Bradley Edwards Integrates Alternative Energy Systems

Fayetteville architect Bradley Edwards is using international architecture idea competitions to experiment with built-in alternative energy systems.

Edwards, along with intern Lucky McMahon, recently earned a second-place prize in the Living in Boreno competition in Amsterdam with their “fuzzbox” building design.

In their design, the exterior of the “fuzzbox,” named because of its appearance, is covered in thin, 20-centimeter synthetic ceramic tubes — or piezoelectric fibers — that convert air movement into electricity.

“It is a radical and unprecedented use of this technology,” Edwards said. Traditionally, piezoelectricity has been used as the basis of technology for cigarette lighters and the production and detection of sound.

Edwards and McMahon were inspired to use it for power by a technology group out of England that has experimented with weaving the fibers into clothing that could power, for example, a pacemaker.

He estimates the building he designed would be able to power 60 other buildings. However, because piezoelectric fibers are not readily available, such a project would be difficult to build and might be very expensive.

Right now, the team is working with a more practical — and already established — technology, which integrates solar and heat energy. They plan to enter their design, which is part of a children’s museum, in an upcoming contest.