New Energy Works architect David Shirley AIA, CPHB, is not only a traveling man, but a wearer of several hats. He recently took to the air and the road to check in on an active New Energy Works project, one that’s in the hopper, and to visit a legacy client looking to assimilate more timber into their property.

Born and raised in Tennessee, David relishes the chance to return to his home state. What makes these trips even better is when he can bundle face to face meetings with design clients with visiting his family along the way.

David’s first stop on a loop that included Tennessee, Georgia, and Texas was in the Blue Ridge Mountains where he checked in on a full-service New Energy Works project first outlined here. David flew in to discuss very specific detailing with the builder for this high craft timber frame project and to help them better understand the plans and the New Energy Work’s way of doing things.

Shirley says, “I went out there to make sure that the foundation was laid out correctly from the drawings before they poured and also to go over the connection details with the builder. I had a one-on-one with the builder to explain some of the details that New Energy Works has that he's not familiar with. As an example, there's particular hold-downs that he's never seen before. On the West Coast hold-downs are very common but not so much in the South.

“So, he wanted me to come down and explain to him how this worked. We chit-chatted about the best way install these. He asked if we were going to install them before we put down the concrete or were we going to drill and epoxy and put them in afterwards, which is the method we landed on.” 

We value our partnerships, collaborations, and in turn the relationships that spring from working closely together on projects that are near and dear to all of our hearts. We recently had the opportunity to catch up with one such partner/collaborator, architect Barry Price, who has incorporated our timber frames and enclosures on several projects.

With a focus on reducing the energy a project consumes, we cannot only provide benefits to those enjoying the home and business, but to the community and, on a larger scale, our planet.

Through our collaborations with architect Barry Price, we adhere to this ethos with a partner the cares as deeply about panelization, efficiency, and the environment with as much vigor as we do.

Price says, “For me there is a lot of appeal about panelization, but one of the primary factors is cost predictability. Early in the project and in the process, we were able to get a specific sense of where we will be budget wise to get a building shell up. It answers a lot of questions and what you can expect for the rest of a project.”

For a special project in Woodstock, NY we leaned on our history with Price and our familiarity with his methods to ensure success for the group of three clients and to bring their hopes for a back country collection of close knit and efficient homes to fruition.

Price says, “It’s a unique project in that it’s not a development but a subdivision, and it’s being subdivided by a group of friends. There’s a lot of things that tie them together and they are looking to build together, so they hired me to figure out how to take these 30 acres and subdivide it for three houses.”

“My wife wanted a timber frame or log type home, says homeowner Kevin Knisley, “We kicked around ideas and both of us fell in love with the timber frame aesthetics and the look. We don’t see too many of them in Michigan. I’ve always liked the design and the feeling, that was the main thing. When I built my last house here, I wanted to make it a timber frame house.”

On the bucolic shoreline of Lake Lapeer, Michigan, the Knisley’s built their dream home. “We’ve always wanted to do a timber frame, we love the design, it makes us feel like we’re up North or in the mountains, Montana, or Idaho – but we’re in Michigan, and on the waterfront too."

A special combination and one that is not typical to the region. But then again, the Knisley’s are anything but a typical client. In addition to working with heavy timber, being close to the water was a critical part of the construction of the Knisley’s new home. Because Kevin is a retired airline pilot, he needed an aquatic runway to land his seaplane.

“I knew based off of some of the research and due diligence I had done that I wanted to use New Energy Works,” Knisley says. “They’re a professional group of people; I looked forward to working with them. I knew that they were good, seasoned, veteran journeyman framers and good old fashion wood workers. 

“We did a layout that I took to my architect, and he drew up. Then we got together with New Energy Works. Your architectural team and my architectural team together came up with a final design.” 

That collaboration resulted in an expansive and custom home that postures like an estate but feels like a lodge. “Big timbers are a real masculine type feeling, heavy timbers the bigger the better,” Knisley says. “They look beefy and are very structurally sound and something that’s going to last not just 50 to 100 years but 150 to 200 years.”