A sustainable house and its Kebony timber façade rise amid the rugged Welsh coastline

The specifications for this new house were as follows: to make the most of the magnificent views of the surrounding landscape, to enhance the potential of the location, while giving priority to the contextual importance of the site, its topography and the trees existing. Passionate about gardening, the clients wanted their home to be suitable for both warm months and harsh winters. The house is partially dug into the site and distributed in such a way as to offer not only magnificent views of the sea, but also numerous accesses to a central atrium populated with trees. The latter composes a winter garden as well as an inspiring circulation space. It serves each of the three levels and places nature at the heart of the house.

The house, carved into the side of the valley among established trees, makes extensive use of Kebony wood. The brand works against deforestation by transforming sustainable wood species, such as pine, into Kebony wood, whose characteristics are comparable – and in some cases superior – to those of precious tropical hardwoods.

Loyn + Co's decision to use sustainably sourced Kebony timber in the construction of this house reflects the current global shift towards sustainable materials in the construction sector. This change will soon become inevitable for architects, builders and real estate developers, in order to quickly curb the effects of climate change – and in particular the destruction of forests, which absorb enormous quantities of CO2.

For James Stroud, director of Loyn + Co Architects: “The new house has been carefully integrated into this complex site, in order to adapt to the differences in levels and the presence of magnificent trees. Its design truly brings the outside inside, not only thanks to the walkway spaces and visual connections between the house and the sea, but also thanks to the interior garden, installed in the central atrium, where nature is the focal point. focal. Simple measures, such as the introduction of Kebony timber cladding in and across the atrium, reinforce the concept. »

For Nina Landbø, international sales director at Kebony: “It’s fantastic to see more and more homes adopting sustainably sourced timber like Kebony. This reduces deforestation of tropical hardwoods and provides a durable and strong alternative to concrete, plastic and steel. Architects Loyn + Co have created a truly special home in Wales, which should serve as an example of how remarkable homes can be created using innovative, eco-friendly materials. »

Kebony is a Norwegian company that aims to become the world's leading wood brand and technology company. The brand's revolutionary technology is an eco-friendly process that modifies sustainably sourced softwoods by heating them with furfuryl alcohol, an agricultural byproduct. By polymerizing their cell walls, softwoods permanently acquire the attributes of tropical hardwoods, including high durability, high hardness and high dimensional stability.