case history
NEXT21: An Experiment in Japanese Living
An experimental apartment complex where residents adapt their lifestyles
based on feedback from innovative solar and energy-efficient technologies.
Text and photos by Richard and Yoko Crume
This is the second in an occasional series by Richard Richard Crume works as an environmental engineer
and Yoko Crume on solar and energy-efficient build- and teaches a college course on air pollution assess-
ings in Japan that are designed to meet the societal ment and control. Yoko Crume, Ph.D., is a social
needs of this family- and community-oriented society. work professor, specializing in aging programs.
NEXT21 FACTS
Owner Osaka Gas Co. Ltd.
Location 6-16 Shimizudani-cho,
Tennoji-ku, Osaka City, Japan
Design Supervised by Yositika Uchida
and the SHO-KOH-SHA Architectural
and Urban Design Studio (Shinichi
Chikazumi, President)
Floor space 44,703 ft2 ( 4,153 m2); six
floors and a basement
Apartment units 18 units; size ranging
from 883 to 1,798 ft2 (82 to 167 m2) plus
a 344 ft2 ( 32 m2) single-room efficiency
Completion October 1993 (first occupied in 1994)
