new_spaces_07_GB

30 Projects
Household brands
Once you are inside the boat, the extravagant but stylish
interior will take your breath away. “We asked ourselves: ‘What
is the world going to look like in 20 years?’” says Christian
Christiansen, founding CEO at CC Design. Having answered
this question, we then made the design accordingly.” His
company developed this prototype in partnership with Marina
Housing, a Helsinki-based Finnish maker of fl oating structures
that plans to put the boat into production.
The result is a 130 tonne houseboat costing 1.6 million
euros. The vessel, which has been built with sustainable
materials, is equipped with a variety of the latest technologies
from household brands like Danfoss, Duravit, Uno Form, Harman
Nordic, Lauritz Knudsen, Samsung and, of course, Gaggenau.
All of these companies have made their products freely available
for the houseboat project.
The houseboat sailed into the harbour prior to the 2009
United Nations Climate Change Summit, commonly known as
the COP15. A variety of international delegations — most notably
from China and the United States — dropped by to see the boat
during the summit, says Christiansen. The exact outcome of the
visits is unclear. The UFO is furnished like any fancy cosmopolitan
two-storey apartment. However, there are two key differences:
it is energy-effi cient and has a sea view in three of the four
directions. The sea view is especially impressive from the kitchen
area in the centre of the boat, which is equipped with blackstained
Italian poplar wood by uno form. Here, a handful of
Gaggenau’s revolutionary appliances provide everything you
could wish for in terms of comfort. They include a fridge and
freezer from the Vario Cooling 200 series with an energy rating
of A++, an oven, a Combi-steam oven and a coffee machine, all
from the 200 series, an 80 centimetre wide induction cooktop
with Twist-Pad control, a Vario dishwasher, as well as a washing
machine and a dryer.
Splashing around
in a fl oating whirlpool
The UFO is outfi tted with
all of the comforts of a
home in one of the world’s
great cities — including
Scandinavian design and
Gaggenau-fi tted kitchen
appliances (left). The stairs
(bottom right) appear to
fl oat up to the upper deck.
The wood fl oor in the
living room (top right) is
equipped with an underfl
oor heating system that
utilises heat from the
seawater in the harbour.