Brave New World
Le Blue Goose, the design-build firm led by Harshil Kakadia, uses advanced technology to provide elegant, efficient, and enduring results for clients’ homes and businesses.
Choosing a firm for home design and construction is a major decision for homeowners, with long-lasting implications. An increasingly popular choice is Le Blue Goose, an established design-build firm based in Skippack that has earned a reputation for using advanced tools and techniques to foster positive results for each project it undertakes.
Harshil Kakadia, the firm’s owner and lead architectural designer, created Le Blue Goose with the future in mind. His experience and knowledge of the Philadelphia area’s building history has helped him create spaces that are elegant, distinctive, and built to last.
“We work with a lot of homes that are typically 100 to 150 years old,” says Kakadia. “They come with their own challenges, but more than that they come with their own opportunities. So there’s always so much potential to work with.”
That potential starts with some cutting-edge tools that Le Blue Goose uses for each project. By investing in 3D scanning technology, Kakadia has made strides to perfect the design process while gaining greater control over lead times and construction costs. Some firms will manually measure the design space, then work with third-party vendors to produce a 3D model off of that data. Not Le Blue Goose.
“That process can take three to four weeks and adds cost to the entire process,” Kakadia explains. “Our 3D spatial scanner technology allows us to scope the spaces that we’re working with before we begin designs. We’re also able to achieve 99 percent perfection with our 3D scanner, which now includes topographical changes, changes in elevations, and any building structural imperfections. It maximizes efficiency while allowing us to focus on perfection.”
Once a 3D model is generated, Le Blue Goose uses artificial intelligence to study efficiency and feasibility of a project.
“Normally, it used to take three to four weeks to get the reports, but now, it is just a matter of three to four hours,” Kakadia adds. “It drastically cuts down our lead times and makes the whole process much more economical for end user.”
Le Blue Goose serves residential, commercial, and nontraditional spaces throughout the Philadelphia area. The firm’s mission includes a deep commitment to the communities it serves; Kakadia says his firm is going to great lengths to achieve 100 percent carbon neutrality with its future projects.
“We committed to going carbon neutral in the work that we do,” he says. “We are not there yet, but we are working very hard to achieve carbon neutrality. There are more opportunities for this across the entire industry, and we work that into every design we do with the goal of getting as close to 100 percent carbon neutral as we can every time.”
That includes utilizing solar panels, geothermal heating and cooling, atmospheric water generators to create water directly from atmospheric moisture, and more. While these tools may help to drive eco-friendly goals across the area, they may also create added value for years to come.
“Many of the older homes that we work with tend to have a lot of challenges when it comes to energy efficiency,” explains Kakadia. “So we start with AI technology to identify where energy efficiency can be an issue, and then recommend carbon-neutral solutions for the building process. AI can access historical sun and wind data, and help us determine best placements for windows and doors. That means we can create a space that is more comfortable and less drafty that also leads to energy cost savings.”
Having worked with Le Blue Goose to generate results for their homes and businesses, many of Kakadia’s clients are considering carbon-neutral technology for their vacation homes both close to home and far afield.
“We have a lot of clients with second homes in the Poconos or at the Jersey Shore that benefit from something like geothermal heating and cooling, which heats and cools a home from a ground source,” he adds. “Since they’re not in these homes year-round, they’re able to keep them comfortable without running expensive heat sources, so they never have to worry about a chilly house when they want to relax.”
Collaboration with environmental engineers, landscape architects, and sustainability experts is a hallmark of Le Blue Goose’s approach. The firm’s team includes architects and designers who are considered pioneers in their field, and known for their ability to seamlessly blend form and function, all while adhering to their carbon-neutral philosophy. The firm’s next projects are focused on utilizing cutting-edge sustainable materials, such as carbon-negative concrete and recyclable, bio-based plastics. Every future design, from the conceptualization to realization, is focused on minimizing the carbon footprint, optimizing energy efficiency, and maximizing the use of renewable resources.
Whereas some fear new technologies such as AI, pioneers such as Le Blue Goose strive to use such advanced tools to create results that add lasting value—not only for the firm’s clients but also for the communities to which they belong.
Le Blue Goose
4013 W. Skippack Pike
Skippack, PA 19474
(610) 584-9800
LeBlueGoose.com
4013 W. Skippack Pike
Skippack, PA 19474
(610) 584-9800
LeBlueGoose.com
Photo by Nina Lea Photography
Published (and copyrighted) in Suburban Life, October 2023.
