Just last week we covered SRS Energy's Solé Power Tiles, which disguise solar panels as clay roof tiles. Now a similarly unobtrusive solution for cloudier climes is on the horizon. RidgeBlade is a wind-power system that can be fitted to buildings with minimum visual impact and maximum energy conversion potential. This micro-generation system employs discreetly housed cylindrical turbines positioned horizontally along the apex of a sloping roof. The slope of the roof naturally channels wind into the turbine chamber, meaning RidgeBlade can "produce electricity under low or variable wind conditions." This high efficiency means that the system could pay for itself within a few years.

Designed by a former Rolls Royce turbine engineer under the wing of UK-based The Power Collective, RidgeBlade is one of six finalists in the Dutch Postcode Lottery's Green Challenge. Director Dean Gregory presented the design to judges today at Picnic '09 in Amsterdam. If they are successful, the team will receive a EUR 500,000 grand prize (or EUR 100,000 if they are one of the two runner-ups) to help them bring the design to market within the next two years. It's a rapidly accelerating industry—one to get involved in now! (Related: Urban windmills.)

Update 25 Sept 2009 | RidgeBlade won the EUR 500,000 Green Challenge Prize! "It's beyond a dream,” said English entrepreneur Dean Gregory when Skype founder Niklas Zennström, a contest juror, announced his name. "This means we can focus solely on bringing this to market." Gregory entered the Challenge on behalf of the English company The Power Collective Limited—after finding out about it two days before the deadline.

Website: www.thepowercollective.com
Contact: info@thepowercollective.com

Spotted by: PICNIC Amsterdam

High-end appliance manufacturer Gorenje is showing ovens and fridges in a different light through their recent collaboration with New York-based designer Karim Rashid. Appliances in Gorenje's new line feature colour-adjustable LED strips, making the Slovenian company the first home appliance manufacturer to offer a solution that allows the users to change the colour of their oven or refrigerator. Gorenje is no stranger to pushing the boundaries of home appliance design. Back in 2006, we featured their Swarovski crystal-encrusted fridges; since then there have been collaborations with top designers Pininfarina and Ora-Ïto.

But this latest line of products is perhaps conceptually their most interesting. Rashid builds on a trend that started in a London hotel: St. Martin's Lane enabled guests to sculpt the lightscape of their rooms back in the '90s. The concept then moved into homes with Philips Living Colours lighting range, which allows people to change a room's colour to suit their mood or to create a different ambience. Applying the concept to large appliances like fridges and ovens is a logical next step. “Today we are dealing with a society based on experience, so objects need to blur experience with form", explains Rashid, reflecting the theme of trendwatching.com's 2006 briefing on insperiences. (Related: White goods morph into whiteboards.)

Website: www.gorenje.com
Email: info@gorenje.si

Converting to solar energy means covering a roof in unsightly solar panels. Not necessarily: Philadelphia company SRS Energy has developed the Solé Power Tile, a roof tile designed to sustainably convert sunlight into electricity without compromising aesthetics. The dark blue tiles, manufactured by SRS Energy, are jointly branded and distributed by US Tile and specifically designed to be compatible with the clay roof tiles manufactured by US Tile. Customers who purchase clay tiles will be given the option to upgrade a section of their roof to Solé Power Tiles. When installed, the system can offset a large proportion of a homeowner's energy costs—not to mention cleaning their carbon conscience. The tiles are available in select West Coast markets this autumn, with a nationwide rollout planned for spring 2010.

SRS Energy says that the Solé tiles, made from a high-performance polymer often used in car bumpers, are lightweight, unbreakable and recyclable. Flexible solar technology by United Solar Ovonic is embedded inside each tile, allowing them to function independently of each other. Meanwhile, the performance of the system as a whole is monitored remotely by SRS Energy and US Tile. The director of engineering at SRS Energy is J.D. Albert, who also developed the electronic ink technology used in Amazon Kindle and the Sony Reader.

What's so attractive about the Solé Power Tile system he and his team have produced is that it makes it easy for consumers to make a green choice, without having to settle for a product they find unappealing. With more tile styles and colours in the pipeline, SRS Energy could soon be enjoying a big chunk of eco-bounty, as will any other company that can remove the disincentives from sustainable technology.

Website: www.srsenergy.com
Contact: www.srsenergy.com/ContactUs.aspx

Spotted by: Anne-Marie Fischer

Eco houses may not yet be the norm, but there's no doubt green-minded consumers have increasing options for making one their own. Last year we wrote about FreeGreen's downloadable green house plans, and now a German company has come up with a modular design based on Lego-style blocks that consumers can put together themselves.

The HIB-System is an eco-friendly home design that's soundproof, insulated, energy-efficient and structurally sound without the use of any chemicals or toxins. Based on modular blocks created from naturally cut timber, local Black Forest pine and insulation materials including wood chips, clay, mussel shells and pea shingle gravel, HIB-System homes can be assembled quickly by consumers themselves or with limited help. The blocks, which weigh no more than 25 kg each, are easily handled without the need for expensive lifting devices and lock into each other in Lego fashion. The resulting construction is earthquake- and storm-proof even at three storeys tall, and a concrete floor can be added for even greater strength and stability. Interior and exterior walls can be finished in plaster, wood, brick or metal finishes; they are also mould-proof, and the insulation used achieves energy-efficiency levels 40 percent higher than those attained using standard insulation materials, HIB says. Consumers who use the HIB-System can either design their own houses or choose from an array of models pre-designed by professional architects. For construction, HIB can recommend local, certified partners to provide assistance, or consumers can do it themselves using HIB's pre-planned system whereby components are cut to size and numbered in the factory prior to delivery.

Meißenheim-based HIB is currently seeking partners for planning, building and sales throughout Germany. Alternatively, how about being the first to bring the concept to eco-minded consumers in your neck of the woods...?

Website: www.hib-system.com
Contact: info@hib-system.com

Spotted by: Alexander Maurer

Housing referrals are a tried and tested way of connecting landlords and tenants by inviting current residents to refer people in exchange for a finders fee. Aiming to leverage the strength of social media, RentMineOnline took the next natural step and added Facebook to the mix. The venture is effectively an online affiliate program for real-world house rental. Through RentMineOnline, property managers send bulk messages to their tenants informing them of a new campaign. Tenants can then send notifications via their social network of choice: Facebook, Plaxo, Twitter or email, and property managers can monitor the reach of each referral campaign in real time.

It's a win-win service on all sides. Current residents have the opportunity to help out friends and earn some extra cash (typically from USD 50 to USD 1500). Referred tenants have the security of signing with a vouched-for landlord, and possibly moving in next door to a friend. RentMineOnline takes a sales fee for each campaign from property managers, while the managers themselves benefit from a massive catchment pool of potential tenants, most of whom will be related by both demographic and location to current tenants.

The last point is key. As the presence of social media continues to grow, the question is increasingly becoming not whether, but how companies are going to harness it. For entrepreneurs, RentMineOnline looks to have created a model that should work equally well in other parts of the world. (Related: Crowdsourcing the sales force — Referral community for domestic help — Tapping into the referral economy.)

Website: www.rentmineonline.com
Contact: sales@rentmineonline.com

Spotted by: John Greene