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Readers who follow this website are no doubt familiar with the innovative German wall system used in our second eco-home (currently under construction), the Meadowlark House. The HIB-System's wooden building blocks are a sustainable and environmentally-friendly product, and the Meadowlark is the first project utilizing this cutting-edge technology in the United States. The walls have been tested in a German laboratory to withstand 180 m.p.h. winds and 8.0 earthquakes, and are completely biodegradable.
Last Monday, the Greensburg City Council signed a letter of intent with HIB which outlines the incentives the company will receive should they make Greensburg their North American headquarters. This is a big step for HIB and our community, and we wanted to share the history of this relationship, which has been a long time in the making.
Back in 2008, GreenTown started talking with HIB representatives, who were interested in having us use their product in a demonstration project. After many discussions, and feeling very impressed with their system, we included their product in the building specs as one of three options for the home design contest we sponsored in 2009 in association with FreeGreen.com. GreenTown Executive Director Daniel Wallach says, "We wanted their product because it's new and innovative, and that's what Greensburg is all about." Meadowlark House, designed by Steven Learner Studio and utilizing the HIB blocks, was selected as the winning design by our panels of judges, comprised of both Greensburg residents and renowned building industry professionals.
Greensburg GreenTown is a charitable nonprofit organization working in Greensburg, Kansas to rebuild the town following the devastating tornado in May of 2007.
