Homes, a vibrant, two-year old company that I'm excited to follow. That's a rendering of a Blu Homes-designed home, The Evolution, above.

Via [Michelle Kaufmann] and [Jetson Green]

Rendering: Blu Homes